A parking garage for Frisco?

#Frisco #Colorado

Summit Daily Photo

Summit Daily Link

Frisco doesn't have a parking problem — yet.

That's the conclusion of town officials, business owners and respondents to a recent survey conducted by Frisco's community development department.

But with a slate of downtown developments in the works, including Foote's Rest Plaza and Hotel and the Ten Mile Music Hall, many in town are concerned with Main Street's ability to absorb greater parking demand.

There are other factors to consider as well, including Frisco's steadily rising visitor numbers, increasingly popular summer season and the growing popularity of its special events.

“I think there are definitely some smaller things we can do to at least try to move people around town better and move cars around town better.”Deborah Shaner Frisco Town Councilwoman

"Now's the time to start talking about it," said homeowner Woody Van Gundy during an hour-and-a-half long town council work session on the topic Tuesday evening. "Now's the time to start trying to identify these things before it becomes a real problem."

Mark Sabatini, one of the people who developed the West Frisco Gateway Center at the end of Main Street, concurred.

"History kind of tells us why we're here," he said. "When we developed the Gateway Center, we added 20 percent more parking than was required at the time. I thought that was nuts … but we are now, at times, fully parked during the day. So the future is right now."

Town staff recently conducted an informal survey of 50 people on Main Street, achieving a roughly even split of locals, business owners and visitors. Slightly less than half the respondents said the town does not have a parking problem, but half of those people said that it soon would.

"There's a lot of concern about how future development will impact parking," community development director Joyce Allgaier said. "The projects people hear about or see under construction definitely have them thinking about parking."

Parking became a focal point of the opposition to the Foote's Rest Project, which was approved by the town council in January. While the ambitious hotel and restaurant project is up to code on parking, some were concerned that its patrons would still swallow up too many Main Street spaces.

The controversy over the project's approval was a driving factor behind Tuesday's meeting, as some on council vowed to take a fresh look at the parking issue.

What was clear from the session, which included input from a group of longtime locals, business owners and town staff, was that just about everything is on the table.

"The general consensus around the industry and with everyone who's looked at this is we can't build our way out of parking problems," town manager Randy Ready said. "Any town that's tried to do that has failed miserably."

The town council seemed unenthusiastic about a parking garage, at least any time soon. Instead, members seemed more inclined to pluck some low hanging fruit while it's still available — and before the situation demands drastic and unpopular measures like Breckenridge's paid parking.

"I think there are definitely some smaller things we can do to at least try to move people around town better and move cars around town better," Councilwoman Deborah Shaner said.

That might include simply enforcing the two-hour parking limit on Main Street, a rule that goes largely unbidden by employees of local businesses and some skiers who use spaces as park-and-ride spots for Summit Stage buses. "I think this needs to be the last winter where you can park all day on Main Street, whether its skier parking or otherwise," Councilman Hunter Mortensen said. "It's a little silly that we've got very nice two-hour parking signs all up and down Main Street but they've never been enforced."

The town owns two large empty lots that could be leveraged for more parking spaces, but there are complications for both.

The town purchased the Sabatini lot on the corner of Granite Street and Third Avenue in the 1990s with parking in mind, but it's mostly been used for snow storage.

Paving and striping the Sabatini lot could provide dozens of parking spaces, but the prime real estate is also being considered for workforce housing, perhaps an even more pressing need for the town.

The town owns another empty lot in the Frisco Bay Marina, but it already sees heavy day use during the summer from kayakers and recreation path users. Still, it could eventually be useful as a lot for employees of local businesses.

Frisco isn't poised for any major projects to tackle parking yet, but the modest changes being considered could go a long way toward heading off bigger problems down the road.

"We want to look at not just existing but also future needs," Allgaier said. "Let's not just build for today but solve for and plan for the future … We should be looking down the road 20-30 years."

Plan your Summit County weekend

#Summit County #Colorado

Summit Daily

Summit Daily Link

A-BASIN AND THE BUNNY

The bunny is set for a stop at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area, which features a nice, long area for relaxing, similar to a beach, for a "Beach'n Egg Hunt."

They will have multiple hunts, both for skiing and non-skiing children. Beginning at 10:30 a.m at the bottom of Molly Hogan, which could easily be called the "Bunny Hill," is the egg hunt for those children participating on foot.

