Matthews: Setting the record ‘straight shot’

Dan Hurley: From your letter (Aspen Daily News, Jan. 3, 2025, “Stop the Years of Bickering…”) you have a lot of homework given the numerous errors. I go back 50 years and the “straight shot” was a bad idea nearly 30 years ago and a worse one today. That is why it has never been started.
Correcting the errors in your letter offers some reasons why. For example, the straight shot does not add any new lanes for cars and trucks. Still one lane in each direction. The city of Aspen concedes that it will not solve congestion. The Cemetery Lane corridor would be cut off from turning right to go down valley. This, in turn, would pile up more cars at the new light at Seventh and Main. The straight shot would cleave the Marolt Open Space in half. That is all on the public record.
As to your “challenge” about other towns’ entrances, have you ventured to Basalt or Willits ? Old Basalt has a series of local streets and turns joining it to Highway 82. Willits has a roundabout and gentle calming S-curves between it and the highway. Like Aspen, both clearly separate the highway from the town to slow down traffic.
Dan, take a drive and enjoy the shopping and restaurants in Willits. Continue to Aspen and walk Marolt, hike up Smuggler, stroll on Northstar and you will appreciate why those of us who live here treasure our open space. Then you can retract your own letter.
Dee Matthews
Aspen
Aspen restaurant Boat Tow granted approval for airlock
The 3-1 vote came despite the project conflicting with Aspen’s guidelines for temporary enclosures, which prohibits such temporary structures.