Negotiations between the town of Crested Butte and the Mount Emmons Mining Company (MEMCO) and Freeport-McMoRan seek to forge a path to eliminate the future potential of a molybdenum mine on Red Lady. That path could lead to a ballot measure before town voters this fall, though the details are not yet public.
At a special meeting on Monday, August 29, the Town Council voted to let the Gunnison County clerk know the town might include a bond issue on the upcoming November election ballot. It was made clear the issue would not raise taxes on citizens but would be tied to the real estate transfer tax (RETT) budget.
While not going into any detail at the Monday meeting, the council passed a resolution authorizing the town manager to enter into an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the Gunnison County clerk and recorder. A memo to the council explained that the IGA allows the town to work with the county on a potential ballot measure in the upcoming fall election.
Town attorney John Belkin said under state statute, any ballot language has to be set by September 9. By passing the resolution, the council basically reserved a spot on the ballot. The council can review specific ballot language at its September 6 council meeting. If no agreement with MEMCO and Freeport is reached before the meeting, there will be no ballot initiative necessary.
“We all want to continue to work toward a permanent divestment of the mining claims on Mt. Emmons,” explained Belkin. “We are discussing a number of things with Freeport and the company attorneys. Part of that discussion could result in having an issue come to the voters.
“This is an incremental step in that direction,” Belkin continued. “It is essentially agreeing to hold a bookmark for the November 8 election.”
The memo to the council stated, “The ballot measure would be for a bond issue using the land transfer excise tax as the pledge for repayment of the bond. There is no increase in tax being contemplated.”
If an agreement is reached with Freeport before next Tuesday, details of the plan will be revealed in the ballot language.
Executives of the Mount Emmons Mining Company (MEMC) and Freeport McMoRan, owners of the molybdenum mining rights on Mt. Emmons west of Crested Butte, will be in town at the end of July to look over the site. Several representatives of MEMC plan to tour the wastewater treatment plant and analyze the mining claims and the property now owned by MEMC.
Last February, MEMC, a wholly owned subsidiary of global mining giant Freeport McMoRan, stepped in and acquired U.S. Energy, the longtime permit holder and owner of the mining rights on Red Lady. Freeport was connected to the mine through a previous acquisition of a mining company that had owned and operated the site. That connection put some potential federal liability on Freeport for water quality and other issues associated with the site. When U.S. Energy appeared to be in deep financial trouble, Freeport stepped in last winter to quickly acquire the site and its assets.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in February by the mining company, the town of Crested Butte, Gunnison County, and several state regulatory agencies.
Ultimately, the company said its intention was to not mine the site, look for efficient ways to treat the water coming through the site, improve the water quality in Coal Creek and work toward a permanent solution to end the idea of mining Red Lady.
At the time, all involved expressed great optimism but noted that the “heavy lifting” would take some time. That time began in February and is continuing today.
The town of Crested Butte, Gunnison County and the representatives of the state and feds have been communicating regularly to keep the process moving forward. Detailed maps are being drawn to show the extensive holdings that came with the acquisition. The holdings include patented and unpatented mining claims, fee simple property, lode claims, millsite mining claims, placer mining claims, and even tunnel site mining claims for underground holdings.
It is a complex web of real estate holdings that stretch from just outside Crested Butte, up and over Ohio Pass, and to some ranch property in Carbon Creek and Alkali Basin behind Whetstone. The Trust for Public Lands is being consulted about facilitating preservation of some of the more prominent pieces. As for the minerals, the idea of an administrative or legislative mineral withdrawal is being broached.
According to Crested Butte town attorney John Belkin and Gunnison County attorney David Baumgarten, getting MEMC company representatives on the ground to see exactly what it is they own will be a big step to coming up with a complete plan to end the idea of mining on the Red Lady.
“There are five main priorities right now,” said Baumgarten. “First is making sure the water treatment plant is running and the water is being treated. Second is getting them in here to physically see the site. Third is making sure we are all working toward developing site-specific water quality standards for Coal Creek that may include monthly technical meetings with interested stakeholders. Fourth is dealing with the complex real estate holdings and transition of the claims and property. And finally, fifth is a mineral withdrawal that we may have to take to the United States Congress.”
