Open Space & Trails

State of the
Aspen Area

Speaker
Series

Aspen Economy
White Paper

Random
Survey

Small Group
Meetings

Survey
Results

Large Group
Meetings

Planning &
Zoning Review

City Council &
BOCC Review

State of the Aspen Area: 2000-2008
September 17

This report contains up to date information on a range of issues that have traditionally been important to the Aspen community, ranging from transportation to housing and growth. Did you know that the City has issued 9,886 building permits with a value of $2.4 billion since 2000? This is just one piece of information contained in this comprehensive report. Included are reader-friendly summaries
of each topic.

Speaker Series
September 17 - October

Staff visited various groups and organizations in the Aspen area to offer a PowerPoint presentation on the highlights of the State of the Aspen Area report, and the public process for generating a Community Vision for the Aspen Area.

'White Paper' on the
Aspen Economy
October 20

This is a rare opportunity to gain a new understanding of the unique and powerful resort economy that drives many important issues in the Aspen area. The City of Aspen hired an international resort consulting firm (Economics Research Associates) to draft this 'White Paper.' The report is reader-friendly and accessible to the general public.

Random Survey
November

A survey has been mailed to random households in the Aspen area, asking a wide range of questions about your vision for the future. This approach has been tested in mountain communities before, and will be a statistically accurate reflection of community values, likes and dislikes. Results will be available in January 2009.

Small Group Meetings
Oct 27 - Nov 14

More than 150 people recently participated in 11 small group meetings in October and November, offering their visions and goals for the future. These meetings were not intended to produce a consensus of any kind, but to express a range of goals and visions. A summary of notes from these meetings are available on the "Small Group Meetings" page.

Survey Results
2nd week January

The results of the random survey that was mailed to Aspen area residents in November will be available on the website. This is a values-based survey that can help form the Community Vision for the Aspen area.

Large Community Vision Meetings
January 27, January 31

Our goal is to have at least 350 people attend each of three public meetings, so more than 1,000 people can take part in drafting a Community Vision for the Aspen Area. We'll use a number of methods, including wireless voting keypads to explore the community's values. For more information and to RSVP and reserve your clicker, please see the homepage.

Planning and Zoning
Commission Review
March

This will be a more traditional and formalized process where the Planning and Zoning Commissions of both the City and the County will review a draft of the Community Vision for the Aspen Area. This will include legally noticed public hearings that anyone can attend to offer their comments.

City Council and Board of County Commissioners Review
April

This will be a more traditional and formalized process where the Aspen City Council and the Pitkin County Board of Commissioners will review a draft of the Community Vision for the Aspen Area, while also considering the input of both planning and zoning commissions. This will include legally noticed public hearings that anyone can attend to offer their comments.

Printable Version

Register for Updates

Open Space & Trails

One of the key elements of Open Space and Trails is the ability to work with a long list of partners to achieve overriding community goals.

Since the 2000 AACP, Pitkin County and the City of Aspen have worked with Great Outdoors Colorado, Town of Basalt, Eagle County, Aspen Valley Land Trust, Roaring Fork Conservancy and Aspen Skiing Company Environment Foundation, to preserve significant open space parcels and to connect existing trails.

Twenty-two miles of paved and unpaved trails wind their way through Aspen, connecting a number of the parks and offering easy access to outlying areas like the Marolt Open Space, the golf course, the Aspen Recreation Center, the White River National Forest, Northstar Nature Preserve, and to housing developments like Aspen Highlands and Marolt seasonal housing.

Among the biggest accomplishments since 2000 were:

The City and County have jointly acquired 455 acres of open space, including the 269 acre Smuggler Mountain acquisition.
In 2006, the Aspen Snowmass Nordic trails System was added to the Pitkin County Open Space and Trails program.
In 2008, the Rio Grande Trail was completed, providing a continuous trail linkage from Aspen to Glenwood Springs. (More than 600 people day use the City portion of this trail.)

Linkage to other issues

There are precious few issues in the Aspen area that exist in a vacuum. Here are a few topics that are directly related to the topic of open space and trails.

Sustaining the Lifelong Aspenite. The extensive open space and trails network are part of every day recreation for year-rounders that reinforce an active lifestyle.

Transportation. City and County trails are literally a way for many people to bike or walk to work, to the grocery store, the post offi ce and other "everyday" locations. The trail system takes cars off local roads and highways.

The Economy. While year-rounders love the area's open space and trails, these extensive holdings also symbolize the area's commitment to preserving the outdoors. Visitors can easily get on bicycles and enjoy nature.