Letter: An idea for the city/county government offices

It is hard to believe that the little community of Aspen is considering building almost 2 acres of government offices and related space — 50,000 square feet for the city and 18,000 square feet for the county.

If this is really going to happen due to need, there may be a better, more efficient and less impactful way. The county could trade the courthouse to the city for the city-owned land at the Aspen Business Center. That land is 170,000 square feet. It is currently leased to ProBuild Lumber.

By my estimate, the values are about equal. The result would be much less building in Aspen by the city and none in town by the county. The county under their own Aspen Business Center B-2 zoning could build new facilities as big as 60,000 square feet over time at the Aspen Business Center for most of their needs. This could be a better use than the city’s proposed housing next to the highway and the noisy end of the runway. Finally, why does the county want to be in the middle of Aspen, when most of their business is outside of the city and most of their employees live downvalley? Just an idea.

John McBride

Old Snowmass