The best stories to come out of this entire political saga of the Village at Crystal River ballot issue are the two expose' pieces from John Colson on how much money the proponents for the project have raised, where that money came from and how they've spent the funds during the campaign.
Very enlightening to see what developer Rich Schierburg considers 'above board' in pushing his agenda.
Another interesting news piece in today's Post Independent is a letter to the editor written in by Garfield County Commissioner Tom Jankovsky in support of the development. Quite an enigma when it comes to business philosophy is Commissioner Jankovsky. Setting aside all the controversy over Sunlight Ski Resort over the years with various land deals and business enterprises. Set aside all the controversy over tourism promotion and the old tourism board that Jankovsky co-founded. Set aside all of his fairly constant stumping to keep money local. Set aside the obviously selective reasoning he's shown since taking his seat on BOCC with budget line items and now the Silt grocery store and Urban Renewal efforts. Set all those things aside and take a look at an endorsement for a major money developer out of Denver to come in locally and put up a vanilla flavor, cinder block mall right on the Highway 82 all in the name of the 'loose' numbers VCR projects for sales tax revenues. Those thoughts are a little uncomfortable given the path GarCo is currently on politically and another very tight year or two ahead of us on the economic front. SandBox bets that the folks are going to be likely to put very little, if any, stock in Jankovsky's endorsement on VCR. His endorsement simply rings false.
This letter to the editor from highly respected businessman Scott Ely "VCR lacks the quirky Carbondale funk factor", also in today's Post Independent, is a powerful statement opposing the VCR development. Our bet? All the 'Cherry Garcia' folks who spent a fraction of what Rich Schierburg's group did will landslide defeat VCR at the ballot box.
Scott Ely:
"As a long-time local business owner with clients and friends on both sides of the Village at Crystal River debate, I have held my tongue to this point. I do, however, have a couple of questions for the developer and electorate.
I believe (most) everyone can agree that any further large-scale development in Carbondale will likely take place on the VCR property. This makes good sense. As the de facto entrance to Carbondale, there should be something attractive that greets visitors, tourists and yes, shoppers, to town. I believe we can also (mostly) agree that the existing entrance to Carbondale could use some love.
More important, however, I believe that (most) people were drawn to Carbondale for the small town feel and the quirky nature of the community, among other things. Therefore, my question to the developer is, “Where's the funk?” Perhaps the PIF should stand for “Put In (the) Funk.”
What is funk, you ask? How about a contest to dress the center of the roundabout(s)? Why not park benches, picnic tables, murals or really creative landscaping? A cool bicycle parking area? Electric vehicle charging station(s)? Solar sign lighting? How about brick facades, barn wood siding, metal or corrugated roofing?
The bottom line for me is demanding more of the developer and steering away from the generic, Anywhere, USA shopping center. This thing appears to be quite vanilla, when what we really need is some Cherry Garcia!
Demanding funk, mandating the use of local talent for design and construction and fully vetting the repercussions over the life of the project would likely get more folks to agree. The result could be a fantastic project that accomplishes many of our common goals..."
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2 comments:
Schierburg doesn't even come close to having the money to do a quality development worthy of Bonedale and 82. Scott's dead on with his ideas. Another thing on this project that needs to be straightened out. I overheard some people talking at Basalt store the other day that this VCR project is the only way they'll ever get a roundabout at the entrance to Carbondale. That is not true. No matter what project it is and no matter when it's done, there will have to be a roundabout at 82 and 133. It's a matter of engineering, not worth of the development. Wait for the right project and don't vote in VCR just because you think it's the only way you'll get a roundabout.
I don't think it will be a landslide loss for Schierburg but I do think we have defeated the proposal.
This is just not the right move for Carbondale. It never has been.
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