HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.council.20220315
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SPECIAL MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL MARCH 15, 2022
At 12:00 p.m. Mayor Torre called the special meeting to order with Councilors Doyle, Hauenstein,
Richards, and Mesirow present.
ACTION ITEM: Ordinance #06, Series of 2022 – James R. True, City Attorney
Mr. True said that Ordinance #06 reimposes a temporary moratorium also declaring an emergency. In
December 2021, council adopted Ordinance #27, which is substantially the same. The Aspen Board of
Realtors filed a litigation against the City of Aspen after this ordinance was passed. They claimed that
city council had not properly disclosed the agenda item under the charter and the city violated certain
open meetings laws. The court issued a preliminary injunction citing the alleged violation of the open
meetings law, so declared the first adoption as invalid. The judge recognized the declaration of
emergency was a legislative act. Ordinance #06 is being presented as identical. Section 4.11 of the
charter indicates the adoption of emergency ordinance requires passage at two separate meetings.
Yesterday was the first and today is the second meeting. He clarified the STR issue and said Ordinance
#06 does not address the STR issue because Ordinance #26, Series of 2021 resolved those issues. Special
meetings do allow for public comments, and this meeting was publicly noticed in line with all public
notice meeting laws.
Mayor Torre called for public comment.
Alexandra George – Ms. George said she is the chairwoman of ABOR and asked what the city has to
show for the past two months. Mr. True pointed out that this is not a Q and A. Ms. George said she
would like the word emergency to be defined. She would also like weekly updates on council’s
accomplishments and what they’re working on. She is encouraging them to consider that over 900
people have signed the petition and adopting this in the face of opposition is quite insulting.
Bill Guth – Mr. Guth said he lives on 8th street. He asked how you feel it’s appropriate and fair and
reasonable to not listen to over 900 voices of the electorate. It’s so insulting that you don’t recognize
those voices.
Bob Bowden – Mr. Bowden said haste makes waste. He’s confused and second guessing himself. He’s
asking council to second guess themselves. We’re almost at 1000 signatures of unhappy people who
have signed the petition. He did not feel heard the first time around and felt like he received a Muppet
act. He’s asking for common sense. Feelings are not facts. Why are these building permits a problem?
What’s 3 more months of the moratorium going to accomplish?
Laurie B Winnerman – Ms. Winnerman said she has been in this business for older than you. She
appreciates council helping with our town. It doesn’t make any sense for you to call a moratorium. Her
business has been fine, but why harm all of these other people in town? Especially the people who kill
themselves to make a living here. Just think about it.
Steve Fallender – Mr. Fallender said he lives in the west end and is not a realtor or a builder. He knows a
little bit about moratoriums. They are a big deal. He doesn’t understand what it is that this council wants
and what the end goal is. Do you want to change the code? There’s a process for that. You need to
present your plan.
Jim Pomeroy – Mr. Pomeroy is a lifelong resident of Aspen. He works for the city but is here speaking as
a private citizen. He really commends them for taking the brave stances that they have and hopes
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SPECIAL MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL MARCH 15, 2022
council does vote for another moratorium for a pause for the exact reasons stated. This is the only way
that makes sense to do a proper job. This gives you guys a way to do it without all the pressure. I’m sure
they have hundreds of signatures, but he also hears from hundreds of people that they are happy this is
happening. He hears that constantly. We have two separate communities right now. One is go go go and
the other wants a break.
Gordon Leddingham – Mr. Leddingham said when he found out that council passed an emergency
ordinance on December 7th, he was shocked. Housing has been an issue for decades. The way it was
passed is disconcerting. This is not how we do business or how the government should be run. We need
to focus on building more employee housing with greater density. None of you have apologized for
breaking the law. You’ve lost his trust by breaking the law and by not apologizing for it.
Mayor Torre asked where he’s calling in from.
Mr. Leddingham said he’s calling in from Mexico.
Patricia Weber – Ms. Weber said she lives and works in town. She wants to know who they are
representing. She would like one of them to play devil’s advocate and think about what the rest of us
are asking of you. Half of us don’t agree with what you’re doing. Now it’s us against them. Consider that
you are elected officials. She doesn’t feel represented.
Kim Raymond – Ms. Raymond said a lot of people feel unrepresented. There are no signatures from
people that support you, so a lot of people feel unrepresented. You politely listen to what we are saying,
but it’s apparent you don’t really listen or hear us. It makes us all feel uncomfortable. It’s going to take
more than six months and many of us are trying to be helpful.
Chris Bryan – Mr. Bryan spoke about the noticing of these two meetings being unfair. It’s clear that you
are again trying to run through another emergency. He still doesn’t understand what the emergency is.
Councils’ actions have cost tens of millions of dollars to this community. Adopting a moratorium for a
second time, is a slap in the face. Why can’t you amend the land use code while still allowing people to
operate under the current law? Why is that impossible?
