The Aspen Times

LOVELAND PASS, Colo. - A Denver snowboarder was able to ride and swim his way out of a large avalanche on Loveland Pass around noon Tuesday. Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office Major Rick Albers said Alec Meyer caused the avalanche and "it broke on him." Meyer rode it almost to the bottom, but when the avalanche started to flatten out, he started to sink. Meyer used a swimming motion to keep ... Full Story »

DILLON, Colo. - To ban medical marijuana dispensaries from Dillon, Town Council members are moving forward on an ordinance that prohibits giving licenses to businesses deemed a public nuisance, or that violate state and/or federal law. The ordinance will be reviewed with a public hearing Tuesday at Dillon Town Hall starting at 6 p.m. The ordinance was already approved at first reading, but it ... Full Story »

SNOWMASS VILLAGE - Snowmass Village police will forward the results of an investigation into an allegation of animal cruelty at Krabloonik, a commercial dogsledding operation, to the district attorney's office, Police Chief Art Smythe said Monday. A former employee at Krabloonik lodged the complaint on Nov. 23, shortly after losing his job there. Local police and the town's animal control ... Full Story »

ASPEN - A former Aspen couple is accused of creating phony commercial lending companies that were used to fleece customers out of deposits for loans that were never made. Donald Sterling Whitlock, 40, and Erin Reese Whitlock, 39, who currently reside in Florida, were served with court papers Monday. The consumer protection section of the Colorado Attorney General's Office filed the complaint ... Full Story »

ASPEN - A botched release of caustic soda at Aspen's water treatment plant last month has resulted in more than $100,000 in damages and fines. The Aspen City Council last week approved an $86,808 appropriation from the water department savings account to pay for a clean-up at the Aspen Consolidated Sanitation District. On Nov. 27, 1,500 gallons of caustic soda was released to clean and scour ... Full Story »

ASPEN - It's getting warmer in Aspen - can't you feel it? Recent data from the city of Aspen show November's high temperature at about 7 degrees warmer than the historic average. In recent years, November in Aspen has been warming faster than any other month, according to city officials. November temperatures have been warming at the rate of 6 degrees per decade for the high temperatures and 4 ... Full Story »

GLENWOOD SPRINGS - The Williams gas drilling company can finish up its work at two Battlement Mesa well pads without further ado, thanks to a decision Monday by the Garfield County commissioners. The Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve a pair of special use permits for the well pads, which are located within the sprawling Battlement Mesa Planned Unit Development near ... Full Story »

SUMMIT COUNTY - Two people were severely burned early Sunday morning after apparently causing an explosion while making hashish, according to the Summit County Sheriff's Office. The people involved - a man and a woman - were reportedly operating an approved medical marijuana grow operation. Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Tracy LeClair said Sheriff's deputies and members of Red, White and Blue Fire ... Full Story »

GLENWOOD SPRINGS - The Glenwood Springs City Council will discuss how to proceed with the controversial South Bridge Project at a special meeting Thursday. The council has scheduled a 4:30 p.m. work session to review possible options with Jacob's Engineering, the firm that received a contract for the $1.2 million planning project. The firm has completed about $840,000 worth of work on the ... Full Story »

ASPEN - Whenever we play word games such as Scrabble or Boggle, my 10-year-old son often pulls out words that he hopes are actual words, simply because of their phonetic value. Non-words that sound like words, to a fifth grader, at least - such as "fon" - come to mind. Friday night, he employed the same strategy. "Is 'gaper' a word?" he asked. It is around here, I told him. Sure, it might not be ... Full Story »

PITKIN COUNTY - Television viewers in rural Pitkin County are about to go digital. The county will begin converting its free TV service to digital this month, phasing out the old analog service. With an antenna, residents within "line of sight" of one of the county's six translator towers will be able to get clearer, digital reception for ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, PBS and more. In addition, some ... Full Story »

SUMMIT COUNTY, Colo. - Two people were severely burned early Sunday morning after apparently causing an explosion while making hashish, according to the Summit County Sheriff's Office. The men involved were reportedly operating an approved medical marijuana growing operation. Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Tracy LeClair said sheriff's deputies and members of Red, White and Blue Fire Department ... Full Story »

DENVER - Colorado Republicans vow to fight plans by Gov. Bill Ritter to eliminate tax breaks and release parolees to balance the state budget. The Democratic governor could save money by firing many of the 2,000 new state employees he hired and rescinding tough new oil and gas rules that cost the state jobs, said Senate Minority Leader Josh Penry, a Republican from Fruita. Ritter and lawmakers ... Full Story »