THEY'RE ALSO PUTTING OUT 5,000 EGGS ON WRANGLER, ONE OF THE MOUNTAIN'S EASIEST BEGINNER RUNS, FOR THE KIDS WHO SKI AND SHRED AT 11:30 A.M. IN THAT HUNT, ONE COULD FIND A GOLDEN EGG WITH A CHILD'S 2018-19 SEASON PASS INSIDE. FOR MORE, VISIT ARAPAHOEBASIN.COM.

EGGQUATIC EGG HUNT

Breckenridge Recreation Center is hosting an Easter egg hunt in the pool this Saturday. Participants are invited to bring their swimsuits and a towel to dive for eggs in the swimming pool. There will be games, crafts and more. Egg hunt times are as follows: 11:30 a.m. children ages 5 and under (must have adult in the water), 11:45 a.m. children ages 6-8, noon children ages 9-10, 12:15 p.m. children ages 11 and up. For more information, visit BreckenridgeRecreation.com.

PHOTOSHOOT WITH THE BUNNY

The Outlets at Silverthorne will be offering free photos with the Easter Bunny on Saturday at the Nike store, 237 Blue River Parkway, in the Outlets' Blue Village. The Easter Bunny will be at the store from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, and people are encouraged to bring their families for a free photo. For more, OutletsAtSilverthorne.com/events.

A REAL HOPPER AT COPPER

With 65,000 eggs spread over 2,500 acres, it's billed as the biggest hunt in the world, and because they have an entire mountain to work with, perhaps they're telling the truth. There will be on-mountain hunts for all ages — from 3 and under to adults — on Sunday at Copper Mountain Resort.

The day begins with an 8 a.m. Easter breakfast, while the free hunts kick off with an all-ages roundup at 8:30 a.m. for a golden egg hunt on mountain. At 10 a.m., there will be a reading of "The Rainbow Fish" by Miss Colorado on the West Lake Stage, and more age-specific hunts at various locations after that and before another all-ages hunt at noon atop the American Eagle Lift.

All events, save breakfast, are free. Lift tickets or ski passes are required for on-mountain activities. For more information, visit CopperColorado.com.

STREET CLOSED!

The Easter Bunny will return to Frisco Main Street on Sunday to hide 5,000 Easter eggs. Children ages 0-8 are invited to hunt for candy-stuffed eggs throughout the Frisco Historic Park and the Frisco Town Hall areas. The Easter Bunny will visit with children before and after the egg hunt.

The hunt will be divided into three areas on Main Street between Madison and Second Avenue. Children 3 years old and younger will hunt in and around Frisco Town Hall. The egg search area for children 4-5 years old will be on the gazebo lawn at the Frisco Historic Park; children ages 6-8 will forage for eggs on the upper lawn of the Historic Park.

Children 3 years old and younger are invited to gather near Town Hall at the intersection of Main Street and First Avenue in anticipation of the noon egg hunt start; children ages 4-8 should line up on the center line of Main Street. The historic schoolhouse bell will toll at high noon to signal the start of the egg hunt. This event is free to all children.

Frisco's Main Street from Madison Avenue to Second Avenue will be closed to traffic from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Summit County commissioners ban short-term rentals in the backcountry, citing safety concerns

#Summit County #Colorado

Summit Daily Photo

Summit Daily Link

Summit County commissioners voted unanimously on Tuesday to ban short-term rentals in the backcountry, citing safety concerns as well as a desire to maintain the character of the landscape.

Along with the prohibition, the commissioners approved backcountry zoning regulation changes limiting backcountry deck sizes and provided clarification on issues such as permits needed for road improvements and snow plowing.

The board approved the continuing short-term rental ban after a recommendation from the Summit County planning department. Planning director Don Reimer told the board that his staff had gathered public feedback after months of discussions. Short-term rentals are not currently regulated in Summit County, and Reimer said that a draft proposal for countywide regulations should be delivered to the board by May.

In the meantime, Reimer said he recommended a continuing prohibition on backcountry short-term rentals, based mainly on safety concerns, such as accessibility for emergency services. He also cited public concerns that an unregulated rental industry in the backcountry could ruin its character, and the fact that the move would not affect any current landowners.

"There are no short-term rentals currently in the backcountry zone, so it wouldn't impact anybody's right to do that," Reimer said. "Even if it was a permitted use in the backcountry zone, there should be some criteria to ensure that the effects are mitigated."

Reimer went on to say that a draft proposal for countywide short-term rental regulations should be ready to review by the end of May, and at that point conditional use permits for backcountry vacation rentals may be considered.