Belkin said while there is a “trust but verify” attitude between the government entities and the mining company, the fact is the talks have been very positive and a collaborative attitude remains between everyone involved.
“We have been talking regularly and we all seem to still be on the same page,” Belkin said. “I think it will be very beneficial to get them up here to actually see the site and listen to their ideas. They have talked about doing some new things with the treatment plant, for example. Everything at this time appears to heading in the right direction.”
First, executives of the Mount Emmons Mining Company want to get their feet on the ground and see with their eyes what is actually owned by the company. That will happen in the next few weeks.
The council appointed a new committee to begin pondering the best way to address the short-term rental issue in town. The town had advertised for two citizens-at-large and two property managers to join the staff and a couple of council members (Jim Schmidt and Laura Mitchell) to come up with recommendations on how to proceed. Two property managers, Kat Hassebroek and Steve Ryan, submitted applications and were appointed. The council received a whopping 10 applications from general citizens. They took a vote and appointed Mary Cooper Ellis, Dan Escalante and Alex Fenlon to the board.
Avalanche Park campground investigation
While still at least a couple of years out, the town agreed to hire the JVA Consulting firm to study details needed to move toward a campground at Avalanche Park south of Crested Butte. The property is owned by the town and is next to the county shops on Highway 135. It is expected that a Colorado Department of Transportation study would be needed to determine if acceleration/deceleration lanes would be required at a new entrance. The $15,000 consulting fee will help solidify numbers for actual campground development costs. Councilman Jim Schmidt said the council also needed to determine if the campground would be used primarily for summer visitors or for summer workers.
Mt. Emmons deal still moving ahead
Town attorney John Belkin told the council that meetings concerning the Mt. Emmons mine situation are continuing with the county, state and global mining giant Freeport McMoRan, whose subsidiary now controls the project. Final documents concerning the escrow fund related to the water treatment facility are being completed. Maps are being drawn up showing real estate holdings in the mine area. Belkin said Freeport executives are waiting for the snow to melt to come up and look at the facility.
Mountain Express dealing with potential RMBL funding pull-out
Crested Butte council representative to the Mountain Express board Roland Mason reported to the council that the bus system is dealing with a kink in funding the summer Gothic bus. Mason said the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory has indicated it will eventually stop contributing to the cost of the buses that bring kids up for their science programs and people in general to Gothic. “We are looking into it more so we tabled the discussion at our last meeting,” Mason said. “I may be coming to the council here asking how you feel about service out there. They have kicked in about $7,000 a year and it is an ongoing discussion.”
Mason said there were only three board members at the last meeting and RMBL executive director Ian Billick was also out of town so there is more information to gather.
Mayor Glenn Michel said it appeared the county was stepping up and doing road improvements to make Gothic Road more bus-friendly. And given recent backcountry crowding issues in the drainage he said it wouldn’t send a great message to stop running buses in the summer to Gothic.
“It’s an unfortunate situation and we are struggling with this. It might be better to pay for buses to get more people out and back as opposed to focusing on the kids going to the RMBL programs. That could result in a shift of the times the buses run. We don’t know yet. I’ll keep you updated,” Mason promised the council.
A discussion about funding and scheduling is tentatively set for a Mountain Express board meeting on June 2.
Chrome, sidewalk seating and vending machines
—Council approved several applications from Elk Avenue restaurants ready to provide sidewalk seating this summer. Sidewalk seating season begins Memorial Day weekend.
—A new chrome horse will soon be situated on the old “Academy lot” across from the Center for the Arts. The horse was donated to the Center and will move to that location once a new building is built.
—Councilwoman Erika Vohman suggested the town look into providing candy vending machines in Town Hall to help raise funds for a better holiday party for town staff. The idea of so many kids utilizing Town Hall clicked as a fundraising opportunity for Vohman. Kids and candy equals cash. The staff investigated the concept and found the cash was pretty lean so don’t expect a wave of vending machines around Town Hall.
Streets, housing, Big Mine, tennis courts, mine transition and overall stuff
by Mark Reaman
Summer is busy, not just with tourism but also with local improvements. The town of Crested Butte has a full roster slated for this summer.
Probably the biggest project will begin after the busiest part of the summer season, when construction will shut down Big Mine Park at the end of August and into September. The town will upgrade the utilities on the site and that means a lot of digging.
