The eighth annual Aspen Words Youth Poetry Slam went virtual this spring, capping an expanded poets-in-schools project that ran for more than three months for young people in the Roaring Fork Valley.
“Poets are often at the forefront of revolution,” Aspen Words poetry project coordinator Ellie Scott said in her introduction to the live virtual April 29 slam, “illuminating the dark places in ourselves and in our systems.”
That proved true among this year’s bold crop of young local poets who, after a tumultuous year of societal upheaval, underscored how they are the tip of the spear of progressive thought and action here in Colorado and across the U.S.
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The COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down in so many ways. In tourist destinations heavily reliant on travelers from far-flung cities across the globe, the impact has been profound. The dialogue changed from over-crowding and sustainable tourism to safety and basic survival overnight. The darkest days of the spring 2020 quarantine saw us hiding in our homes, stockpiling toilet paper, running low on Clorox wipes, and hosting Zoom happy hours. An unprecedented mountain town real estate boom was the furthest thing from anyone’s mind.
Aspen Times file
This February photo shows the U.S. Forest Service ’bone yard’ where materials are stored next to Crown Mountain Park. Debate has started on future uses.
Aspen Times file
A preliminary report on potential future uses of 76 acres of valuable public land in the middle Roaring Fork Valley suggests further investigation into recreation, conservation and possibly providing a site for affordable housing.
Eagle County chief financial officer Jill Klosterman stressed in a presentation to Eagle County commissioners Tuesday that the process is just getting underway and the staff has made no assumptions on the direction.
“We’re just listening to what the community was telling us,” Klosterman said.
Buttermilk To Open for Summer
Aspen Snowmass will open for the summer season Memorial Day Weekend, May 29-31, at
Buttermilk. This marks the first time Buttermilk will be open to the public in the summer. Guests can sightsee, hike, play disc golf and enjoy food and beverage options from the Cliffhouse restaurant, all accessed by the Summit Express chairlift. Summer operations at Buttermilk will continue weekends, Friday through Sunday, until June 20.
Snowmass will kick-off summer June 21 with daily operations running until Sept. 6. Weekend operations, Friday through Sunday, will continue at Snowmass through the month of September until closing day Oct. 3. Sightseeing and gondola rides on the Elk Camp Gondola and Elk Camp Chairlift, Snowmass Bike Park, Lost Forest, hiking, Camp Aspen Snowmass, food and beverage options at Elk Camp restaurant and more will be available at Snowmass this summer.
The price of single-family homes in Glenwood Springs and the Roaring Fork Valley has always run higher than the average Colorado home, but some say it’s now hit a crisis point.
The median price of a Glenwood Springs home was $713,500 in March a 24.2% increase from last year’s median price of $573,500, according to the Colorado Association of Realtors.
There have been 39 homes sold in the first three months of 2021, up 9.5% from last year at the same time where 32 homes had been sold through March of 2020.
March had an inventory of 26 homes for sale, which was 53.6% less than the inventory for March of 2020, where 56 homes were listed for sale.