The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Over the next two weeks, the Crested Butte News is featuring a Q&A series with the Mt. Crested Butte town council and Gunnison County commissioner candidates running in this November election.
For this week, we’re focusing on the six candidates running for four open council seats in Mt. CB. It is their second and final chance to answer questions from the CB News. Next week, we’ll hear again from the county commissioner candidates. Each group will have had two opportunities to answer our questions and share their positions in this election season.
Ballots were mailed out October 11 and must be returned by Election Day on November 5. The sooner the better!
Here’s what the Mt. CB candidates had to say:
Valeda Scribner
One of the five community principles stated in the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “take an active role in responsible growth.” In light of the numerous large-scale developments currently in the planning phase for the town, what does responsible growth in Mt. CB mean to you?
As much as we desperately need additional housing for locals, we are bounded by the capacity of the current infrastructure, specifically our water and sewer system. Therefore only two additional developments have been approved and no additional large developments can be signed off until we have a reliable plan for sanitation management. We also need to be mindful of encroaching upon the open spaces we love and the wildlife habitat we invade. Therefore, I’m a huge advocate of first assessing the underutilized housing we already have for creative solutions to add additional long-term housing before resorting to new builds.
Do you support the ballot issue of increasing the Mt. CB lodging tax for affordable housing? Should it pass, what are your ideas for how to use the extra funds?
I do support the excise tax increase of 2%, which will apply to short term rentals only. Our community is in desperate need of more long-term housing and bolstering the affordable housing fund will provide the necessary means for solution building. For example, a more robust affordable housing fund can further contribute to the “Housing Matters” program administered by GVRHA, which provides management assistance and financial incentives to homeowners transitioning existing short-term rentals into long-term. I also foresee a possibility that the increase in tax may make the alternative of staying at a hotel more lucrative if it pushes the price point of a short-term rental above that of a larger lodging establishment; the resulting decrease in short-term rental demand could encourage a shift to long-term rental.
What should the town’s role be with regional partner projects or initiatives not necessarily in Mt. CB?
I’m all for opportunities to collaborate with other municipalities and organizations where we have shared interests! The issues Mt. CB faces do not exist in a vacuum – the opportunity to brainstorm collective solutions and spread the effort of implementation with other local entities only improves the outcome of projects we develop. The Mt. CB strategic plan highlights “being a leader in collaboration” as a focus; I would love to support existing initiatives for collaboration, such as a repeat of the county-wide affordable housing retreat held in 2021, as well as initiate new cross-community efforts, like development of a county-wide climate action plan.
Should council members be allowed to participate in meetings virtually and vote virtually?
I would approve a balanced approach to in-person attendance. Perhaps town council members could vote and participate remotely for one session a quarter to ensure virtual attendance is the exception and not the norm.
What’s a fun or quirky talent of yours that we should know about?
Many know that I DJ for KBUT and dance in Move the Butte, however not many people are aware that I’m a knitter! A friend taught six of us in an evening years ago to kick off our monthly “stitch, b*tch, & w(h)ine” nights. My favorite thing to knit is mittens – the drop in temperatures and snow in the weekend forecast have me thinking it’s time to start my next pair!
Bruce Nation
One of the five community principles stated in the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “take an active role in responsible growth.” In light of the numerous large-scale developments currently in the planning phase for the town, what does responsible growth in Mt. CB mean to you?
Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, said there’s two types of growth, growing strong and growing fat. I like looking at it through that lens. We should be striving for each of these developments to make our community stronger, not just bigger. To me that means affordable housing, community spaces, and public transportation. The North Village project is a prime example of a development that has a lot of potential to bring these things to Mt. CB.
Do you support the ballot issue of increasing the Mt. CB lodging tax for affordable housing? Should it pass, what are your ideas for how to use the extra funds?
I support the lodging tax increase, but with some reservations. I don’t see a 2% tax moving the needle much on whether a tourist is planning to visit and the tax is also in line with what other ski towns are charging. I would prefer a tax that didn’t affect hotels that are already paying the higher commercial property tax rate. Not only are those establishments already paying higher taxes, but they are not using space that might otherwise be used for housing.
