You can participate

We are writing to bring to the community’s attention an effort called the Mountain Migration project sponsored by two well-established policy organizations, Northwest Colorado Council of Governments and Colorado Association of Ski Towns.

The research project seeks to understand in Aspen, Snowmass Village and Pitkin County, as well as in other Colorado mountain resort communities, how COVID-19 has affected the ways our visitors and part-time and year-round residents utilize the community and whether the changes are a short-term reaction to COVID or will last well into the future.

Over the past 12 months we have seen our population grow with new residents and those staying longer, increased popularity of short-term rentals, greater use and demand for our trails and open spaces, and more visitation during our shoulder seasons. This study aims to create robust information and data to better understand if the heightened interest in and usage of our mountain community will continue, what services and characteristics are most important to our community members, and how we can best meet our community’s needs moving forward.

If you are a longtime local, a new resident or a part-time resident of Aspen, Snowmass Village or Pitkin County, please consider taking 10 minutes to fill out this survey at http://www.polco.us/nwccog-survey and please share it with your friends, neighbors and networks. The report is scheduled for publication in June. Each survey response is confidential, but the answers will be aggregated and the report will be public and widely distributed. Thank you for your participation!

Kelly McNicholas Kury

Chair, Pitkin Board of County Commissioners

Torre

Mayor, Aspen

Bill Madsen

Mayor, Snowmass Village