Snowmass in brief: open council seats, statewide transit initiative, sales tax revenue

Open council seats

Election petitions for two Snowmass Village Town Council seats and the mayoral seat will be available starting Aug. 6.

Candidate packets, containing necessary forms and information for the election, will be available for pickup at Town Hall. Completed candidate packets must be submitted no later than Aug. 26 to Town Hall at 130 Kearns Road. 

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The mayoral seat is a two-year term while the two council member seats are four-year terms. Those interested must gather at least 10 valid signatures. Signatures must come from a person at least 18 years old who has been a resident of Snowmass for at least 22 days and is a registered elector in the town.

The general election is Nov. 5. 

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Statewide transit initiative

Snowmass Village Shuttle joined a statewide initiative designed to reduce ground-level ozone by increasing the use of transit.

The Zero Fare For Better Air, We’ll Get You there initiative was launched in August 2022 and will be active in July and August. Snowmass received funds from the Ozone Season Transit Grant Program to help run the program.

The initiative is intended to provide free fares to transit riders across the state. While the Village Shuttle is free year-round, Snowmass is using two months of marketing assistance that is provided by the grant. 

Communities throughout the state are participating, including the Regional Transportation District system in Denver. It is meant to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and increase transit ridership.

This summer, Snowmass also soft-launched its Village Shuttle mobile app, a ride request system that is similar to Aspen’s Downtowner app. It is available in all app stores.

Ridership on the Village Shuttle was down in June by about 24% from 2023. But town leaders suggest a major reason for that was the Brush Creek Road closure in summer 2023. That closure doubled the service level in the summer to accommodate for more riders.

Sales tax revenue up year-to-date

May sales tax revenue in Snowmass was down by about 14%, but it is still up 8% year-to-date.

Marijuana and cigarette tax revenue was down 14% in May and is down 9% year-to-date. Lodging tax was up 9% in May and is up 13% year-to-date. 

Destination Management Plan

The Snowmass Tourism Department is preparing an updated destination management plan for the village, a strategic plan that guides tourism goals.

It will address sustainable economics, natural resource management, and ways to keep Snowmass “just big enough,” a philosophy adopted by Town Council and town staff to maintain the community character of Snowmass. The planning process will include council involvement, stakeholder involvement, and community feedback.

The town hopes to start working on the destination management plan in September, and it is expected to take about six months to complete.