ASPEN - The Aspen-Pitkin County Airport's new planning website - www.aspenairportplanning.com - is now live. It is intended to keep community members and airport users informed about current and future projects, including the master plan update and runway extension, and to promote community involvement in future planning. The website includes information about the ... Full Story »

PITKIN COUNTY - Pitkin County Open Space and Trails successes are featured in a free, 2010 calendar that's now available at various locations. The calendar features a map of the properties and photographs that capture the splendor of some of the county's 3,142 acres of open space and 14,556 acres of conserved lands. The county's Open Space and Trails program was established by voters in 1990; it ... Full Story »

ASPEN - Aspen Highlands was among the big winners in Sunday's snowfall, luring a crowd to the base of the Exhibition Lift before it opened Monday. Highlands reported 13 inches of new snow over the past 24 hours in its Monday morning snow report, and 18 inches over the past 48 hours. Aspen Mountain was reporting 7 new inches Monday and Snowmass reported 5 inches. Both mountains reported 8 inches ... Full Story »

SNOWMASS VILLAGE - The recession has derailed the "renaissance" of Snowmass Village, but a glimmer of hope has emerged with the opening of an upscale ski-in, ski-out hotel. The 173-room Viceroy's Thanksgiving Day debut makes it the first hotel to open in decades at the Roaring Fork Valley's biggest ski resort, and it has added a level of sophistication that traditionally hasn't been synonymous ... Full Story »

ASPEN - If ESPN intends to let VIPs imbibe at the Winter X Games in Aspen next month, the event's organizers need to come talk to Pitkin County commissioners about it first. Commissioners appeared surprised last week to learn that VIPs have been served alcohol as a matter of course, given that the Winter X Games at Buttermilk became a no-alcohol event, as far as the general public was concerned ... Full Story »

ASPEN - Aspen's "mining for ideas" initiative, in which an individual's proposed special event or tourism-driven concept is awarded public money, has been narrowed down to about a dozen. The $200,000 effort is designed around the notion that a new event will attract tourists and boost the local economy, while possibly even creating repeat business from those who come to Aspen for the first time ... Full Story »

ASPEN - A local committee is reviewing proposals from individuals that are designed to attract tourists to town. The winner will receive all or a portion of the city of Aspen's $200,000, which was set aside specifically for the effort. Here is a run down of new ideas or existing special events looking for monetary support, according to the city's special events director, Nancy Lesley, who also ... Full Story »

ASPEN - The Lodge at Aspen Mountain, which last week received majority support by a citizen committee that will recommend the hotel-residence property for approval, has been reduced 53,000 square feet from its original size. The Lodge at Aspen Mountain COWOP (convenience and welfare of the public) last Wednesday voted 16-5 in favor of the overall project, as well as for its scale and mass. The ... Full Story »

ASPEN - Take 2 of Pitkin County's discussion about becoming more friendly to film and commercial shoots will roll on Tuesday. County commissioners are scheduled to discuss concerns brought to their attention two months ago by representatives of the film industry, and consider options to lighten up on the regulations that the co-owner of a local production company predicted would drive the ... Full Story »

GLENWOOD SPRINGS - Larry Gruber is fed up with parking on Cooper Avenue. Gruber's Glenwood Music Inc., located at 715 Cooper Ave. in Glenwood Springs, says that for the past four years, he has run into a problem with downtown residents parking in front of his store for days at a time. And when the winter dumps huge amounts of snow, as with this recent winter storm, Gruber said that oftentimes ... Full Story »

CARBONDALE - The old "Pink Bridge" across the Roaring Fork River, next to the unincorporated neighborhood of Satank near Carbondale, appears to be headed for an overhaul. The Garfield County commissioners on Monday will be asked to give their blessing to a project meant to bring the 110-year old bridge back to life, after being closed to traffic for years. According to documents submitted by ... Full Story »

SUMMIT COUNTY - While technology has made it easier for Vail Resorts ticket scanners to catch people committing ski pass fraud, law enforcers in Vail are handing out nearly five times as many tickets as Summit County for the misdemeanor offense. Vail Police Department this year has ticketed more than 188 ski pass fraud offenders on Vail Mountain, while Summit County agencies have ticketed only ... Full Story »