“We are in the initial stages of design and the exact location of the construction is yet to be determined,” explained Crested Butte Parks and Recreation director Janna Hansen. “There will be a lot of trenches dug and new pipe laid, but when it’s all said and done, Big Mine Park will look pretty much the same as it does now. This work is the first step in bringing recommendations from the Big Mine Park Master Plan into fruition. Utility upgrades are phase I of the plan with phase II including an expansion of the warming house and the construction of changing rooms and bathrooms for the ice arena.”
Other projects in the Parks and Recreation realm include constructing a bike jump park out by the gravel pit. That will take until July. There are plans to upgrade the bathroom facilities at Pitsker Field, resurface the tennis courts at the Four-way Stop, do some new landscaping around the Depot and the tennis courts, and build some new trail kiosks at the recreation path and bike park.
The first project you might notice around the tennis courts is construction of a retaining wall that started this week. Sidewalk construction by the courts will begin next week. The courts themselves will be resurfaced due to bubbling and delamination of the existing material. That is a two-week project that has to happen when the nights are warm. So expect it to happen in late June or early July.
Public Works director Rodney Due has a pretty full plate this summer as well. A paving project at the tennis court parking area is slated to be complete before June 17. “But of course that is weather-dependent, like almost everything,” Due said.
Town streets will be crack-sealed, patched and slurry-sealed throughout the summer. “We hope to finish up Butte Avenue and get Block 79 and 80 prepared for affordable housing projects by July 1,” said Due. “I am also hoping to get the new RV dump station on-line by mid-June.”
Town planner Michael Yerman is also deeply involved with the affordable housing blocks. Yerman said the town will offer home ownership classes in June. The lottery to choose the people who can purchase the open affordable lots will be held the second week in June. The Gunnison Valley Regional Housing Authority (GVRHA) is assisting with this process and qualifying applicants. Applicants must be pre-approved for construction loans for this year’s lottery.
Speaking of affordable housing, “Anthracite Place, the 30-unit building at the entrance of town is currently under construction and is slated to be completed by July 1,”” said Yerman. “The town will need to invite elected officials at all levels, including federal, state, and local representatives [to the ribbon cutting]. The town should work with GVRHA to make sure it is well attended and the project full.
“And when it comes to short-term rentals, or RBOs [Rental by Owner], there is a working group to develop regulations and discuss issues surrounding RBOs,” Yerman continued. “The Planning Department has begun the initial investigation on the legal framework to provide funds for affordable housing. This discussion is ongoing at the regional level with the county and GVRHA. There have already been quite a few locals in my office who have lost their rentals. This will be a major issue again June 1 and the community will put pressure on the town to act. So we will have to be prepared for when the council decides to throw out ideas once they feel the pressure.”
As the economy picks up, so does the idea of development, so Yerman and the town are involved with that planning. A pre-annexation agreement has been executed with Cypress, the development group working toward a “hybrid” annexation and development just north of the town boundaries. Cypress is submitting a major impact application to the county. The planning department will continue to monitor and attend meetings on the application throughout the submittal.
Foxtrot, a four-lot subdivision north of Crested Butte, has a minor impact application under county review. Yerman said a wastewater connection agreement needs to be executed with the developer and town.
The Center for the Arts has submitted an expansion proposal in Town Park to the Board of Zoning and Architectural Review (BOZAR). This will remain a town-owned building. The town will conduct park-planning meetings from July to September. A Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) grant is due in November.
A traffic study will be conducted this summer for a possible campground at Avalanche Park, south of town by the county shops. Designs will need to be refined and a budget will need to be prepared by this fall.
And of course there are the backcountry issues that pop up in the summer. The town has been engaged with Freeport-McMoRan, new owner of the mine site west of town on Mt. Emmons, on the mine and water plant. As the project has progressed, the Planning Department has become involved in the property acquisition associated with the deal.
Initial conversations have begun with the BLM and Crested Butte Land Trust on the planning for the Oh Be Joyful Campground parcel on the Slate River. The town has been requested to participate in a possible GOCO grant for the project. And the town is continuing to construct a trail up Baxter Gulch in July. This requires time to manage work crews in July.
So while summer is a time to get out and enjoy the perfect mountain weather and cultural activities, it is also a time to get stuff done and that’s what the town of Crested Butte is planning to do before the next big snow flies.
