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Another city takes aim at cell phones Ten states and a number of other Montana towns and cities have already put the kibosh on cell phones – at least in theory. In Billings, Montana’s largest city, the ban was widely honored at first, the police chief tells the Bozeman Chronicle, but compliance has dropped. Statistics cited by the Chronicle describe a strong correlation between traffic accidents, including fatal ones, and use of cell phones. However, a study by the Montana-based Western Transportation Institute tried to further narrow the specific cause. It concluded that it was the conversation itself that distracted drivers, not necessarily holding the cell phone. If that’s the case, Bozeman’s new law may be ineffective. It bans holding and talking, but allows talking with a hands-free headset. The Rocky Mountain Outlook reports that the municipal council refuses to adopt an outright ban. Instead, it will look at a quota system aimed specifically at restaurants – but not retail. The latest row came when a Toronto-based retailer of bulk teas, David’s, laid plans to open a store in Banff. It has 20 stores across Canada and the United States. The proprietor of the existing tea store, Banff Tea Co., is alarmed, fearful that there’s just not enough customers for tea for two, nor two for tea. Locally owned businesses have had their troubles competing with chains, but even the local tea shop proprietor believes chains have their place. “I am not against all chains. I think some chains are necessary, like Safeway and The Dollar Store,” said Susanne Gillies Smith. “If quotas mean finding a balance within the community and we will be able to represent Banff with a unique mountain town, then I’m all for it.” The Outlook reports that council members want a process to establish the type and level of quotas for all chain restaurants, not just fast food stores. The town currently has a McDonald’s and a Subway. Quotas for chain retail stores may come later. Councillor Stavros Karlos said the community needs closure on the issue. “I’ve stayed up all night worrying and figuring out how to move it along in a respectful manner,” he said at a council meeting. Karlos said he could only consider a quota system it if were tied to an economic development strategy for the town. “What I’m looking for is a thriving, vibrant downtown core,” he said. “That’s what my vision is.” Councillor Leslie Taylor said she finds the quota system interesting, as it “does not involve the Town meddling in each and every individual transaction, and it provides long-term clarity over what will and will not be allowed now and in the future.” Only one councilor expressed outright opposition, because of unuseful “(expletive)” meddling in the free market. This year, however, winter is taking its time. At Montana’s Bridger Bowl on Saturday afternoon, dozens of people were skiing and riding down the mountain. But they had walked up on their own. The ski area didn’t have enough snow yet to justify operating the chairlifts. In Idaho, it’s cold enough to qualify as winter. Some thermometers Monday morning dipped to 22 below. But the snow has lagged. Some locals this week reported too much “rock ’n’ roll” skiing. “It will change in the next couple of weeks,” said a clerk in a local shop. In Aspen, the story has been more confused. Through November, there was far less snow in the valley than last year, but on the slopes of Snowmass there was actually more snow this year. The Aspen Times points out that last December was exceptionally warm, with rain falling even on the streets of Aspen. Ditto for Vail and all the other resorts in Colorado below about 9,000 feet. And in Steamboat, natural snow was absent sufficiently enough that long-time local journalist Tom Ross was reminded of two winters from his relative youth, 1976-77 and 1980-81. He notes that Steamboat invested $4.5 million in snowmaking after the latter winter, when no more than 133 inches of snow fell. “It’s the ski area’s willingness to modernize its snowmaking system during the past three decades that allows us to contemplate top-to-bottom skiing this weekend,” he writes. Salida’s Mountain Mail tells of efforts at the Mt. Princeton area of the Sawatch Range, southwest of Buena Vista. There, hot water already emerges from the ground along a local creek, which has been adapted into the Mt. Princeton Hot Springs. As well, hot water emerging from the ground is used in greenhouses. Developers have seen the potential to tap the heat to create electricity – if sufficient supplies of hot water can be found. Developers at a recent meeting told about plans to use advanced technology to better determine the potential for deep water at 6 miles underground. Well-drillers in Aspen had expected to find hot water by drilling 1,000 feet in a test, but as of their drilling deadline, Dec. 1, they had not found it. The Aspen Daily News reports town officials intended to fudge the deadline with hopes that a few days more would yield the water. Town officials hope the water exists, and it’s hot enough to be used to heat buildings. “The toughest thing used to be finding property to show to your buyers because it would turn so fast and furiously that the better properties, inventory and homes would go away in a hurry,” said Steven Shane, the listing broker for one of the home sales. “Now the biggest challenge is finding a reasonable buyer and seller.” Despite the discounts, these are – as The Aspen Times noted – homes for the 1 percent. One of the homes has 11,300 square feet and includes a 1,600-wine-bottle room and theater.
The problem? Ketchum’s original approval for the Warm Springs Ranch Resort in 2009 specified on-site employee housing units for at least 25 percent of the 108 employees expected at the hotel resort. “To require building new units would be a deal-breaker for the project,” Helios Development representative Mike Barnard told the council. “If you do that, the developer will move on.” The Blaine County Housing Authority this year found that the Sun Valley-Ketchum community is still 220 affordable-housing units short of what is needed by the community. David Patrie, executive director, expressed concern that new employees at Warm Springs, if built, could potentially soak up all the existing lower-priced rental units in Ketchum. The council, according to the Idaho Mountain Express, decided that potential for a five-star hotel trumped concerns about the plan submitted by the developer. Under that plan, instead of building on-site affordable housing, Helios must pay $300,000 in recreation fees to the city within two years after the hotel is opened. The revised plan also calls for less development. The first phase is to include 120 hotel rooms, plus a variety of other real estate and recreational amenities on the 77-acre site northwest of downtown Ketchum. Additional homes are planned for later phases. Starwood Hotels & Resorts is to manage the resort under the St. Regis label. Former Ketchum Mayor Jerry Seiffert expressed support for the housing deal. “We have not built a five-star hotel since 1936 when Averell Harriman built a hotel in the Idaho wilderness,” he said. “It’s been 75 years. We have to go with the five-star.” Current Mayor Randy Hall offered a similar measure of the hotel’s potential of launching Ketchum and Sun Valley into a new era as a destination resort. “This project is a game changer for the community,” he said. – Allen Best |