The Roundup | Residents’ offer accepted, mussel source found, a river that flows free

Thank you, as always, for reading and supporting the valley’s only nonprofit, investigative news origination, as we share the latest of our summer reporting below. And please check our website or pick up the Aspen Daily News Saturday through Monday for a new three-part series from Paul Andersen exploring the historic legacy of public lands across the U.S. and  in our backyard. Andersen is also the reporter behind Aspen Journalism’s 10-part In search of community series and the four-part the second coming of Albert Schweitzer.

– Curtis Wackerle
Editor and Executive Director
Aspen Journalism

Cultural events define the summer scene in Aspen. Could it ever become ‘too much’?

Aspen and Snowmass Village host an extraordinary range of cultural events, from food and wine to music, film, all manner of the arts, heritage, and even “Ideas” festivals. This abundance traces back to the 1949 Goethe Bicentennial, which sparked institutions like the Aspen Institute and Music Festival. Over decades, new events joined the mix. The sheer volume, especially in summer, can feel “mindboggling,” according to Cristal Logan of the Aspen Institute. Today, fresh festivals continue to emerge, prompting local leaders to weigh the benefits of cultural growth against the need to sustain community well-being.

Two local mobile home parks enter due diligence, but what about the rest?

Residents of Aspen-Basalt and Mountain Valley Mobile Home Park are under contract for a collective $42 million to purchase the land under their homes from corporate owners, kicking off a 45-day due diligence period that started July 29th in which the parks will undergo property inspections. Even with uncertainty around infrastructure costs and final subsidies, Tim Townsend, director of resident-owned communities for Boulder-based nonprofit Thistle Community Housing, is optimistic that the final financing package, which will guide future lot rents, will be in a reasonable range for residents to move forward with the purchase. Local governments, philanthropists, residents and nonprofits have helped raise the funds, but long-term responsibility for keeping mobile home parks affordable in the future will need to fall to the state legislature and local governments to keep mobile home parks affordable, possibly through acquiring land.

West Slope source of zebra mussels identified

The source of zebra mussels, an invasive species threatening the Colorado River, the Government Highline Canal, Highline Lake and Mack Mesa Lake is believed to have been found. On July 3, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials discovered a large number of adult zebra mussels in a privately owned body of water in western Eagle County. Mitigation has started, and the location will not be released. CPW staff found the lake by searching Google maps for bodies of water on private property near the Colorado River and then calling property owners and asking if they could inspect their lakes. The discovery of the source pond in Eagle County is a step in the right direction, but it doesn’t mean the fight against zebra mussels is over. CPW will continue sampling and mitigation work.

River District seeks to head off Front Range Shoshone deal concerns 

In order to defuse what Colorado River Water Conservation District General Manager Andy Mueller said could be “an ugly contested hearing before the CWCB,” the River District is proposing that the state water board take a neutral position on the exact amount of water tied to the Shoshone hydropower plant water rights and let a water court determine a final number. The River District, which represents 15 counties on the Western Slope, is planning to purchase some of the oldest and largest non-consumptive water rights on the Colorado River from Xcel Energy for nearly $100 million. The water rights, which are tied to the Shoshone hydropower plant in Glenwood Canyon, are essential for downstream ecosystems, cities, endangered fish, and agricultural and recreational water users. As part of the deal, the River District is seeking to add an instream flow water right to benefit the environment to the hydropower water rights.

Local nonprofit helps indigenous youth on first descent of the free flowing Klamath River

A group of youths completed a historic 310-mile kayak journey down the Klamath River—the first full descent since four major dams were removed. Led by Aspen-based nonprofit Ríos to Rivers’ Paddle Tribal Waters, a program that trains Native youth in river navigation, environmental stewardship, and cultural revitalization. With salmon returning and water quality improving, the journey symbolized restoration—for the ecosystem and for tribal communities. Eleanor Bennett traveled to the basin to interview the youths and witness the historic moment. Read or listen to the story. 

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