Special events are close and some will have changes
Summer is coming and that means events. The Crested Butte Town Council on May 2 approved several special event permits. The Crested Butte Bike Week that includes the Chainless Race will take place June 23-26. The Farmers Market will start up June 5. Splatterdash was approved for July 2 and the People’s Fair is September 3 and 4. All include at least some limited road closures.
The Fourth of July special event was approved with conditions. One condition is that the annual spectacle of giant four-wheel drives climbing over each other’s tires will not occur this year. Sorry, Earl. The marshals apparently felt there were some safety issues with the “float.” The council also wants nothing thrown from parade floats this year, “particularly super balls.” And it appeared everyone discussing the event at the May 2 meeting agreed last year’s 15,000 people were enough so the Chamber will not be actively promoting the event.
And there will be a meeting in June between the Town Council and Vinotok organizers. Issues to be discussed include the bonfire location, safety and bathrooms. The Vinotok council will mull over the issues this month before meeting with the town and would appreciate any feedback.
CB and county friction?
Interim town manager Bill Crank told the council at the May 2 meeting that he has been spending a lot of time working with the county on two issues. The first is the proposal concerning the Foxtrot subdivision and whether new houses should eventually be required to hook up to the town’s wastewater system and the developers be required to submit an application to the Town under the”201 IGA” agreement. The second is how to structure a payment split with the county over work being done through the Coal Creek Watershed Coalition in conjunction with the Mt. Emmons mine transfer.
“You as the council authorized paying the entire $13,500 the Coal Creek Watershed Coalition requested at the April 18 meeting with the hope the county would pay for half,” Crank said. “Since that time we’ve been dealing with the county and they have not been agreeable to entering into a contract with the CCWC. I’m not sure why. If we can’t get the issue worked out with the county, is the council still willing to foot the whole cost?”
The council indicated it was.
“I can’t determine if it’s an issue of misunderstanding or terminology,” said Crank. “We’ll continue to try to work this out.”
As for Foxtrot, the county has requested a meeting for the developers, the town and the county to discuss the issue next week. The Planning Commission will then hold a continuation of the initial public hearing on Friday, May 20 at 2 p.m. at the Crested Butte Town Hall.
The town of Crested Butte has agreed to fund the efforts of the Coal Creek Watershed Coalition (CCWC) to work with the Mt. Emmons Mining Company (MEMCO) to develop water quality standards in Coal Creek. The hope is that Gunnison County will split the $13,500 cost, but the council made it clear the work is important as part of the evolving process with the molybdenum mine on Red Lady.
The CCWC will assess data and develop new site-specific water quality standards for Coal Creek in conjunction with MEMCO and the state. The CCWC has been sampling water quality in Coal Creek for the past 12 years.
At the Monday, April 18 Town Council meeting, the council expressed some concern with footing the whole bill and town attorney John Belkin said it was likely, but not a sure thing, that the county would help pick up half of the tab. The Red Lady Coalition has committed to donate $1,500 toward the $15,000 request.
“Part of the appeal is that these local guys with Coal Creek will work with MEMCO and develop a business relationship,” said Belkin.
“We expect to work with the mining company directly,” said CCWC president Steve Glazer. He also noted that since all the stakeholders will “work toward a consensus opinion about what the stream standards should be, it is also possible that CCWC’s costs will increase,” citing the potential for more needed meetings and more data gathering and analysis.
“I think we need a tickler to remind us all to ask the county for a contribution,” said councilperson Laura Mitchell.
“It’s been a collaborative effort,” said Belkin. “They are aware.”
“I think the work is important enough that we should pay the whole thing now and not have it be contingent upon county participation,” said councilwoman Erika Vohman. “If they do contribute, that’s great.”
Glazer said the CCWC was hoping to get on the May 3 board of county commissioners agenda to officially make the request for financial assistance.
The Crested Butte Town Council amended its 2016 budget to consider an additional $394,500 in anticipated sales tax revenue to be collected this year. Voters approved a .5 percent sales tax increase last November, earmarked for Parks and Recreation, and it is expected to generate close to $400,000 in new tax revenue this year.