Several Summit residents spoke against the prohibition.

John Coon, who owns a home in Dry Gulch, said the ban represented a "physical stripping" of property rights.

"I just see down the line a continued limiting of what one can do on their property," Coon said, adding the county was wasting taxpayer dollars on a non-issue. "We're looking for solutions for problems that don't exist."

Barbara Vonderheid, an attorney and Summit resident, said the ban will hurt property values for backcountry homeowners, and that the county did not have any facts or findings that supported their reasons for the ban aside from an aversion to short-term rentals.

"I think that some of the decisions have been made about short-term rentals because we just think it's a bad thing," she noted. "It's a politically correct thing to not like short-term rentals in Summit County."

John Nelson, who owns a claim in French Gulch, was incensed by the fact that there were many maintenance issues in the county that are going unaddressed while the board passed a ban on a problem that hasn't emerged yet.

"The county is trying to implement further restrictions, trying to take further land rights from us and trying to ban things that never happened," Nelson said.

Jim Bradley was the only private citizen to speak in favor of the ban. Bradley said that while he did not own a property in the backcountry, he has seen the negative effects of short-term rentals after his neighbor started renting his house out.

"We've had 24 people stay in a four-bedroom house," Bradley told the board. "They park all over the place and on our yard. We have had dirt bikes and ATVs revving up in the morning."

Bradley added that property rights only extend as far as they do not disrupt the rights of other property owners.

"This neighbor, he is using his property rights, as he has a right to do. But it's affecting us negatively," Bradley said.

Mark Truckey, assistant director of community development for the town of Breckenridge, said the town supported the ban and set aside concerns that it would lower property values.

"I remember when we had discussion about house sizes in the backcountry zone in the early 2000s, there were complaints it would diminish value," Truckey said. "But it's all about trade-offs, like not having to pay extra for roads and protecting the character of the backcountry."

In the end, the commissioners unanimously voted to pass the short-term rental ban along with the rest of the zoning changes.

Commissioner Karn Stiegelmeier noted the effect the rentals were having in residential areas, and did not want to risk the same effect in the backcountry without setting forth regulations.

"It's frightening what goes on with STRs in regular neighborhoods," Stiegelmeier said. "My experience with the people who stay in short-term rentals, they hardly know what state they're in. They're very nice people, but they often don't have a clue what issues we face here. They might not know what winter is, anything about safety, wildlife, trash hazards. We need to consider what impact having those same people in the backcountry would have."

Commissioner Thomas Davidson concurred, and said that the process for short-term rentals must be cautious and deliberate, especially when it comes to the backcountry.

"I am comfortable saying that the backcountry is inappropriate for short-term rentals. We need to have a lot more conversation about what Airbnb and VRBO are doing to this county."

Commissioner Dan Gibbs said safety was of paramount concern for his decision to vote with the other commissioners to ban short-term rentals. "In a previous life I was very involved with search and rescue," Gibbs said. "I'm an avid trail runner and backcountry skier, and people often stop me and ask me how to get to this trailhead, how to get from point A to B. I worry about how they'd fare alone in the backcountry. I really worry about the emergency services, whether an ambulance can get to people. I worry about their life safety and welfare, and it's a big role we have to ensure they're safe."

The commissioners are expecting to establish countywide rules for short-term rentals this summer, including special provisions for backcountry rentals if they are approved.

Nearly $1 million makeover for Silverthorne’s Rainbow Park now underway

#Silverthorne #Colorado

Courtesy Town of Silverthorne

Summit Daily Link

Portions of Rainbow Park have been closed off as Silverthorne's popular green space along Rainbow Drive undergoes a major facelift. Still, the park itself remains in almost full-use.

Altogether, the roughly $900,000 park project calls for new restrooms, shelters and pedestrian connections. There's also two relocated picnic pavilions with a grilling station, a redesigned parking lot with more spaces and a new rock wall appropriate for sitting or climbing included in the budget.

Construction began last week, and the project is expected to take about three months to complete. According to town officials, crews should finish up around the last week of June, just in time for the Fourth of July.

To facilitate the work, portions of the skate park have been closed.

The east and south-facing sections of the skate park remain open, but the northwestern end has been fenced off — and will remain that way through April 20 — for safety reasons.

Additionally, portions of a walking track have also been closed, and they too will remain off limits during the construction period.