While this tax is a move in the right direction for affordable housing, it’s not a panacea. I don’t think we can endlessly keep pulling money from short term rentals to solve our housing shortage. We’ll need to find more creative solutions in the future.
If the tax passes, I would like to see those funds used not only for building new affordable housing, but also incentive plans for renting to long term residents and constructing deed restricted ADUs. There are at least two ADU’s on my road that are completely empty.
What should the town’s role be with regional partner projects or initiatives not necessarily in Mt. CB?
Mt. CB has had a good history of working with our regional partners. Mountain Express and the Gunnison Valley Regional Housing Authority are the two that first come to my mind. I would like to continue that tradition. Many of the issues we have in our community can’t be solved alone. When our needs align with our neighboring organizations we should be trying to work with them to create solutions that help us all. It is important however to properly monitor those partnerships to ensure they are in fact meeting our needs.
Should council members be allowed to participate in meetings virtually and vote virtually?
Yes. Council members are currently allowed to attend meetings virtually, but are not allowed to vote if they are not there in person. My understanding is that this rule was created because some members were frequently attending meetings virtually, sometimes even while they were in town. I do think it’s important that council members attend meetings and work sessions in person as much as possible. If a member of the community is willing to take their time to come to a meeting the least we can do is be there to hear them.
I would propose that council members be given a set number of meetings per year that they can attend and vote in virtually. I would also suggest that council members attending virtually not count towards the minimum attendees necessary for a quorum in order to ensure all meetings have a significant physical presence. I would of course also want to have a process to suspend the in-person requirement in emergency circumstances, for example another pandemic or a wildfire.
What’s a fun or quirky talent of yours that we should know about?
Lately, I think I’ve gotten pretty good at answering questions from the local newspaper. Unfortunately, most of my other talents are equally as mundane.
Bobbie Sferra
One of the five community principles stated in the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “take an active role in responsible growth.” In light of the numerous large-scale developments currently in the planning phase for the town, what does responsible growth in Mt. CB mean to you?
According to the Master Plan, Mt. Crested Butte is committed to preserve the region’s natural beauty, deliver exceptional municipal services, enhance quality of life, champion sustainable tourism, and foster an atmosphere where residents and businesses can thrive. All five of the guiding principles in this plan address this issue. How do we meet the needs of full and part-time residents, businesses, essential workers and tourists while maintaining a fiscally responsible government and true sense of community?
We are a resort town. There is no denying this. We have to decide if developers are going to create the future for Mount Crested Butte or are the citizens of Mount Crested Butte going to take the reins and create the rules that the developers play by? Growth is inevitable. The qualities that make for responsible growth through my lens are a holistic approach to becoming not only more of a community but building a greener more sustainable future for our community. Our town needs a vision that relates to things such as creating a smaller footprint; making growth pedestrian and bike friendly; incentives for smaller properties and/or penalties for larger properties; addressing how ecosystems are impacted such as the egress/ingress of our elk and mule deer; water quality; and the impact on the overall quality of life for our community.
Through my eyes, we need to make a dramatic paradigm shift. Costs for expanded infrastructure, impact on our schools, city services, and the years of inconvenience all should be addressed before any development is approved. Who is paying? Should the community members continue to be responsible for this growth? I feel the major burden of these costs should be put at the feet of developers.
Do you support the ballot issue of increasing the Mt. CB lodging tax for affordable housing? Should it pass, what are your ideas for how to use the extra funds?
I support the ballot issue to increase the lodging tax for affordable housing. The current lodging tax is 16.8% and currently 2.9% of this goes toward affordable housing. The voters in Mt. Crested Butte will decide whether to increase this tax by 2% and allow 4.9% for affordable housing. This measure requires the tourists to pay to assist in the support for housing for essential workers and workers for the tourism industry.
With the high cost of land and building in Mt. Crested Butte, even with grants and town support, can the average worker afford to purchase a home? We need to look at a program that would be a sustainable investment model where the town and businesses could buy or create grant-supported affordable housing and rent to eligible employees.
What should the town’s role be with regional partner projects or initiatives not necessarily in Mt. CB?
