Matthew Simms was appointed to the Glenwood Springs City Council’s at-large seat on Thursday, filling the vacancy left by the departure of Shelley Kaup. Simms has been a member of the Glenwood Springs Planning and Zoning Commission since February 2023, and was one of seven applicants interviewed by the council on Wednesday. Council members voted unanimously to appoint him to complete Kaup’s term, which will end in April. Other applicants included Melissa Stevens, Nathan Klingenstein, Amy Connerton, Connie Geiman, Ray Schmahl, and James Franks.

During his interview, Simms, who moved to Glenwood Springs over four years ago, expressed his deep commitment to the community.

“I think Glenwood is an incredible place, and I’ve chosen it to be my home, preferably, and hopefully for the rest of my long, long life,” Simms said. “I started coming here many, many years ago, and looked all over several places in Colorado to live and come to, and this was the place I chose.”

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He emphasized his desire to contribute to the city’s future.

“It’s so close to so many of the things that I like to do, and I believe Glenwood is a very unique place,” he said. “I want to protect it and help it thrive and grow, be sustainable, and I think I have something to offer.”

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Councilor Marco Dehm, who made the motion to appoint Simms, said his clear and knowledgeable responses set him apart.

“Mr. Simms stood out to me simply because he answered the questions concisely,” Dehm said. “He seemed to have knowledge of what was going on and broad knowledge of all various aspects of what we deal with here. He’s also been on the Planning and Zoning Commission for almost two years, and it seemed to me he’s the right fit for what we’re looking for.”

When asked about his vision for Glenwood Springs, Simms addressed both immediate and long-term challenges.

“I believe that Glenwood has issues that are both acute and chronic,” he said. “Some of them are items that touch people every single day of their life, and there’s other ones that people don’t see, but the city needs to be prepared for.”

He highlighted specific areas he wants to focus on.

“I want to see some improvement in our garbage and waste collection, something people see every single day in their life, and it impacts them,” Simms said. “I’d like to see us expand our broadband across the entire city.”

Simms also discussed transportation issues, noting that many vehicles passing through are not from the area.

“We need to do something about our transportation issue, and that issue isn’t one that was created in Glenwood,” he said. “It’s one that was created downstream and upstream from us, because people go through our community every day.”

Looking ahead to the next five years, Simms emphasized the need for proactive planning.

“I think the vision for Glenwood Springs and council would be to make sure that we’re prepared, from an infrastructure standpoint and a financing standpoint, to handle those challenges,” he said. “They’re going to come to us in the next 25 years. We don’t know what that’s going to be, but we know that they’re going to come, and we need to be sitting in a position to address those when they do show up.”

Councilor Sumner Schacter supported Simms’ appointment, highlighting his experience on the Planning and Zoning Commission.

“I would favor Mr. Simms, based on the fact, partly from my own experience coming up through (Planning and Zoning), probably gives you the broadest commission background in terms of how things work and how staff interacts,” Schacter said. “Based on that, I would support the nomination.”

Mayor Ingrid Wussow praised all seven applicants for their willingness to serve, but noted Simms’ experience and knowledge of the city.

“Having received seven applications from highly qualified community members, our city council had a difficult decision in choosing a new city councilor,” Wussow told the Post Independent. “However, given Matt Simms’ tenure on Planning and Zoning and his knowledge of the challenges within our city, Matt’s experience and knowledge gave us confidence that he’ll confidently be able to fill the last six months of the council vacancy.”

She clarified that the appointment lasts only until April.

“Keep in mind that this does not move into another term,” she said. “That means that in the spring or January, when there’s an opportunity to put in a letter of intent to run, any person in the community can apply for running for that position and get appointed in April.”

Simms’ community involvement extends beyond the Planning and Zoning Commission. He has served as a substitute teacher at Carbondale Middle School and delivered meals with Valley Meals.

Reflecting on the community’s character, Simms shared his thoughts on growth and sustainability.

“I think they’re complimentary, not adversarial in nature,” he said regarding growth and sustainability. “Smart growth is really important, and we can talk about how that is and what that really means and the definitions of smart growth.”

Simms stressed the importance of consensus building.

“With consensus in town, there’s people who are going to be against any sort of growth whatsoever,” Simms said. “One thing that is for certain is there’s always going to be change, and there’s always going to be growth, and if anything’s going to happen, there’s going to be more cars going through our town, not less. So we need to be proactive and get the community’s consensus on how we’re going to achieve those things, because staying static is not an option.”

At the end of the meeting, Wussow encouraged community members interested in running for the council in April to begin preparing. The process opens in January, when candidates must submit an intent-to-run form, gathering 30 signatures from either residents within their ward or, for at-large candidates, from across the community.

Following this, the campaign period will run from January through March, during which candidates are required to submit two campaign finance disclosures. 

The election will take place in April.