Despite all of that, the playground equipment and fields at Rainbow Park will not be affected, which comes as welcome news for at least one local family who frequently visits the popular town park.

"I've seen what they've done with Dillon the last few years, and I think that Silverthorne is handling it a lot better by not closing the whole thing down," said Amy Manka, a mother-of-two who lives in Silverthorne.

Manka has two young ones, a 2-year-old and a 6-year-old, and the family visits the park about two to three times a week during the warmer months.

"I'm very happy about it," she said of the town's decision to give Rainbow Park a facelift while highlighting one of her favorite pieces of the project. "It's going to be great having the new restrooms down here."

Manka said the park is "always super busy," and she thinks a lot of people will enjoy the new bathrooms too, especially if they have little ones like she does.

"In the wintertime, the only heated bathroom was up there," she said pointing off in the distance. "And so when you're down here, having to rush up there with kids who are just potty trained is a real struggle."

The Silverthorne SPORT Committee and town council previously approved the redo, and local contractor Columbine Concrete was selected for the work after the town put out a request for proposals with a Feb. 2 deadline and Columbine submitted the lowest bid.

For the eight young skaters who were out enjoying Rainbow Park on Monday afternoon — or at least what they could still skate on after last week's closures — they just want it all open again ASAP.

Naturally, they also expressed some disappointment there won't be any additions to the skate park itself.

"Yeah, the skate park is so small," one of the skaters said before conceding it's still pretty nice for a town of Silverthorne's size and admitting he uses it "every day."

Responding to the boys' concerns, Susan Pearson of the town's Public Works Department empathized with the young skaters and promised the town would do everything it could to reopen the full skate park. But only after it's safe.

Reports: January sales in Breckenridge, Silverthorne, Frisco, Dillon all ahead of last year

#Summit County #Colorado

Summit Daily Photo

Summit Daily Link

Summit County's most recent sales-tax reports show that Breckenridge, Silverthorne, Frisco and Dillon have started the year 6 to 31 percent ahead of where they were after the first month of 2017.

Throughout last year, Summit County's four biggest towns registered record-setting sales tax revenue, each logging from 3.3 to 9.7 percent growth and continuing an upward trend that dates back to the end of the recession.

According to the towns' most recent financial reports, this January marked one of the best starts to a year ever for taxable sales with Dillon finishing the month up 31.1 percent, Breckenridge up 10.5 percent, Silverthorne up 8.2 percent and Frisco up 6.1 percent compared to January 2017.

Pinpointing some of the leading economic sectors, Silverthorne saw a sharp spike in sales at the outlet mall, which accounts for roughly one-fifth of the town's overall sales tax receipts.

At the same time, Frisco's restaurants posted double-digit gains while Breckenridge was buoyed by increased traffic in general retail, restaurants and bars, and other sectors.

BRECK BUSINESS

Overall, Breckenridge's estimated net taxable sales surged 10.5 percent in January compared to January 2017.

Breckenridge generally has smaller percentage fluctuations than other towns in Summit County do, largely because, with more than a half-billion dollars in taxable retail sales in town, it takes a lot more to move the percentages one way or another than it does for other Summit County towns.

Drilling down to the individual sectors, Breckenridge lodging accommodations were up a whopping 17.7 percent in January, which the town attributes to an "increased number of monthly returns filed."

Also, grocery and liquor sales were up 22.8 percent over January 2017 while Breckenridge's restaurants and bars (9.6 percent), retail (5.4 percent) and marijuana (2.8 percent) businesses also saw gains.

On the other side, construction was down 11.5 percent in Breckenridge compared to January 2017. However, construction also experienced the highest growth rate of 2017 at 9.22 percent over 2016.

SILVERTHORNE SALES

Reaching $885,926 in January, Silverthorne's estimated sales-tax collections were up 8.2 percent vs. January 2017.

One encouraging piece of that is the Outlets at Silverthorne, which account for roughly one-fifth of the town's overall sales-tax receipts, were up almost $40,000 compared to the first month of 2017, an increase of more than 27 percent.

The most recent financial report summarizes January's sales taxes collected in February, according to Silverthorne revenue administrator Kathy Marshall, who attributed growth at the outlets to new tenants while adding that a new Levi's store opened there about three weeks ago.

In the report, Marshall also highlighted increases in consumer retail (15.5 percent), lodging (14.5 percent), food and liquor (5.1 percent) and service (3.7 percent) categories, while acknowledging dips in automotive (9.7 percent) and building retail (7.4 percent).

