{"id":2446847,"date":"2019-07-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-27T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=310166"},"modified":"2019-07-27T08:28:10","modified_gmt":"2019-07-27T14:28:10","slug":"aspen-center-for-environmental-studies-eyes-renovation-at-cato-center-at-toklat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/aspen-center-for-environmental-studies-eyes-renovation-at-cato-center-at-toklat\/","title":{"rendered":"Aspen Center for Environmental Studies eyes renovation at Cato Center at Toklat"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Chris Lane, CEO of Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, describes the changes being planned at the Cato Center at Toklat. ACES wants to preserve the history of the site while making it more functional.<\/strong>
\nScott Condon\/The Aspen Times<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies is proposing to renovate one of the Aspen area\u2019s most revered structures to boost its mission of connecting people to the natural world.<\/p>\n

ACES wants to make changes to the Toklat building constructed by Stuart Mace near the ghost town of Ashcroft in the Upper Castle Creek Valley. The original structure built by Mace in 1948 would be preserved, but additions made over the nearly six decades it was in the Mace family will be removed and replaced to make the building more functional.<\/p>\n

Chris Lane, CEO of ACES, said the environmental nonprofit doesn\u2019t want more or bigger events, but it wants to do a better job of hosting wilderness retreats at what it calls the Catto Center at Toklat.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody\u2019s got the same interest \u2014 we\u2019ve got to preserve this place,\u201d Lane said. \u201cIf we don\u2019t do something significant now, the building is going to fall apart. We\u2019ve been putting Band-Aids on it for years.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cIf we don\u2019t do something significant now, the building is going to fall apart.\u201d \u2014 Chris Lane, ACES<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

The roughly 7,500-square-foot log, stone and timber structure is located on about 3 acres of land. There\u2019s an outdoor fire pit surrounded by stumps where retreat participants gather. Devaney Creek runs through the property.<\/p>\n

Lane said the late Mace contended there was a spirit to the site. Lane endorses the idea. It has a wilderness feel without traveling three hours into the backcountry, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has a presence. It will affect you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

ACES, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, has launched a campaign to raise between $5 million and $6 million for the project.<\/p>\n

The proposal was vetted with a special council of old-school environmentalists, who are naturally wary of change. The panel included Tom and Jody Cardamone, who were instrumental in ACES\u2019 growth as former naturalists and executive directors. ACES purchased Toklat in 2005 with a grant from the Catto family. Tom Cardamone was the executive director at the time.<\/p>\n

Lane said ACES\u2019s staff is well aware of the historical significance of the building and its symbolism. Mace helped Elizabeth Paepcke develop the idea of the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies and was its first naturalist and educator.<\/p>\n

Architect Michael Fuller was hired to create a design that integrates the addition with the original structure.<\/p>\n

The interior marble from the Crystal Valley and huge wood beams and supports that Mace used in construction will be preserved. ACES also intends to pull off the even trickier task of preserving the funky feel of the structure, which Lane compared to the Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone National Park.<\/p>\n

But some of the additions aren\u2019t making the grade. Caretaker Trevor Washko said significant staff time was spent during a historically high cycle of snow over the first half of March to prevent parts of the structure from collapsing.<\/p>\n

\u201cA big portion of that was keeping heavy snow off the roof,\u201d he said, noting parts of the roof are sagging and leaking.<\/p>\n

The additions that were cobbled onto the original structure create what Washko called a \u201cfunky labyrinth\u201d inside. Lack of adequate space has forced improvisations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got interns sleeping in places that were the garage,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Lane said ACES is willing to spend as much as $6 million because the Catto Center at Toklat is so vital to its mission. The center is used for ecology-based retreats, classes, hikes and snowshoe tours. ACES\u2019s materials say the center is used to connect \u201cinfluencers, leaders and people of all ages to the natural world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lane expanded on the concept by explaining that he believes when the Aspen Institute brings a group of 40 business magnates to the center for a two-day retreat, it will pay off with them making more environmentally grounded decisions. The \u201curban, city-slicker, MBA-types\u201d can\u2019t help but feel a connection to nature in the special place, particularly since their cellphones and other devices won\u2019t work in the narrow, high-altitude valley, he said.<\/p>\n

The goal of the proposed renovation is to provide a room for as many as 50 people at a time for dinners and gatherings. The kitchen and bathrooms will be upgraded. The new building will have five employee bedrooms. A greenhouse added in the 1970s will be removed to expose an original entrance. A residency cabin will be added to house visiting environmental science experts and there will be a caretaker cabin.<\/p>\n

Lane said the center will continue to be focused on ecology-based events. Some unsolicited corporate retreats are accepted, but no events such as weddings, reunions or parties. There are no overnight stays.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe whole point of this is we\u2019re not going to do anything for a buck,\u201d Lane said.<\/p>\n

Pitkin County\u2019s Community Development staff is examining the application for thoroughness. Once deemed complete, it will go through review by the Pitkin County Planning and Zoning Commission and the county commissioners. That process is expected to take between one and two years and will include public hearings, Lane said.<\/p>\n

scondon@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n

via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chris Lane, CEO of Aspen Center for Environmental Studies, describes the changes being planned at the Cato Center at Toklat. ACES wants to preserve the history of the site while making it more functional. Scott Condon\/The Aspen Times The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies is proposing to renovate one of the Aspen area\u2019s most revered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2446847","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-24 03:22:25","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley's Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2446847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2446847"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2446847\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2446859,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2446847\/revisions\/2446859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2446847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2446847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2446847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}