Early this summer, respected local Jae Gregory published a Facebook post about her move to Redstone after 28 years in Carbondale. Since her move, she wrote, she suddenly finds Carbondale “a bit shocking.”
“I’ve often wondered,” she continued, “why, when a small town is perfect, the developers and off [sic] the council can still take over and persuade the Town it needs to grow. But [the] new growth never solves the problems. It just turns it into every other town instead of its charming self.”
Jae’s thoughts are worth examining because she is hardly alone. Commenters were largely in agreement. So are many letters to the editor, public comments to the Board of Trustees and frequent similar posts by other people.
How did it happen? To get some perspective, I spoke with former Carbondale planners Mark Chain and Janet Buck, exchanged emails with the current planner, Jared Barnes, and Public Works Director Kevin Shorzman, and did a lot of online research. So, grab some coffee, because you’re about to get a history lesson.
But first, let’s acknowledge that developers aren’t necessarily there to solve problems. Developers, with maybe a few exceptions, do what they do to make money. Government is there to influence the situation so that development also helps the public. Building codes and zoning are its primary tools.
Okay, now the history. When my son moved to Aspen in the mid-1990s, he had to pay $400/month to share a bedroom small enough to require bunk beds, because Aspen started pricing out its working-class residents in the 1970s. Snowmass and Basalt absorbed many early victims, and, indeed, when my son started raising a family, he moved to Basalt, but Carbondale was where he landed.
Even with APCHA (Aspen-Pitkin County Housing Authority) being established in 1982 to help stem the down-valley flow, second-home ownership created another easily predictable wave of Aspen emigrants before we entered the 21st century. No one needed a crystal ball to see the future, and the Colorado Department of Transportation responded by expanding Highway 82, a project under consideration by 1969. Except for the “entrance to Aspen,” it was completed by 2004.
The 2008 financial crisis briefly cooled home prices, but Aspen recovered quickly, reinforcing its position as a wealth-parking asset rather than a normal housing market. The current down-valley surge began in 2020-21, spurred by COVID-19 and remote work; but these were mere circumstances, accelerating a trend that became visible about the time Carbondale paved its streets.
Faced with a down-valley population wave beyond their control, Garfield County and its municipalities planned accordingly and cooperatively. Carbondale, wanting to avoid sprawl, opted for firm boundaries with growth through infill, and began zoning accordingly. This intention was written into the town’s 2013 and 2023 comprehensive plans and the county Comp Plan for 2010 through 2030. All three plans refer to a 2001 Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) that includes a protocol for referring development applications on unincorporated land to nearby municipalities for review and comment.
For the last quarter century, Carbondale’s Planning and Zoning Department has issued permits to developers in keeping with those comp plans, consequent zoning laws and the IGA.
Before exiting our historical review, we should note that the ranchland that became River Valley Ranch (RVR) was incorporated into Carbondale via a series of annexations beginning in 1979, culminating with voter approval of the town’s existing boundaries and the RVR Agreement in 1994. In keeping with all this planning, we’ve seen little development on land abutting the town, which has stayed rural, and much of which has been conserved. In short, the dramatic changes that shocked Jae have been happening in a predictable, planned and relatively controlled way since well before she became a resident in 1998.
Nonetheless, I understand her surprise because I had my own “What the . . .” moment as I exited City Market this spring. Looking around, it suddenly struck me that the town I was looking at was very different from the town I moved to in 2009. Like Jae, I was shocked. But, as I did my double-take, I realized that, unlike Jae, I liked the changes.
I can walk to two food markets within ½ mile of my house, and to a modern physical therapy facility that 85-year-old me is one stumble or stroke away from needing. Ditto for a growing group of restaurants, three banks and a couple of clothing stores. Thanks to a growing tax base, our sidewalks are increasingly decent, street crossings, while still far from good, are slowly getting better and, if that stumble/stroke causes serious damage, I don’t have to walk at all. I can call The Downtowner.
Longing for a town that never really existed except in a nostalgic memory is understandable. So is disliking the town that’s actually here, because, yes, Carbondale has become bigger, busier and maybe even a little less personal. But as an 85-year-old resident, the changes are serving me a whole lot better than the little charmer I moved to ever could have. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Mature Content is a monthly feature from Age-Friendly Carbondale.