In her report, Marshall explained the decline in automotive as a result of reduced revenue from collision repairs and auto sales, while the slight depression in building retail was blamed on "inflated" collections from one vendor in January 2017, as well as slower sales and equipment rentals.

FRISCO FINANCES

With more than $156,000 in estimated monthly sale taxes for January by themselves, Frisco's restaurants were up 10.9 percent compared to January 2017. Along with general retail and grocery, restaurants are easily one of the most impactful sectors for the town.

Additionally, furnishings (29.1 percent), office (21.9 percent), general retail (9.3 percent), liquor (6.55 percent) and grocery (4 percent) all saw increases compared to January 2017, helping Frisco finish the month 6.1 percent above January 2017 at $860,008 overall.

Frisco also saw strong growth in the gifts (71.3 percent), clothing (44.27 percent), and health and beauty (98.6 percent) sectors. However, with clothing leading all three in January at just over $12,000 in sales-tax revenue, they remain a fraction of town's overall collections.

Frisco also breaks its lodging industry into two distinct categories — hotels and inns and vacation rentals. While hotels and inns were down 5.7 percent, vacation rentals were up a whopping 82.5 percent.

DILLON DOLLARS

Dillon's lodging tax was mostly flat in January, up just 0.11 percent, but the town still saw the highest rate of increase in its estimated sales-tax revenues last January compared to any other town in the county.

It should be noted some of that the high-percentage growth — over 31.1 percent — is somewhat a product of a slower-than-normal January 2017, in which Dillon was 16 percent behind January 2016.

Still, with sales-tax collections at $712,751 in January, it was almost one-third more than what Dillon had during the first month of 2017 ($543,619), which was actually less than the amount collected in January 2016 ($560,144).

In fact, Dillon spent the first half of 2017 lagging behind 2016 year-to-date figures before catching up and piling on the gains in the second half. With January already far ahead of January 2017, that won't be happening again this year.

Trump’s tariffs could make those hiking boots, ski jackets and backpacks a lot pricier

#Colorado

Denver Post Photo

Summit Daily Link

That essential gear for playing in Colorado might soon get pricier.

President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a punitive tariff plan targeting products imported from China. The proposal to impose $50 billion in retaliatory tariffs on a wide swath of China-made consumer goods sold in the U.S. could not only trigger a trade war between the world's top economic powers, but drastically increase the cost of technical outdoor gear, potentially injuring the $887 billion outdoor recreation economy.

"Outdoor products already face one of the highest tariffs out there and now you are going to add another 25 percent? This has the potential of being a devastating blow," said Alex Boian, vice president of government affairs for Boulder's Outdoor Industry Association.

Trump did not identify specific products, which are expected to be announced in coming weeks. But the outdoor industry moved quickly to try to head off new tariffs on its products.

The spike in tariffs on products imported from China will pinch manufacturers, who will raise prices of high-end gear.

The tariff proposal would increase fees by 25 percent paid on goods imported from China. When compounded with wholesaler, distributor and retailer costs, the mark-up can climb as much as 75 percent, said Boian. So that $100 increase tariff on a $400 ski jacket — which already has a duty rate of 27.7 percent — ends up costing the consumer as much as $300 more after a distributor doubles the price and a shop owner adds their costs.

"It's going to hit the American consumer hard," Boian said.

Read the full story on The Denver Post website, click here.

St. Anthony Summit Medical Center ranked a top hospital in the nation by IBM Watson Health

#Summit County #Colorado

Summit Daily Photo

Summit Daily Link

Summit County is home to some of the nation's best skiing, hiking and sight-seeing. Now it's also home to one of the country's best hospitals, as St. Anthony Summit Medical Center has been ranked as one of the America's top 100 hospitals in an annual study conducted by IBM Watson Health.

St. Anthony Summit is one of six Colorado hospitals in the top 100 list, and the only hospital in the state to be ranked as one of the 20 best small community hospitals in the country. The rankings, previously known as the Truven Health Analytics study, have been published for 25 years. This is the first time St. Anthony Summit has been ranked in the top 100.

"We are honored to be recognized as a 100 Top Hospital by IBM Watson Health," said Paul Chodkowski, president and CEO of St. Anthony Summit Medical Center in a press release. "This prestigious award is a reflection of the excellent care and wonderful service provided by the entire staff – clinical and non-clinical alike – at St. Anthony Summit Medical Center."

