Let’s keep the peace in Missouri Heights

There have been numerous letters in recent weeks by residents opposing the Ascendigo Ranch proposal — a 45,500-square-foot-plus facility to be built in Missouri Heights (MOH). As a 32 year resident of MOH, I can tell you this nonprofit but commercial-like camp facility does not belong here. We are a rural/agricultural area located in a high desert. We are prone to drought and high winds. My opposition is neither greed nor NIMBY. It is about having adequate water to weather the droughts, fight the wildfires, and protect my property’s value.

We are in a drought now. Current conditions resemble four of the five driest years on record — 2002, 2012, 2013 and 2018 — according to the Bureau of Reclamation. It is astounding to me that Ascendigo wants to put 100 people on site 24/7 throughout the summer and possibly in to the fall. When I think about 100 people flushing toilets, cooking, bathing, and doing laundry, I shudder. In addition, they want to have a 1- to 2-acre pond (read lake) for water sports for their campers. Such a goal is unfathomable to anyone who lives up here.

Ascendigo is not the first business to try to build in MOH. If this proposal is approved, then more will come. I know it is tempting. MOH is beautiful and quiet. But the infrastructure of MOH is not conducive to the high traffic, increased water consumption and wild fire risks that come with any large development. I am asking the Garfield County commissioners to vote no on this proposal.

Becky Chase

Carbondale