Clean house for the future

Dear Editor:

Two fine letters and Andy Stone’s column Wednesday talked about Aspen’s “us and them problem.”

Jerry Bovino called for respect among our locals, second-home owners and even those billionaires. And Maurice Emmer, a wonderful recent addition to town, spoke of the “heat” he’s taken for daring to criticize the mayor and certain members of council. Emmer has the guts to tell it like it is and should not have to deal with calls from cowards who won’t leave their names.

And Andy pleaded for understanding among everyone and said we should all realize that while Aspen has changed a lot, it’s still a terrific place to live (I started visiting in 1968, was lucky enough to buy a small place in 1987 and have been happy ever since).

The problem is that our future ex-mayor and some of his acolytes have made a career out of dividing, insulting and denigrating second-home owners and anyone else who does not agree with them and anyone who might mention that we’re overbuilding additional housing for people who don’t want it and can’t finance it even if they did. These are people who, after the public voted down the poorly planned hydro project, told us “they might do it anyway” and who seem to live in some sort of parallel universe where it’s OK to waste our money and attack anyone who disagrees.

Hopefully a new mayor and some new faces on council might bring us closer together again.

Jerry Epstein

Aspen and Philadelphia