Under the budget amendment, parks will get a new full-time employee along with a full-time seasonal employee. Park maintenance supplies will be increased and a bike park project will be built in the gravel pit. A sidewalk and retaining wall by the tennis courts is also now in the budget.
Given the developments with the Mt. Emmons mine situation and a potential hybrid annexation north of town, the legal budget was increased to $242,100 from $167,100.
Town councilman Chris Ladoulis anticipated the town would incur some additional costs in an effort to replace town manager Todd Crossett. Crested Butte finance director Lois Rozman said that would require a future amendment to the budget.
Jim Starr of the Coal Creek Watershed Coalition (CCWC) spoke in favor of the budget amendment, especially the increase in the legal budget. “The Mt. Emmons project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we strongly support the increase in legal fees,” he said.
Starr also told the council that the CCWC had been gathering data for the last dozen years or so and was now expected to step up efforts to work with the Mt. Emmons Mining Company and local government entities to help develop permanent water quality standards for Coal Creek. That might take some additional funds and he asked the council to “consider a placeholder” in the budget for the group. He expected to come back within a month with a specific request that he estimated at $20,000. He said the CCWC would also be approaching the county for additional funding.
Starr said the Bureau of Land Management was anticipated to put about $400,000 in improvements to the Oh Be Joyful camping area on the Slate River, but given that a lengthy NEPA process was required first, that money wasn’t expected to be available this summer.
“I wish they’d take some of that $400,000 and pay for additional outhouses up that valley,” said councilman Jim Schmidt.
In terms of budgeting, Schmidt again lobbied for expansion and improvements to the public restrooms at the Four-way Stop now located at the north end of the Visitors Center building. He proposed opening up the building, expanding the bathrooms and using it as the primary bus stop instead of constructing a whole new building. That will be considered but likely won’t happen this summer.
As a result of the increase in sales tax directed to the town Parks Department, money for the rest of the town budget will be freed up. This year the budget will now allow for a new patrol car for the marshals and other town vehicles, a new loader and some building improvements including carpet and bathroom improvements for the Town Hall and a new heating system for the Marshal’s Office.
The council voted to approve the amended budget, but expect to see another one later in the year.
Suzanne “Soupy” Pierson was born in the midst of a raging Oklahoma tornado in a two-bed hospital above the town saloon and as she came wailing into this world, the delivering doctor’s father was exiting this life in the only other bed. So, it’s no wonder that she has a rebellious gusto for life and a fiery smile. She attributes her unruly mop to her birth circumstances. “It’s why I have curly hair,” she chuckles. “I was born in a big wind.” She is the perfect material to make up the Red Lady. Last week she was crowned number 39 in the long line of the famed sisters, the one whose reign could quite possibly see the victorious end for the fight for a mine-free Mt. Emmons.
photo by Lydia Stern
Suzanne was raised in Tulsa through her preteens, and art and music were prevalent throughout her life. “My father was a magnificent baritone with a beautiful voice. He sang in the Methodist church. My mother could harmonize with her wonderful voice and perfect pitch and she played piano. There was always music in the house.” It rained a lot, she recalls, and although she was understandably frightened of storms, afterward her mom would take her and her brother driving on dirt roads to look for rained-out tortoises, which they would bring home as pets. “We had a little tortoise farm and we’d paint flowers and pretty stuff on their shells. I was only three or four years old, still in my little ruffled panties.”
Suzanne wound up in Denver as she hit her young teen years when her parents divorced and her mother moved the kids back to her own native Mile High City. Suzanne joined a softball team, “Pepe’s Pizza,” she smiles. “I could bat, I could hit ‘em,” she touted proudly. “I was sledding and ice skating. We couldn’t afford to ski.” But she started skiing in high school when she was able to take the school bus trips on weekends. “I learned to ski on long wooden skis with leather boots,” she reminisces.
She graduated from Wheatridge High School in 1964 and says the only way she could afford to go to college was on scholarships, grants and student loans, which she got. Off she went to Colorado State University (CSU) in Fort Collins, enrolling as a humanities major, later switching to art. “I loved art so much in high school and I took all the art classes that were offered but I had to choose art over music because they wouldn’t let me do both. So, I did music on the side. I sang and played for pleasure.”