Jackson Horn – Mr. Horn said he was born and raised in Aspen and said he’s never felt a city council fly
more in the face of what every citizen has to say. It’s appalling and sad. He doesn’t understand how you
haven’t apologized and acknowledged breaking the law. Please tell us what the emergency is.
Mayor Torre closed public comment.
The input we are getting from community is what this part of the process is about. “What is the
emergency” is a question they keep getting. The emergency is that he sees a community that is eroding
on many fronts and the noncompliance with zoning. He said he is in charge of representing a majority of
the community and the majority he is hearing from; wants an Aspen they can continue to live in that is
sustainable. He hears from other communities that they are proud of Aspen for doing this to take a
pause and come up with policies to help us for a better future. Bob, the STRs are under Ordinance #26,
Series of 2021. Mr. Leddingham, we haven’t told you that you can’t continue to rent your place. No one
has talked about eliminating STRs, so please rest easy on the beach. No, we won’t represent every single
person on every item. That is not possible. Kim, you are listened to and heard. There are three more
months in this pause. We have staff working their asses off during this pause. He thanked the
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SPECIAL MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL MARCH 15, 2022
community members who have spoken in favor of this. Many people are happy about it, although this
isn’t a happy situation. This is hard work. This isn’t something any of us want to be tackling. We need to
make changes now. It is our job and that is why we’re tackling it. We’re trying to align some of our
regulations and rules, and this gives us the opportunity for a level playing field. These lawsuits are
preventing us from doing the work that needs to be done.
Councilor Richards said she seconds everything Mayor Torre said. When people say we’re not listening,
that’s not accurate. We take this all home and think about it on both sides. Seeing homes coming in
designed as STRS is why a moratorium is necessary. It’s doubled the demand in the restaurants and
shops. The balance we once had is lost. We’re not going to be seeing the same labor force from now on,
and for her, the emergency stands.
Mayor Torre brought up what Mr. Leddingham said about apologizing. He doesn’t believe the council
broke the law, and he disagrees with the judge’s interpretation. He does apologize for having a situation
like this. Our notice was on time on the first round of the first reading of Ordinance #27.
Councilor Hauenstein thanked everyone for expressing their views. Regarding what has been
accomplished, we have met with Com Dev a number of times, and this is a work in progress. This is a
three-step process for land use modifications. He honors the process some citizens are going through
with the initiative. A lot of people want to see something go to a vote and he would like to see their
signatures. To address Bob’s comments about STR’s, they were covered under Ordinance #26 and
people can still rent their units. There is currently still over 800 million dollars’ worth of construction in
the pipeline currently and still a lot of work going on currently. We’re identifying what all of the impacts
are. Com Dev has been working very hard and dedicating a lot of time to data gathering. There was a
procedural error ruled by the court, and we are accountable, and we are here trying to rectify for this.
Our noticing was legal for these meetings. We are at this table in work sessions with Com Dev to work
on these issues.
Councilor Doyle said he would like to address the idea that this moratorium has divided the community.
In his opinion, this community has been divided for quite some time, and half of us treat this community
as a commodity and that has created a huge imbalance. He was voted into office because of his strong
opposition to Gorsuch Haus, and with what’s happened now, he’s disappointed that half our town was
so gullible. This moratorium is an attempt to restore the balance of community and resort, and to heal
some of the rifts in our community. Business as usual is not sustainable.
Councilor Mesirow said they are listening acutely. It’s not just here at the table. He works in the STR
field, and he talks to a number of people who are for and against this. The intention has always been to
get broad and targeted feedback. Whether or not we agree on this tool, he knows that Bill and Bob and
others care deeply about this community. He said some people have the view that if something is
chronic, it is not an emergency, but he disagrees. These aren’t new problems, but we are seeking to
improve and preserve. It has been insufficiently addressed in the past, and more could have been done
sooner. COVID arrived and the migration arrived, and now we need to rise to the challenge. He
supported this and since then, we’re on track to finish this on time. We have strong investment from the
community, and staff has done a ton of work to move this forward. The outcome of this work will be
good for the community.
Mr. True noted that a letter came in from Mike Maple who asked for his email to be on the record.
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SPECIAL MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL MARCH 15, 2022
Councilor Doyle motioned to adopt Ordinance #06, Series of 2022; Councilor Mesirow seconded.
Mayor Torre said a caller was just trying to get through. He asked them to email him directly or to send
an email to public comment and it will get to all council members.
Roll call: Doyle, yes; Hauenstein, yes; Mesirow, yes; Richards, yes; Torre, yes. 5-0, motion carried.
Councilor Richards motioned to adjourn; Councilor Doyle seconded. Roll call vote: Doyle, yes;
Hauenstein, yes; Mesirow, yes; Richards, yes; Torre, yes. 5-0, motion carried.
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Nicole Henning, City Clerk