Dave Danforth:
"An Aspen developer felt he had to deny an open space ranger’s report that the developer swore he’d get the ranger fired after receiving a $100 ticket for trespassing on a closed trail.
Usually when someone denies an account written up by law enforcement, they take issue with a fact or two. But Nikos Hecht simply denied the whole thing. The April 7 episode, featuring an (allegedly) irate Hecht who claimed he’d contributed to saving open space, never happened, Hecht said.
Hecht eventually paid the ticket. Whatever his attitude towards the ranger, the (alleged) adventure raises an interesting question. Is there a limit to the number of people who can suggest that they own the town?
If wealthy folks are willing to pay up for a little special treatment, do we really have a beef with that? Why not accommodate them? Hecht’s (alleged) behavior is simply an example of a well-heeled citizen wondering why, in view of his wealth or stature, he isn’t owed a little slack......
.......Yet there’s a phalanx of others who think they’re due a little extra respect not because of lifetime achievement, but because of lifetime wealth.
It wouldn’t be entirely facetious to simply accommodate them. Instead of making developers crawl through all sorts of twists and turns requiring a band of experts (lobbyists), let’s grease the skids a bit. For a lofty contribution to the right cause, (Open space? Employee housing? A few park benches? Free jazz?) couldn’t they just buy the fast track and get it over with? They’re going to get the same result anyway.
We’ve given unparalleled power to a band of meter enforcers, whose sole job is to raise revenue for City Hall. Instead of making esteemed citizens feel like crooks, why not sell them a season pass? Now, for a discount, we’d get a 10-pack of violations. We’d feel entitled...........
...........So, who owns Aspen? First and foremost, the true candidate will never be caught dead proclaiming such stature. They don’t have to. (Think Klaus Obermeyer). And, in an ideal world, the next open space ranger who runs into the next (alleged) Nikos Hecht will have a “square” (credit card swiper) in order to dispense a little favor on the spot for a well-earned premium payment..."
(Read more? You should. Click title)
"Unapologetic pursuit and tracking of patterns within the news others make since 2010."
Showing posts with label Who we Are. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Who we Are. Show all posts
April 21, 2012
SandBoxBlogs: Aspen Times "Who we are in Aspen"
Beautifully done by Vagneur. Up on the Aspen Times.
Tony Vagneur:
"“You must have seen a lot of changes,” comes the almost-guaranteed remark after people realize I'm an Aspen native, and I guess that's true to a certain degree. My birth happened to coincide with the opening of “The World's Longest Chairlift” in 1946, and I suppose I've been most fortunate, through luck of the draw, to witness the metamorphosis of Aspen from a quiet mountain town into a world-class powerhouse of skiing and culture.
I don't know how it goes out at the music tent, but I do know that every winter some young hotshot comes along, thinking his turns are the best anyone's ever seen on Aspen Mountain. Fantasy is probably good in any venue, for it gives us all the impetus to stay in the game and make something stick.
We are continually given a reliable thread of “boiler plate” history, vignettes of people such as Jerome B. Wheeler, B. Clark Wheeler, Walter and Elizabeth Paepcke, D.R.C. Brown, Friedl Pfeifer and other looming icons. The “Quiet Years” (to which many of us refer as the “Golden Years”) has become a convenient term for describing a large chunk of Aspen's history.
Most of this is correct and interesting, but it is a superficial rendition devoid of the passion, tragedy and brilliance that make up our antiquity......
.......Point well taken, sir, but there have been other businessmen with as much hubris who didn't fare as well. Unfairly, Guido (one-time justice of the peace) likely is best-remembered for the sign in his window, “No Beatniks Allowed,” a reference to the influx of “hippies” in the '60s. Always a sign man, he put up a marker on Highway 82 near his downvalley ranch, trying to encourage motorists to slow down, which read merely “Nudist Crossing.”...." (Read more? Click title)
"Unapologetically pursuing and tracking patterns within the news others make since 2010."
Tony Vagneur:
"“You must have seen a lot of changes,” comes the almost-guaranteed remark after people realize I'm an Aspen native, and I guess that's true to a certain degree. My birth happened to coincide with the opening of “The World's Longest Chairlift” in 1946, and I suppose I've been most fortunate, through luck of the draw, to witness the metamorphosis of Aspen from a quiet mountain town into a world-class powerhouse of skiing and culture.
I don't know how it goes out at the music tent, but I do know that every winter some young hotshot comes along, thinking his turns are the best anyone's ever seen on Aspen Mountain. Fantasy is probably good in any venue, for it gives us all the impetus to stay in the game and make something stick.
We are continually given a reliable thread of “boiler plate” history, vignettes of people such as Jerome B. Wheeler, B. Clark Wheeler, Walter and Elizabeth Paepcke, D.R.C. Brown, Friedl Pfeifer and other looming icons. The “Quiet Years” (to which many of us refer as the “Golden Years”) has become a convenient term for describing a large chunk of Aspen's history.
Most of this is correct and interesting, but it is a superficial rendition devoid of the passion, tragedy and brilliance that make up our antiquity......
.......Point well taken, sir, but there have been other businessmen with as much hubris who didn't fare as well. Unfairly, Guido (one-time justice of the peace) likely is best-remembered for the sign in his window, “No Beatniks Allowed,” a reference to the influx of “hippies” in the '60s. Always a sign man, he put up a marker on Highway 82 near his downvalley ranch, trying to encourage motorists to slow down, which read merely “Nudist Crossing.”...." (Read more? Click title)
"Unapologetically pursuing and tracking patterns within the news others make since 2010."
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