She sang in church choirs and talent shows all the time, and as a sophomore in high school her church group took a trip to Colorado Springs that would alter her perception of music when a friend brought a ukulele along. “I was so fascinated with that instrument. She taught me a couple of chords and I came home so excited and told my mom, I gotta have a guitar. My aunt happened to have an old steel-string Stella in the basement. I got a book and taught myself.”
With musical influences like Judy Collins, Peter, Paul and Mary, Buffy Saint Marie, Dylan, Baez, and Richard and Mimi Farina, she became a folk singer herself. “I played everywhere I could, high school, campfires, church youth gatherings. Eventually people started asking me to play and I did, unfettered!” She was talented to the point that when a sorority leader suggested she perform for a living, Suzanne picked up her guitar and stomped right over to the new Pizza Hut in Fort Collins to ask for a job.
“I asked if I could sing and they said sure, so I sang traditional folk songs and my originals on Saturday nights for tips, pizza and one beer, which was 3.2 Coors. That was the beginning of my gigs. I was a girl and a guitar, a singer-songwriter for three decades.” It helped Suzanne earn her way through college and she received a performance scholarship through the music school, even though she never took any music courses while she was enrolled there.
In 1966, Suzanne met a woman recruiter for World Campus Afloat, a fully accredited liberal arts college sailing around the world on a cruise ship. The recruiter offered her a scholarship on the S.S. Ryndam, and the following semester Suzanne boarded the ship and went around the world. Because of her enthusiasm and talent, the college offered her a student assistant position for an additional semester, and she traveled around the world again to ports in South America, South Africa, India, Malaysia, and Hong Kong before she went back to CSU to graduate in 1970.
“After college I went to Santa Ana, Calif., to make music and paint, when the World Campus Afloat called again asking me to be on staff as a resident assistant, helping organize kids for all of the field trips, pre-port trips, presentations and briefings. I was like their older sister, the grad student. That was 1971.”
While she was cruising, she had a rendezvous with an old childhood friend and spent five days off-ship with him in Japan—and they fell in love. When she left port and sailed on to India, there was a letter waiting there with his marriage proposal, to which she telegrammed back her acceptance. “I had no idea what it would mean. I was really naïve. I was only 23,” she later realized. “I sailed on, with everyone’s giggly approval about having a fiancé. We were trying to get to Durban, South Africa, our next port, and we hit the edge of a typhoon in the Indian Ocean.
“There were 40-foot waves over the bridge of this ocean liner that held about a thousand people. They battened down everything and we were just hanging on. The cargo in the belly of the boat was tied down with straps that snapped and all the cargo shifted to one side of the boat and we were listing at 11 degrees. We listed into Durban, 11 degrees off keel and we were really happy to see land,” she said thankfully. As the tug boat pulled the ship into harbor, the purser’s office called to tell her that John, her now fiancé, had gotten transferred to South Africa from the refineries in Japan as a chemical engineer and was on the pilot boat coming out to meet her ship. “I was on the bow of my ship and he was on the bow of the pilot boat coming to meet my ship and I had 399 students behind me screaming.” Suzanne notes that this was well before the famous DiCaprio-Winslow Titanic scene.
John and Suzanne got married that night, and they both played guitar at their wedding with the ship’s crew dancing out of the kitchen with trays and trays of peanut butter sandwiches since they hadn’t had time to stock food after the typhoon. She and John went off on their honeymoon just south of Johannesburg and afterward, she flew back to Cape Town to rejoin her crew, but in the meantime, she was already having second thoughts about being a wife. “I am too independent.”
She returned to the states for five months, connecting with Buddy Kaye, a well-known publisher at the time who put her into clubs like the Troubadour in Hollywood. “He marched me up and down Sunset Strip, taking me into all the major record companies. Carole King was just hitting the market as the first woman who was a real singer-songwriter headliner, not just a girl in the band, and recording companies wanted to look for more women of that caliber. They offered me a job as a songwriter doing what Carole used to do, but only offered me $50 a week to write music, folk songs. I couldn’t live on that in Hollywood and LA is not a pretty place — it’s a crazy, false superficial world. So I turned them down.” She felt she should at least give wifedom a try in South Africa, so she went, with her publisher’s blessing.
Back in South Africa, she hooked up with immigrants, many of them from the British Isles, all of them making music as part of the underground Freedom Folk Music movement, even though anything that even hinted about freedom was banned in South Africa. She was discovered by the number one record producer in Africa, who gave her a contract to record an LP of her originals. “I got my break at the Natal Folk Music Festival in Durban, and afterwards I became very big in South Africa.