One of the guiding principles of the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “lead collaboration across the valley.” I agree the town should be actively involved in community collaborations. Collaboration with regional partner projects and initiatives is beneficial to everyone involved. For example, I support reducing the carbon footprint, and the partnership with GCEA focuses on electrifying transportation and provided grants for charging stations throughout Gunnison Valley. The partnerships with Mountain Express and RTA provide free public transportation, reduces traffic and parking congestion, and air pollution by limiting the use of personal cars in our communities.
Should council members be allowed to participate in meetings virtually and vote virtually?
Open meeting laws require that the town council meetings are open to the public and held only after proper public notice that all public issues take place in a meeting setting. Citizens expect and appreciate a commitment to discussing issues with full transparency.
The option to view meetings live, and view recorded meetings allows for greater communication with the community members. On the rare occasion that a council member is unable to attend a meeting, an option to attend and vote virtually is an acceptable option.
What’s a fun or quirky talent of yours that we should know about?
I am a sourdough bread baker. I bake two loaves weekly and keep one and share one. It has been a great way to meet my neighbors, welcome visitors, and make new friends.
Dwayne Lehnertz
Dwayne did not respond to the questions this week even after several attempts to contact him
Nicholas Kempin
One of the five community principles stated in the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “take an active role in responsible growth.” In light of the numerous large-scale developments currently in the planning phase for the town, what does responsible growth in Mt. CB mean to you?
Responsible growth is best accomplished by using MTCB’s laws, regulations, and documents like the Master Plan to make sure any development meets or exceeds those as a baseline. In that process, all aspects of development are considered and weighed.
If those documents don’t reflect our community values, fostering robust public input is the way we stay in touch with our constituents about how they want MTCB to look. If elected, my goal is to revisit the Master Plan and reach out to our constituents through a structured process. With that input we can adjust the Master Plan if needed to better accomplish responsible growth.
Do you support the ballot issue of increasing the Mt. CB lodging tax for affordable housing? Should it pass, what are your ideas for how to use the extra funds?
I support efforts to increase attainable housing. I have learned that no single approach is effective by itself. This ballot question allows our voters to voice their opinion on funding housing efforts. In speaking with constituents and business owners, I have heard a full range of opinions, I am excited to see the result.
If it passes, any funds would be used exclusively for attainable housing including building our own projects in MTCB, contributing to other projects elsewhere in the valley if appropriate, using the revenue stream to leverage financing for attainable housing, funding programs to reduce the cost of existing attainable housing, paying to deed restrict existing housing, and having funds to keep deed restricted housing out of foreclosure. As a Councilor I am always looking for ways to make the most of any attainable housing funds we have.
What should the town’s role be with regional partner projects or initiatives not necessarily in Mt. CB?
My job as a Councilor is to act in the best interests of MTCB. Any part we play in projects outside of MTCB has to have that focus as well as be appropriate to our size and budget. That said, I devote substantial time as a Councilor working with others in our valley and elsewhere to solve problems common to all of us who live here. Great things can be, and have been, accomplished working with our partners and learning from other communities.
Should council members be allowed to participate in meetings virtually and vote virtually?
Virtual meeting technology has been a game changer. I can’t say enough about how it has helped our little democracy in MTCB to be more transparent and get more input and participation. As a member of the public, I very much appreciate the ability to use that technology to be more informed. From the public side, you can choose if your business before the Council is best served by being there in-person or online.
As a Councilor, every bit of business that the MTCB Town Council conducts is important to someone. I have noticed over the years that if someone’s business before the council is important to them, they show up in person (sometimes with substantial expense and effort). If that someone shows up in-person for a meeting, and the people who are deciding that issue are on a screen, what is the point of showing up in person? I think we should make the in-person forum a priority for those that choose to conduct business in-person.
I think the most basic need of someone before the Council is to know and understand who is making the decision and if those decision makers are getting the same inputs. That becomes difficult with some in-person and some online. Council meetings are expensive to put on with a high dollar per hour rate including staff and town attorneys in attendance. I believe the hybrid meeting model adds time and cost the taxpayer more. Making that stretch for the public is an easy yes. For councilors I have a different opinion.
