Aspen Public Radio Podcasts

As the City of Aspen works to maintain a healthy forest, developers face hefty fees to remove trees. Sometimes, though, city council is willing to let the trees fall in order to save a building.

Colorado is investing millions of dollars in the arts throughout the state. The money supports film, public art programs and the state’s creative district program, which tries to help rural economies grow through the arts. In the Roaring Fork Valley, municipalities are figuring out ways to incorporate public art, and make their towns a great place to support artists. In just the past month, the relationship between the arts and government has evolved.

Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence made an unannounced stop in Aspen yesterday, but very few people got to see him. Pence spoke as part of the Republican Governors Association’s high rollers “Executive Roundtable” program held in Aspen this week. According to the Washington Post, the program is meant to give wealthy donors personal access to Republican leaders.

At a work session Tuesday, Pitkin County commissioners discussed plans for spending $2 million generated by the Renewable Energy Mitigation Program, where developers have to pay to offset energy demands.

After $1 million and two years of work, the “Mill Street Complete Streets” project needs some refinement. After the city heard complaints from motorists, traffic will be re-routed through the intersection of Main and Mill Streets. Carolyn Sackariason met up with the city’s senior project manager, Justin Forman, and city engineer Trish Aragon to talk about the changes.

For years, the nonprofit, EcoFlight, has been flying politicians, journalists and concerned citizens over a pristine corridor outside of Carbondale that’s being eyed by oil and gas companies for drilling. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released a plan for the area that has both industry and environmental groups wanting more. Aspen Public Radio’s Elizabeth Stewart-Severy recently flew over the Thompson Divide and has this report.

While the public has been subjected to a year of presidential “election season” already, the races for state positions are just heating up. This Saturday, candidates made public appearances before attending private fundraisers.

This week on Audio Canvas I sit down with Andrea Wallace, chair of the Internship Program, to discuss the importance that this new generation of helping hands has on the Ranch. This weeks episode has been produced by APR intern Matt Kendrick.