Our council is set, and I could not be more excited. A sincere congratulations to Torre, our newly elected mayor, and Ann, who ran a great campaign and will continue to be a phenomenal council member.<\/p>\n
I look forward to collectively working diligently to:<\/p>\n
1. House 60% of our workforce and our seniors in town.<\/p>\n
2. Work toward being the first city in America with 100% voter turnout.<\/p>\n
3. Regain our position as a world leader in environmental concerns.<\/p>\n
4. Hire a city manager to instill a culture of innovation, inclusion, proactive communication and financial responsibility in City Hall.<\/p>\n
With Torre\u2019s willingness to rock the apple cart and Ann\u2019s broad vision and attention to detail, I believe we will strike the right balance.<\/p>\n
The remaining council seats are filled by dedicated public servants I respect and admire. Rachel Richards brings decades of experience and know-how, and Ward Hauenstein speaks for a large part of our community with grace and intelligence. I am proud to serve with, and learn from, each one of them.<\/p>\n
We should thank Adam Frisch and Bert Myrin for their service and dedication to Aspen, and offer gratitude to Linda Manning and Cale Mitchell for putting themselves out there for our community \u2014 it\u2019s no small thing.<\/p>\n
Now we look onward to the work. Our goals are not easily achievable, and there are no perfect solutions. We will try things and fail, but try we must and try we will. We will need to reassert our social contract \u2014 nothing is free and we will need to give something of ourselves to others to reap a better personal and collective outcome. We are best when we strive to support the WE, rather than focusing solely on the ME.<\/p>\n
We have a lot of work ahead of us, but every resource to accomplish it. Now with the right team, it\u2019s time to lead again!<\/p>\n
You are part of the solution. Stay involved, reach out, criticize constructively, practice radical honesty. You can help shape our future, and it will be a better future for your shaping, so above all, continue to participate. Throwing a stone fixes nothing; showing where the home is vulnerable changes lives.<\/p>\n
Onward, Aspen. I\u2019m so pumped.<\/p>\n
Skippy Mesirow<\/p>\n
City councilman-elect<\/p>\n