“They didn’t have TV and nobody had phones, you had to go to a big city to make a call,” Suzanne says. She recalls that to them, she was the real thing, what they had seen in their glossy magazines from Europe and America. “I was the big-haired gal that could sing. And sing I did—every opportunity I could get I would travel away from John and that little suburb of bigotry, hatred and apartheid to go perform.” After a radio interview with a widely known DJ, she was recognized as a major American folk singer talent. “I played with wonderful musicians. The record I made was the first record by an American musician made in South Africa specifically for an international market.”
Although her husband supported her music, Suzanne recognized that things had changed and the traditional roles of marriage suddenly loomed grimly. “I lived with him in Africa for two years until I couldn’t handle it any longer. I couldn’t see my future being his wife. And there was apartheid, which sickened me.” When her husband showed an ugly side of bigotry and racism, and the rules for Africans were so appalling to her and so against her foundational beliefs that she could no longer live watching the oppression, a friend emerged who was traveling back through Europe and she determined it was time to leave.
It was 1974 and the two hitchhiked out of there, taking three dangerous months to get to London and then back to the States, where she started her life as a divorced free woman, continuing her music career.
“I worked with an African-American poet dramatist from New York. I was the guitarist-songwriter and we performed women’s movement and environmental music. We were right on the cusp of the Earth Day consciousness and I had a lot to say as a folk musician and she as a poet, so we toured the country. I went back to school at CU-Denver and got my master’s in humanities, and began my teaching career at age 40. I taught mostly elementary education music for 15 years in public schools, also middle and high school and finished my career as an adjunct college professor at CU and Metro State.” Suzanne smiles, knowing she followed the path she chose.
In 1990, she met the love of her life, Monica Ariowitsch. “Monica is my champion. I quit elementary school teaching when a check-up revealed ovarian cancer. I was 55 and I went through both the medical process and alternate healing medicine. I caught it early. It changed my life. Monica saw me through all that. I’m 15 years in remission now.” When all was said, done and healed, Suzanne went back to teaching university classes until 2008, “then Monica and I started traveling quite a bit, all over the world. I’ve probably set foot in 100 countries and there are still many more to go!” The two have been together, supportive companions and in love, for 26 years, living in Crested Butte since 2012.
“I first came to Crested Butte in 1979 because I was an actor in Cleo Parker Robinson’s repertory theatre company, which brought us here on a grant that year,” she says of her first trip to Crested Butte. “I loved it. I started coming up to ski and I came back in 1990 with a children’s musical I had written that gained international acclaim, Bodhi and the Rainforest. It won the United Nations Environment Program Earth Prize. The play was picked up by the Smithsonian Institute and we performed it for thousands of kids with child actors. It won all sorts of awards and I was acknowledged by Governor Romer in Denver with the Governor’s Prize for Excellence in Education.” After she and Monica bought their home in Skyland, Suzanne laughs that it was, “A no brainer to retire in Crested Butte, and we moved into our home and started fishing out the backyard on the Slate.”
Between all her own creative endeavors in music and art, Suzanne teaches watercolor painting and is in the process of developing a new KBUT program called Sounds Like Art, a five minute radio show series. She’s also on the board of the Crested Butte Center for the Arts and involved with the newly developing Creative District when she’s not doing guest services on the mountain, or performing her new role as Red Lady#39. “I will be doing more music, and I’ve done a few open mics. I’ve got songs and paintings in my head and time on my hands. I’ve been coming up to Crested Butte since the ‘70s and I’m turning 70 on April 11,” and she practically squeals at the delight of not only having reached that landmark as a septuagenarian but excitedly adds, “AND I get a discounted ski pass for next season!” She confirms that she’ll stay in Crested Butte, since “until we get too decrepit, we’re living here.”
Town attorney John Belkin updated the Crested Butte council on March 21 that progress is still humming along between local government entities, the state and Freeport-McMoRan and its subsidiary, the Mt. Emmons Mining Company. MEMC is looking at upgrading the water treatment plant on Red Lady now that it owns the mineral rights on the property. “I think they want to do the right thing,” Belkin assured the council.
