To the surprise of many, the heretofore recalcitrant Aspen City Council gave conceptual approval to The Aspen Club & Spa's modernization plan.
"What does the little town of Harper Woods, Michigan, unremarkable in so many ways, have to do with the Prince Bandar bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia, Aspen’s own monarch with the $135 million manse in the beyond posh Starwood section of this mountain town?" writes the Con Man. "Here in Aspen, in fact, the Prince is known as generous to local charities, kind to animals.... In Harper Woods, in contrast, said Sultan is prince non grata, accused by the town’s employee pension fund of embezzling some $2 billion over 20 years as the go-between betwixt the Saudi government and BAE Systems of the United Kingdom."
The Con Man digs down deep into the new book called "The Commission" by New York Times investigative reporter Philip Shenon. The latest revelation: that Prince Bandar's wife wrote cashiers checks that ended up financing two of the 9/11 hijackers from Saudi Arabia.
Posts filed under 'Real Estate'
The comedy of errors that is the Aspen City Council under the do-what-I-say leadership of Mayor Mick Ireland is better than a sit-com, more slippery than a soap--and there for all to see on GrassRoots TV.
I happened to catch part of the drama all but certain to end with the end of free parking in downtown Aspen. Why? Because soak-the-rich Mick wants it that way, even though the real victims will almost certainly be the middle-class he all but ignores. Less than a year ago, the same proposal met with outrage and was quietly dropped. This time around Mick is on the verge of slipping it through with the skill of a Politburo pol.
Continue Reading September 12th, 2007
BASALT, COLORADO--It didn't take the parade at Basalt River Days Saturday for me to finally come to the conclusion that Basalt is flat-out better than Aspen. Nor was it the infamous piece in The New York Times about our little town, nor any of the local coverage (including my own) about Willits and/or the nature of the ongoing boom.
I had come to my conclusion months ago, around about the time that I had lost my stomach for what was going down in Aspen. Every time I would glean the fear of the future and the bile for visitors and second-homers, I would remember my promise never ever to live in a resort town again.
Continue Reading August 19th, 2007
Maybe we should all be ashamed of ourselves: the locals with the illusion they rule the roost, and the visiting rich who act as if they rule the world. There is plenty of blame to go around, and like the entrance to Aspen, things are likely to get much worse. I try to be relentlessly optimistic about things but I see no solution here. The locals make Aspen possible for the rich, and the rich make Aspen possible for the locals. No wonder they hate each other.
Continue Reading August 9th, 2007
Chris created beautiful spaces like the Wilds in Basalt and his home on the Eriksen ranch. His latest dream was to develop energy efficient buildings and a sustainable farm at his ranch that was recently purchased in the Gunnison area. His family became involved in working on all these projects and are continuing to carry them out, the most recent being a remote, off-the-grid cabin on some mining claims on the backside of Aspen Mountain.
Continue Reading July 29th, 2007
MC: As a psychotherapist, what’s the diagnosis for Aspen?
HK: I think you have to do what I did when I came into office. I would reach out, whether agree-disagree, rich-poor, affordable housing versus a mansion in Starwood— how do we work together to preserve what we all care about? A lot of our seasonal residents seem to care more about this community than some people who live here. Some of the people are the most critical in a negative way. If there’s a problem, invest yourself in solving it. It’s not just about complaining. Write a letter to the editor. Do something about it. Take responsibility and do something about it and engage other people. There are people who do nothing but complain.
Continue Reading June 11th, 2007
A mayoral campaign is an opportunity to give change and new ideas a chance; it is one of the few times politicians are forced to give definitive answers. I believe effective leadership is reality based problem solving, a commitment to get the facts on the table for all to consider. In this mayoral campaign I have made several specific proposals for improving our affordable housing program, including changes to the appreciation cap and increasing limits on improvements to existing units by owners. I believe conditions have changed in the last twenty years, that those who once entered affordable housing expecting to move up to the freemarket either here in Aspen or even downvalley quite often no longer have that option. I also have updated the real number needed to reach our 60% goal (289 units) using the city’s accepted methodology and have proposed three specific projects to create those units. Given the city’s estimated $100 million fund surplus in a few years, it is only appropriate to take stock on exactly where we are in this program and revision it’s future. I have shown with hard information, per the city’s own budget estimates and unit methodology, how we can easily make these changes and still reach our housing goals.
Continue Reading May 2nd, 2007
ASPEN, COLORADO (Post Time News)—The noted director and resident Bob Rafelson was irate about the facelift planned for the Aspen Music Festival & School campus—until he found out the identity of the architect.
Continue Reading May 1st, 2007
I was walking home from work this week, meandering down the sidewalks, and as I looked around several questions came to mind.
What if that precariously angled crane at the base of the mountain fell over? I read that a similar crane in Seattle crashed into a building and killed a Microsoft employee, but that couldn’t happen here, could it?
Why does the photo in the window of the Butcher’s Block make me crave Hooters?
How many “air brushed” T-shirts does Boogies sell each year?
Continue Reading April 7th, 2007
A few days ago while I was drinking coffee at Zele, I overheard a part of a conversation questioning if I was a serious candidate for City Council, or was I just after some attention?
I introduced myself and answered their question – Yes, I am a serious candidate – very serious. I explained that when I was doing my daily Grassroots television show, my responsibility to my sponsors, was to generate viewers. My plan to generate viewers was to “Stir the pot” – and I believe I was successful. The key to my success was actually having a plan.
I will not run a “buzz word” campaign. Instead, I will run a campaign that lays out a plan to reach the goals the community has set for itself.
Continue Reading April 1st, 2007
Mayoral candidate Tim Semrau has proposed increasing the appreciation rates for existing affordable housing unit owners by 66 percent and then using $3-$5 million of housing taxes each year to buy their units back down to an affordable price when resold.
That's a proposal to spend $30-$50 million dollars over the next 10 years, for zero gain in actual units built or additional people housed! This proposal is seriously flawed from a policy perspective.
Continue Reading March 19th, 2007
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