Marshall Denkinger, St. Anthony's Chief Medical Officer, said the distinction is a special one considering that St. Anthony has only been operating since 2005.

"The hospital as it stands now has only been here 12 years, and it's really been a voyage and a process for us to open this hospital," Denkinger said. "Piece by piece, we managed to build a high level of quality and excellence, and our efforts have been recognized by an independent group."

Denkiner added that the hospital is especially proud of the distinction because of the independent nature of the rankings.

"I think the real aspect of the study that separates it from the rest is that it's objective and independent," Denkinger said. "It uses publicly available data, and is not reliant on membership or any sort of payment to participate in it. It's something really unique about the rankings."

The IBM Watson ranking uses publicly available clinical, financial and patient satisfaction information data to grade hospitals on a balanced scorecard. According to a IBM Watson press release, almost 3,000 short-term, acute care, non-federal hospitals were graded on several categories, including better survival rate, fewer complications and infections, shorter length of stay, shorter emergency department wait times, lower inpatient expenses, higher profit margins and higher patient satisfaction scores.

Denkinger said that the hospital scored highly in these categories primarily due to the "unrelenting focus" of St. Anthony staff to provide excellent health care to the community. He added that small community hospitals like St. Anthony represent the people they serve, which means Summit should also take pride in the distinction.

"We're very proud of this distinction and want to thank every single person in the hospital who does this work every day," Denkinger said. "We also want to thank the community for the support and opportunity to give them quality care and provide this kind of excellence. It's a reflection of community and not just people at the hospital."

St. Anthony does not intend this to be a one-off distinction. Brent Boyer, the hospital's communications manager, said the hospital intends to maintain the quality of care that brought home the honor while aiming even higher next year.

"The nature of change in this industry means that we can't rest on our laurels," Boyer said. "Whether it's tech advances, or governance and administration, or making sure all clinical or non-clinical associates are an instrumental part of what we do day in day out, those things will just have to continue for us."

Breckenridge demos electric bus on the town’s busiest route

#Breckenridge #Colorado

Summit Daily

Summit Daily Link

Breckenridge took its maiden voyage into the future of public transportation Thursday by launching a month-long demonstration of an all-electric bus in its transit fleet. This is the first electric bus to operate a route in a Colorado mountain town for an extended period of time.

After months of negotiation, the Town of Breckenridge partnered with California-based automotive company Proterra to test the bus on the Yellow route, where it will operate as any other regular diesel bus until the demonstration ends at the end of April. The town is so confident in the vehicle's performance that they assigned the electric bus to Breck's busiest Free Ride route, the Yellow route.

The electric bus was launched during an event at the Breckenridge Public Works facility on Airport Road. Transit and town officials, media and a Proterra sales engineer boarded the sleek, 40-foot long blue and green-trimmed bus as it made a short loop to CMC Breckenridge and back. Proterra vehicles are currently in operation for public transit systems across the country, including Park City, Utah, and Clemson Area Transit in South Carolina.

From the outside, the bus is whisper quiet, with only the gentle whine of a spinning electric motor powered by a 440 kwh electric battery charged by standard electricity. On a full 7-hour charge, the model on demonstration can travel up to 120-150 miles a day, with worse performance at colder temperatures. The battery is protected with advanced heating, cooling and insulating technology that protects the battery from external conditions.

Proterra sales engineer Ryan Saunders said his company's electric buses are perfectly suited for a mountain town, as they are environmentally ultra-friendly and quieter than diesel buses "by degrees of magnitude." He added that the bus has an regenerative braking system that actually benefits from the stop-and-go nature of public bus operation.

"The battery is also charged by the kinetic force in the brakes, meaning that stop-and-go traffic is actually an operational benefit," Saunders said. "Combined with the environmental benefits and how quiet it is, Proterra's electric buses are perfect for the needs of a mountain town's public transit system."

Passengers will not see much of a difference inside the bus, which has 40 seats and can carry up to 60 passengers. The bus is designed with a large windshield that spans the entire length and height of the bus front, offering improved safety with greater visibility for the driver.

While still quieter than a diesel engine, sitting inside the Proterra is similar to the cabin of a commercial airliner. Aside from the hiss of hydraulics and brake squeal, the electric motor produces a whine that grows louder with acceleration. At its height, the motor whine can get almost as loud as a window seat next to a jumbo jet engine. However, Saunders explained that the bus on demonstration is an older version of Proterra's Catalyst E2 model, and that the latest model has a quieter, more comfortable cabin experience.