What if a rich guy buys all the condos?
Town Council had some discussion over somehow getting ahead of the possibility of a person with money coming in and purchasing two or more condos in a single building and turning them into one unit. The council didn’t like the idea of losing any potential residential units in the community. “It is something to think about,” said councilman Jim Schmidt.
Bag people enthusiastic
Councilmember Erika Vohman said she has been working with high school senior Benjamin Swift and his group toward a plastic bag ban in town. The room was filled at the latest meeting on March 21 and full of “enthusiasm,” she reported. She said one discussion point left unresolved was which entity would manage any plastic bag ban program when enacted. No organization was jumping up to take on the task but Vohman said it could come to the town.
Short-term rental regs
Schmidt will work with town staff to bring ideas to the council on how to install some regulation of short-term rentals in town. Schmidt proposed that things like inspection of properties, safety for guests, noise and parking issues should all be addressed and could be before the beginning of the summer season. “That’s low hanging fruit,” he said.
The more complex issue of how to tax or place a fee on short-term rentals will also be considered by the council in the near future but the county is apparently looking into a countywide tax on short-term rentals that might raise revenue for future affordable housing.
CBCS safety exercise successful
Crested Butte marshal Joe Dukeman reported to the council on the March 9 training exercise held at the Crested Butte Community School. He said the exercise was a success in the sense that much was learned by the local safety personnel and the school staff. He expects similar planning exercises to take place in the future.
The town’s water rights attorney consultant, Scott Miller, gave the Town Council an update on Crested Butte water rights. “The town has a pretty extensive portfolio of water rights,” he told the council at the March 7 meeting. He detailed the extensive rights held by the town and then the council met with Miller in a closed-door executive session to discuss specific issues on potential strategy matters. “The town’s water supply is in good overall shape,” he assured the council.
Blocks 79 and 80 now have six micro lots
The Crested Butte Town Council approved a resolution replatting Blocks 79 and 80. The land is set aside for affordable housing units and the replat will now include six so-called micro lots that accommodate small houses between 400 and 1,250 square feet.
Weed impact on sales tax
January sales tax revenue is expected to be about flat to last year. One major difference is the amount of marijuana sold in town. There was a major decrease in the weed sales tax collected this January compared to last year.
Budget amendment on tap
The council will consider an ordinance at the March 21 meeting to amend its 2016 budget. With last fall’s passage of an additional .5 percent sales tax, an additional $394,000 is expected to be collected this year. The budget allows for more parks crew employees and projects and also increases the town’s legal budget to deal with the evolving Mt. Emmons and Cypress Foothills subdivision projects.
Ice rink and avalanche update
Big Mine Ice Rink closed for the season Sunday. Parks and Rec director Janna Hansen said it is expected that more kids’ hockey games and practices will be held at Big Mine Ice Rink next year than what took place this year, when Gunnison was the go-to rink. She expects games to be more spread out between the two. She is also working with avalanche expert Art Mears to develop a town avalanche mitigation plan.
$90K grant received for wastewater design
Town public works director Rodney Due informed the council that the town had received a $90,000 DOLA (Department of Local Affairs) grant that will be used to design the upgrade to the wastewater treatment plant.
Upcoming Stuff: Sixth St. Station, Arts Center, Vinotok fire
The council was told to expect a recommendation soon from BOZAR on the rezoning request from the developers of Sixth Street Station. BOZAR will be discussing the issue at a special March 24 meeting. Also on that agenda will be an update to revisions with the proposed Center for the Arts expansion project.
Councilman Jim Schmidt wanted to acknowledge the neighbors around the Visitors Center and honor their annual request to see the Vinotok fire possibly moved because of their safety concerns. Staff will find a time to talk about the Vinotok fire and its impact on the neighborhood sometime this spring.
Drone alert
Citizen Keith Bauer asked the Crested Butte Town Council earlier this winter to take a look at regulating drones in town. He said while relaxing on his deck one evening last summer he heard what sounded like 10,000 mosquitoes. The noise turned out to be a drone. “It didn’t feel quite right,” he said. “It was a little weird and could be an invasion of privacy. There are a lot of hot tubs in town. Maybe just take a look at the issue in the future.” Mayor Glenn Michel said the council would keep an eye on it.
The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
