In honor of the Colorado State Democratic Convention I put together a two sided flier on legal size paper resembling a single-sheet newspaper publication of old. It’s the culmination of years of attention to this issue and a distillation of previous posts here at NO-VillageAtWolfCreek.blogspot, along with news.
I’m replicating that “Memes Courier” at this website because I believe it’s the most valuable summation I’ve put together superseding most previous posts I’ve written. {As it should be; these things are ongoing projects.} In any event, I circulated about 2750 copies at the Democratic State Convention in Pueblo on April 14th.
And as I wrote at the bottom of the flier:
Feel free to copy, use, and pass along any of this.
Feel free to copy, use, and pass along any of this.
✯ ✯ ✯ EXTRA ✯ ✯ ✯
The
Memes Courier
✯ ✯ ✯ EXTRA ✯ ✯ ✯
~ Colorado
State
Democratic Convention Edition
~
April 14, 2012
April 14, 2012
Alberta
Park, Rio Grande River Watershed, Wolf Creek Pass, Colorado, USA
Reporting on the Bid
for a Luxury Development
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Proposed Village at Wolf Creek revisited
Given that the Rio Grande National Forest will be releasing their
preliminary draft EIS for the McCombs (LMJV) Alberta Park Land Swap Offer in (hopefully) another
few weeks –
and considering people will only have a short moment of opportunity when sharing their thoughts will actually matter; an update is called for.
and considering people will only have a short moment of opportunity when sharing their thoughts will actually matter; an update is called for.
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For McCombs’ “Village at Wolf Creek” history
link to
the following stories:
Wolf Creek
development tangled with political ties
By Mike Soraghan ~ Denver Post
Staff Writer
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The Back Story ~ Village at
Wolf Creek
Ryan
Bidwell of Colorado Wild describes
VWC’s
history up to 2010.
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List of unresolved issues,
pitfalls
and future relentless expense$:
Police protection/mobility/communication
Fire
protection/mobility/communication
Emergency Medical Services/mobility/communication
Emergency Clinic/High Altitude Medical
Center
Electrical ~
infrastructure/access/maintenance
Telephone/IT ~
infrastructure/access/maintenance
Propane/Gas ~
infrastructure/access/maintenance
Water supply/treatment ~ infrastructure/maintenance
Sewer lines/treatment ~
access/service/maintenance
Trash Pickup ~
access/service
Road maintenance ~
access/service
Road Snow removal ~ nearly forty
feet worth annually
Snow removal nearly forty
feet worth, coming off roofs and piling up and freezing in drives and yards
Snow relocation where to put all that “removed snow”
Who’s Paying for all
that ?
Stores and gas
station
Keeping them stocked and open during off season
Employee transportation/housing
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Biosphere Damage:
Inevitable damage to and destruction of
. . . fens and other wetland areas
. . . riparian zones
. . . wilderness habitat
. . . wildlife migration corridors
. . . down stream water quality
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Health issues:
At 10,300 feet elevation, Alberta Park’s air has a third less usable oxygen than air at sea level. It isn’t healthy up there! Only the fit can play up there.
But, even they need to spend the nights at lower elevations to allow their bodies to replenish depleted body oxygen levels.
It’s real physiology. Consider for a moment how much your body depends on an extremely steady flow of oxygen. It should be obvious why Alberta Park’s 10,300 foot elevation, with its accompanying 66% hypoxic situation, might not only cause varying degrees of altitude sickness, but also exacerbate a host of other medical conditions.
Why do all the important
players ignore this problem?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Regarding
the road access issue…
The developer’s main legal claim to FS391 access rests on ANILCA - “Alaska National Interests Lands Conservation Act” where the US Forest Service is required to provide for access to private lands within USFS lands.
However, some point out ANILCA was intended for “grandfathered” parcels, meaning where the private holdings existed before USFS took possession of surrounding lands. That is decidedly not the case with the LMJV acquisition!
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Why
would the RGNF go for the trade ?
Thing is, by approving McCombs’ trade, all threats to FS391 and immediate
area are removed . . . at the price of virtually guaranteeing development near
Highway 160, on the shoulder, flank and into Alberta Park and the watershed.
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Why speculate at Wolf Creek ?
The murky Real Estate Sales prospect...
Lets face it: On a postcard and for a short vacation, nothing can
beat Wolf Creek Ski area and the surrounding meadows and forests.
But, would you actually want to live there?
Maximum temps in the 30°s for half the year?
According to the Western
Regional Climate Center, average snowfall of over 70” a month for a third
of the year... annual historical average
is 435.6” of falling snow.
And let’s not forget the incessant high
mountain winds.
What about the new economic realities?
There is no living to be made
up there at 10,300 feet - why would people want to move up there?
Vacation homes? Hmmm,
even rich folks are feeling the economic bite. Besides, money goes where
money is - are they really looking for a windy
place stranded under a blanket of snow?
Sounds like a fun movie to watch,
but not to live in.
Call
me a skeptic, but it doesn’t make any sense.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Why object
to it ?
A)
Serious questions surrounding the legitimacy of the original 1986 landswap are
written off by USFS with the reasoning that it’s beyond the Statute of
Limitations.
But which others believe
is very much an issue needing review and answers before any further land swaps
occur.
B) Maybe ownership of the
current parcel can’t be contested... but wouldn’t it be appropriate for those
ownership-transfer questions to get answered before tainted land gets traded
for good?
C) Refusing
the swap doesn’t grant McCombs permission to do anything regarding his current
holding. All future road and village
development is contingent on more regulatory channels where citizens can once
again defend Alberta Park’s biological importance and an appreciation that no
development should be allowed at Alberta Park.
D) Every delay to McCombs scheme allows for more
opportunities to convince Mr. McCombs {and partners}, and RGNF officials,
that finding a way to return that land to RGNF protection
is the smart and patriotic thing to do.
Leave Alberta Park as pristine a watershed as possible:
a protected resource for the needs of future generations.
that finding a way to return that land to RGNF protection
is the smart and patriotic thing to do.
Leave Alberta Park as pristine a watershed as possible:
a protected resource for the needs of future generations.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Alberta Park is an
Irreplaceable Resource!
In the heart of source waters
for the
interstate, international Rio Grande River,
Alberta Park is a keystone
parcel.
It is a precious
biologically productive and irreplaceable organism.
Why the compulsion to bulldoze and demolish huge portions of that?
Mr.
McCombs, why not leave it alone ? !
Allow
Alberta Park to continue functioning as that unspoiled biologically productive
resource feeding into the Rio Grande River and providing myriad other benefits
along the way, now and into the future!
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{End of side one, side two is continued in new post.}
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