Electric buses do not burn any diesel or natural gas. According to Saunders, the bus is four times as energy efficient as a regular diesel bus, with 21 equivalent miles per gallon compared to diesel buses which usually only get 4-5 miles to the gallon.

The Proterra bus is a zero emission vehicle producing no carbon or particulate matter. Saunders said the motor still produces up to 310 horsepower and 500 pounds of torque, but the latest version of the company's vehicle is equipped with a dual motor powertrain that is more powerful, quieter and equipped with the latest in traction and brake system tech.

When it comes to safety, this bus is deceptively tough. The Proterra's body is made up of a lightweight carbon fiber-reinforced composite material that the company says is much more durable, efficient and cheaper to maintain than a regular steel frame body. Breckenridge head of transportation Fred Williamson recalled a remarkable example of the composite body's resiliency.

"One of these buses got T-boned by a SUV," Williamson said. "The SUV got totaled and they had to tow it to scrap. The bus went back into normal operation the same day. Almost no real damage."

As far as cost, Williamson said the upfront cost to lease one of Proterra's 35 foot buses is around $800,000, compared to around a half million for a regular diesel bus. However, Saunders said that the bus may potentially recoup half its initial cost over time in fuel and maintenance savings. He offered the example of the company's version of the bus operating in the Clemson Area Transit system.

"Even with the first version of the bus with all its additional initial engineering issues, they were still seeing a dollar per mile maintenance savings, which is huge," Saunders said. "As we've progressed with the technology, those savings will be even larger."

Williamson said that the town urges the public to provide feedback about the electric bus. He added that the town is very pleased with the vehicle's performance and efficiency, and and hopes to have a few of them in the Free Ride fleet full-time by the end of the year.

"We're very excited about it," Williamson said. "We've been working on getting the bus on a route for a while. Right now Proterra seems to be victims of their own success, and have a huge backlog for production, but we hope to lease a couple of their buses here in November."

The electric bus is currently operating on Breck's Yellow Route, which starts at Breckenridge Station and serves stops from Beaver Run to CMC Breckenridge. Buses on the Yellow Route stop every 15 minutes from 6:15 a.m. to 11:15 p.m.

Summit County talks the Olympics

#Summit County #Colorado

Summit Daily

Summit Daily Link

The 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics may be over, but the discussion about whether the Denver metro area and the Colorado High Country should jointly host its own future Olympics is just beginning.

On Wednesday morning, the Summit Daily hosted its latest "What's Brewing?" event, one focused on the question of whether or not Colorado should bid to host a Winter Games.

The event was organized in the wake of last month's five "mountain community meetings" hosted by the Denver Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Exploratory Committee. The local meetings, which invited Summit County community leaders and stakeholders, included stops in Frisco and Breckenridge.

Wednesday's What's Brewing event included some of those same stakeholders while other members of the community were also able to chime in. Here are eight takeaways from the discussion:

TRUSTING THE COST

Even if the Games were privately funded, several people doubted that would be the case in the end.

Citing previous Winter Olympic games that blew past their projected budgets – such as the 1980 Lake Placid Games and the 2014 Sochi Games — several attendees expressed caution in believing initial cost figures or financing plans. The feeling for some was that even if a financial agreement was agreed upon before the Olympic planning process, unforeseen costs — and the billing of taxpayers — would be inevitable with an event the scale of the Olympics.

"In 2030, the chance of (the Winter Olympics) being $70 to $80 billion is not unreasonable," said Breckenridge resident Jim Trisler. "I can't see private money carrying that."

WHAT DOES A "PRIVATELY-FUNDED" OLYMPICS MEAN?

During the discussion, a Dillon resident named Tom (who declined to provide his last name) said he entered last month's Exploratory Committee meeting skeptical, but left with a more positive outlook on the Games with the knowledge that the committee is looking into private financing.

"All I know is that the committee down in Denver are some pretty wealthy individuals," Tom said. "The pessimist in me says they will do it because they will make money off of it. But (Denver) Mayor (Michael) Hancock and the Denver Metro Chamber have made it real clear: no tax dollars."

A few moments later, an unidentified attendee expressed concern with private financing, relaying that it may result in a less accountable group planning the Olympics.

