The affairs of the Town of Telluride are in good order. We are a very busy little town government indeed whose activities include:
Valley Floor: Productive discussions occurred last Friday at court ordered mediation talks where several proposals from them were discussed. We were encouraged at a lot of what we saw and are currently hopeful we can find a solution and settle out of court if possible. Condemnation will continue unless an agreement can be reached.
Idarado: This council has been working for 11 months on a definitive agreement with Idarado regarding road ownership and a water treatment site. We are very close to finalizing these important agreements that among other things grant us a Water Treatment Facility site at no cost and use of the right of way for utilities. It also provides the town full ownership of the road.
Affordable Housing: The Mendota affordable ownership condominium project is underway just behind the visitor center on Colorado Ave. Sixteen units will be available for sale in March 2006.
The next project located on lot 48A, (currently the town's impound lot), will consist of 18-25 affordable ownership one, two and three bedroom units. This project is scheduled to break ground in April 2006 and be completed in spring 2007.
Planning issues: Our updates to the Town Master Plan and the Town Park Master Plan are both underway. Additionally, the new Water Treatment Facility planning is progressing well, the Spur plan is completed and planning on municipal use of the old library and youth link site is also underway.
Infrastructure projects: The roundabout is underway, Fir and San Juan Street improvements are completed, the new bus stop at Carhenge is almost completed, and East Colorado sidewalk improvements are scheduled for late fall and/or spring.
Economy: We had a strong winter and summer is starting out well. Airline seats are much higher this summer. We have had record RETT receipts and strong retail tax figures year to date. Festivals and events will ensure that our summer visitor season will be vibrant. There are however continued concerns on main street viability issues that our Master Plan will hopefully address effectively.
Town Services: There is continued focus on providing high service levels. The town manager is working hard on re-staffing our planning office. The marshal's department is working on community service/policing and how to effectively utilize its Citizen's Advisory Board.
Town Park Upgrades: A GOCO grant was received for a skateboard park, which we plan on completing this fall.
Boards and Commissions: There is ongoing work on a wide range of projects including environmental issues, traffic calming, TMCVB restructuring, sustainability, energy issues, streetscapes, and open space.
All in all, a hefty workload is effectively being managed by a dedicated town staff. Have you noticed the street watering that has been going on? It does a great job of keeping the dust down and cleaning the streets.
In my opinion, our council continues to be of "low entertainment value." Our job as elected officials is to make decisions in a business like fashion and make them for the benefit of the majority of town. I feel this council works hard, is approachable and respects process.
Happy summer Telluride!
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