People are asking where I stand on the Lift One plan because of an apparent contradiction between things I have written in my column and my name being on a list of Gorsuch Haus supporters.
Here’s my answer:
I support the concept and design of the proposed project. I like the lift moving down to Dean Street.
However, I do not like the project skimping on employee housing, in essence creating new jobs for more commuters. From experience we know this is the number one killer of vibrancy in our community.
I do not like the last minute grab of taxpayer cash by the developers. It sets terrible precedent to give the developers $4.7 million of our money to increase their profits from this gold mine.
I do not like the way the development plan and the money grab were packaged together at the last minute so that we cannot say “yes” to the development and “no” to the demand for taxpayer subsidy. It is extortion.
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I do not like the way City Council caved on this issue. The project now looks like a massage for their cramping egos.
So, I would vote “no” on the package. We can do better. The developers will come back to the table. They have far more to lose on this than we do.
Roger Marolt
Snowmass Village