"Over the 30 years that we've been here, we've seen our land and our wildlife sort of being loved to death," the woman said. "So it really scares me to think of what this might mean. I don't want taxpayers to pay for it, but if it goes over to private money, what sort of pressure does that put on decisions that are made by people who maybe don't live here?

"I see us under a lot of pressure to do it, get it right and get it done," she added, "and if the money is private, I am worried about that. If the money is public, I am worried about that (too). So the whole thing scares me."

WHAT CAN WE GET OUT OF THIS?

The vocal majority in attendance at the What's Brewing event expressed that they were very hesitant to a Colorado Olympics if it cost local Summit County taxpayers.

Throughout their exploratory process, the Denver Exploratory Committee has been adamant that they are focused on identifying ways for the Games to be financed privately.

The common sentiment in the room on Wednesday again was that a Colorado Olympics would only be welcomed with substantial — if not complete — private financing. On top of that, several locals shared that a Games would only be worth it if something was gained in return.

At last month's Frisco Exploratory Committee meeting, the most vocal answer was a transportation solution, whether it be a rail system or improvements to Interstate 70. On Wednesday, the issue of using the Olympics to improve transportation infrastructure was a common talking point again.

"From I-70 to Breckenridge, how are they going to handle the traffic and the people coming in there? Someone would have to address that, because the people who live in Breckenridge won't be able to go anywhere," one unidentified attendee said.

CLIMATE CHANGE: A CHALLENGE OR OPPORTUNITY?

Throughout the Denver Exploratory Committee's process, including at last month's mountain community meetings, one topic discussed has been whether with climate change whether it's even wise for Colorado to host a Winter Games.

In the wake of this season's relative lack of snowfall, several members of the community have brought up a worst case weather scenario: One where Colorado hosts the Olympics, but once commenced either warm weather or lack of precipitation drastically affects the event in a negative fashion. A headache in the short term and a poor representation of Colorado's winter weather and sports for the long term.

But at Wednesday's What's Brewing event, town of Breckenridge spokeswoman Haley Littleton — who stressed she was speaking for herself and not for the town of Breckenridge — approached the climate change debate from another angle. What if, considering Summit County's elevation, our location and facilities could be used to showcase the Games during a time of global warming.

"For the sake of the world, if climate change continues and Summit County is really one of the few viable places to have the Winter Olympics," Littleton said, "what is our stewardship as a community to the world to facilitate this?"

WHAT OF THE SKI RESORTS?

If and when Colorado hosts the Olympics, it appears most likely that Summit County resorts such as Copper Mountain Resort and Vail Resorts properties, such as Breckenridge Ski Resort, would be at the top of the list to host freestyle skiing and snowboarding competitions, at the least.

That said, there are a number of hypothetical questions centered around the resorts, including who would host events like halfpipe and slopestyle.

Those questions are far from being answered. For now, one of the locals in attendance, Copper Mountain spokeswoman Taylor Prather, described the resort as still very much in a wait-and-see approach in terms of its interest in an Olympics.

"The jury is still out at Copper," Prather said. "I think we are all taking it very seriously. It definitely is an opportunity. From my perspective in public relations, it would be a publicity opportunity. But that comes with challenges in itself. We are definitely trying to figure out what the mentality is for our community."

GIVING BACK TO THE REST OF THE WORLD

Several attendees, including Dave Anderson, viewed a Colorado Games as a good way to repay the other Winter Olympic countries and cities who've played host to our locals in previous years.

"Transportation will be difficult, there is no question about that," Anderson said. "But I think, I've been watching the Olympics for over 60 years and we in this region are defined by our winter activities to a large degree. We've had the benefit of other venues sharing their world with us. And I think it would be very nice if we could pay back to the world what they have given to us, if it can meet all the economic requirements, that doesn't put at risk (of the) state's funding."

BUT WHY IS SALT LAKE CITY INTERESTED AGAIN?

The 2002 Winter Olympic host, Salt Lake City, has also expressed interest in a future Olympics, namely the same 2030 games Colorado is considering.

The fact that the Utah city was again interested in hosting was something worth thinking about for Summit County media professional Amy Kemp. Namely, why?

"Is it because (of) the upside, the legacy?" Kemp said. "The University of Utah got dormitories for their students (due to the 2002 Olympics). They looked at it in a different lense.

"We are not a Sochi model," Kemp added, "we are not a South Korea model. We are more of a Salt Lake City model because of the (existing) infrastructure (in Summit County)."