My distant second choice is all virtual meetings. During the pandemic we had completely virtual meetings. Those meetings, while not as good as in-person, presented a level playing field for all, everyone sees the same thing, gets the same information (what the microphones pick up and what gets displayed on the screen), and gets that information in the same form and style.
I have attended meetings in person and online. As a decision maker, in-person is always better for meeting efficiency, engagement with the public, my understanding of the issues, and my performance as a Councilor.
What’s a fun or quirky talent of yours that we should know about?
Maybe these are quirky in their number and variety? My day jobs in the valley have been as a plumbers’ assistant, as a furniture mover, as a firefighter/paramedic, and as an attorney. I am licensed to practice law in Colorado, I have maintained my national certifications as a paramedic (NRP) and flight paramedic (FP-C), and I am a Colorado certified river guide. While not directly using these licenses/certifications at this time, I regularly draw on these experiences to understand people and issues that come before our Council.
Peter Esselstyn
One of the five community principles stated in the Mt. CB Master Plan is to “take an active role in responsible growth.” In light of the numerous large-scale developments currently in the planning phase for the town, what does responsible growth in Mt. CB mean to you?
Responsible growth is understanding the risk and reward in all we do to ensure the constituents’ needs are met while understanding the unintended consequences in decisions that are made. The Mt. Crested Butte Master plan must take into account the area’s assets including the ski area, world class scenery, abundant wildlife and outdoor recreation resources to name just a few. Our land use plans should be built around the protection of these assets.
Responsible growth is a strategic and sustainable approach to planning for a community’s development and includes economic development, community engagement, zoning codes, sustainability, transportation, open spaces, population growth, and government policies. We need to ensure that utility infrastructure and resources are keeping pace with demand. Furthermore, there needs to be focus on an agreed upon master plan to ensure developments are serving as stepping stones in support of that plan.
Town residents need to know what upcoming developments are, and have a say in the results. This is not just the vocal minority, but more importantly the silent majority. I intend to make sure that community input is a constant driver of the town’s decisions.
Do you support the ballot issue of increasing the Mt. CB lodging tax for affordable housing? Should it pass, what are your ideas for how to use the extra funds?
I believe sending the issue of increasing the Mt CB lodging tax to the voters of Mt CB is the correct path as I firmly believe the voters are the ones who should be making the call on this. I have heard some concerns from residents that this increase will price out the tourists and result in lower tourism, but I have also heard from voters that Crested Butte is still a bargain compared to other comparable resorts.
The “extra funds” can only be used for affordable housing as stated on the ballot issue. If the town raises a tax (in this case a lodging tax for affordable housing) for a particular issue (in this case affordable housing), then 100% of that money should go to only affordable housing. Furthermore, there should be full transparency from the town on how much is collected, how much is spent on affordable housing, and how much remains in the affordable housing coffers.
Affordable housing should not be only the burden of the town of Mt. Crested Butte. Partnerships between businesses, municipal services and the town could be created to share in determining, creating and financing future projects.
What should the town’s role be with regional partner projects or initiatives not necessarily in Mt. CB?
The north valley consists of three main entities in Mt CB, CB, and Gunnison County. A rising tide raises all ships, and to that end, I believe it is in everyone’s best interest to work together to better the valley as a whole. Similarly, I would expect to see the regional partners support projects and initiatives which are within Mt. Crested Butte and support the north valley. However, there does need be a clear return on investments made by the town which benefits the residents of Mt Crested Butte.
Should council members be allowed to participate in meetings virtually and vote virtually?
No. When you sign up for this job, it is expected that town council members attend and participate in person. The voting requirement of the job as stated in the bylaws is to be there in person to vote and I support that.
However, in the case of inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances (such as a pandemic), I would support that the council may call for all members to attend and vote from home via zoom.
What’s a fun or quirky talent of yours that we should know about?
I have a cow costume that has been in my closet for decades. It is used for all of my required costume events such as pond skimming, the Chainless race, Halloween and perhaps might even substitute for black tie evening wear. The cow costume is so old that the tail is now missing. If you see a guy in a cow costume at the polka dance, you will know it is me! Oh, and I rode my unicycle to class every day in high school. Perhaps I should combine the cow outfit and unicycling…
