Preserve Glenwood’s character

Whatever happens with the Harvest Roaring Fork proposal, it must not become Willits 2.0 — and Glenwood Springs is the last holdout of true Roaring Fork Valley character.

Just 10 miles upvalley, Willits was pitched as a “new urbanist village” with 25% deed-restricted housing. Twenty years later, those units expired, flipped to luxury, and the median price now exceeds $1.8 million. Teachers commute from Silt. Nurses live in Parachute. Basalt taxpayers still owe $20 million in bonds and TIF rebates for a project that enriched outsiders while erasing local roots.

Now, 236 acres of Sanders Ranch — Glenwood’s front door — face the same fate. But Glenwood remains the valley’s beating heart: City Market runs out of carts at 5 p.m., Coloradough staff know your dog’s name, and Mountain Chevrolet fixes your rig before ski season. This isn’t Aspen’s gloss or Basalt’s boutique drift — it’s working-class, river-town soul.

Harvest Roaring Fork can protect that — or pave it over with 1,500-plus units, a 120-room hotel and 55,000 square feet of retail space on just 220 acres, at a staggering nine units per acre.

A core demand: 50% or more of units deed-restricted at 80–160% AMI with 99-year covenants — not 30-year placeholders. A Glenwood nurse, Carbondale teacher or RFTA driver should want to live here forever, not until the deed flips and the home sells to a second-home buyer for $1.5 million.

Willits imported wealth. Harvest can recirculate it.

Some other suggestions for residents to consider: Slash density. Cap at 400–600 total units (two to three per acre). Reserve commercial space for lease-to-own local startups — think Dos Gringos. Let Valley View, SkiCo or RFTA fund staff housing via company contributions, not county taxes. Use impact fees to train tradesmen for jobs that build and maintain the project. Phase growth only as local businesses expand — think White House Pizza. Mandate an independent water audit, wildlife corridors and low-impact lighting.

Willits clogged Highway 82 with no plan while promising community but delivering luxury. Glenwood can’t afford that loss. Preserve Glenwood’s soul — or sell it off.

Joseph Claypool, Glenwood Springs

Who saved Spring Valley?

For the past five years, the Roaring Fork Valley has seen at least four incompatible development proposals — Ascendigo Ranch, The Fields, Twin Acres and Spring Valley — that were ultimately denied or withdrawn. These outcomes were achieved only after local residents invested tens of thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours successfully opposing these projects.

Their concerns consistently highlighted incompatibility, inadequate infrastructure, limited water resources and a fundamental misunderstanding of the realities of developing on the proposed parcels.

This success is particularly noteworthy given the inherent imbalance in the public hearing process. Local governments grant developers ample time and a platform for their hired experts to present their case to decision-makers. In stark contrast, the public is typically limited to three to five minutes per person to voice concerns — and even their donation-funded experts face time constraints.

It’s the public that funds these decision-makers’ salaries, pays property taxes, builds the community and ultimately bears the consequences of incompatible development.

The recent denials demonstrate that the public possesses a clear understanding of these issues. They should not be forced to engage water attorneys and land planners to advocate for their communities, nor should their voices be time-restricted. Instead, local governments should be responsible for hiring the necessary experts to conduct thorough due diligence on all land-use applications, rather than placing this burden on the public.

It’s time for local governments to afford the public the time and respect they deserve in the decision-making processes of this valley.

Susan Sullivan, Carbondale

Law supports choice for RE-2 families

Garfield Re-2’s attempt to block families from sending their children to Two Rivers Community School is not supported by Colorado law — and it’s not in the best interest of students.

Under the Colorado Public Schools of Choice Act (C.R.S. § 22-36-101), every parent has the right to enroll a child in any public school in the state, including a charter school, regardless of district residence. That means students in Re-2 may legally attend TRCS, just as thousands of Colorado students lawfully attend schools outside their home districts every year.

Re-2 now argues that TRCS is violating C.R.S. § 22-30.5-106(1)(m) by transporting students across district lines. That statute does not prohibit transportation across districts. It simply requires a charter school to include a transportation plan and follow state and federal rules.

TRCS has transported Re-2 students since 2015 without objection from Re-2, the Roaring Fork School District or the State of Colorado. A practice cannot be lawful for nearly a decade and suddenly become illegal because a superintendent dislikes the result.

The real issue is funding. Colorado law requires per-pupil revenue to follow the student. That is not exploitation — that is the structure of the School Finance Act. Parents in Re-2 already pay taxes in Re-2. What the district is really objecting to is that families are choosing a higher-performing school, and the funding is following that choice.

Instead of strengthening its own schools, Re-2 is threatening litigation. That does nothing to improve education for a single child. It only protects a budget line, not a student. If the district believes it’s losing students, the solution isn’t to restrict access to a better option — it’s to provide a reason for families to stay.

TRCS is not harming Re-2. TRCS is providing what families want: strong academics, proven results and a school culture they believe in. No district should punish children for seeking the best education available to them inside a lawful framework.

If Re-2 wants to claim it’s “creating opportunities,” it should not be trying to take them away.

Donald Kaufman, Glenwood Springs