Port of Basalt open to boats

Boaters of the Roaring Fork Valley can rest assured that Basalt truly appreciates them.The Basalt Town Council fixed an ordinance Tuesday night that sets a weight limit on Two Rivers Road between the stoplight at Willits/Highway 82 and downtown.The first draft of the ordinance would have prohibited vehicles towing large boats. Town staffers suggested they didn’t really want to do that since boating at Ruedi Reservoir is such an important part of the town’s economy. Staffers suggested at an Aug. 24 meeting that the police department could selectively enforce the weight restriction and let boats slip by.Since then staffers had a change of heart and decided it would be better to change the ordinance to retain the intent but make it clear that boats were exempt. The council agreed.The ordinance passed Tuesday sets a weight limit of 10,000 pounds for commercial vehicles. Buses operated by the schools and Roaring Fork Transportation Authority are exempt, as are emergency vehicles, recreational vehicles and trucks pulling boats on trailers.”The clarified language will support our police department while maintaining public trust,” the staff wrote in a memo to the council.The weight restriction was proposed as a way to prolong the life of Two Rivers Road, which the town acquired from the Colorado Department of Transportation a couple of years ago, and to help calm traffic. Basalt leaders want to enhance the experience for pedestrians and cyclists on Two Rivers Road west of town. The town government is pondering whether it should lower speed limits on the road, which is the route of choice for vehicles coming to Basalt from points downvalley.The 10,000-pound weight restriction will take effect Thursday, Oct. 7. It only affects the two-mile stretch between downtown and the downvalley intersection with Highway 82.