7 candidates vie for Aspen Valley Hospital board seats

A 12-year member of Aspen Valley Hospital’s board of directors won’t be seeking re-election in April, but six challengers and one incumbent are in the mix for two open seats.

Friday was the deadline for members of the hospital district, which includes all of Pitkin County except for Redstone, to file self-nomination forms.

Two of the board’s five seats are up for grabs, including that of incumbent Dr. Melinda Nagle, who is seeking re-election. Three-term board member Barry Mink, however, has opted not to run. There are no term limits for the hospital board.

“It’s time for new blood,” said Mink, a retired physician who practiced nearly 40 years in Aspen, including 18 on the hospital’s staff. “I’ve been at that place for so many years that I felt compelled to let somebody else be a board member.”

The other candidates include two doctors — Eric Willsky and Gregory Balko, who previously sat on the board — along with Peter Hershberger, Michael Lyons, Joseph Nedlin and Rudi Egon Scheidt Jr.

The mail-in election will be held through April 29.