SNOWMASS VILLAGE — The Snowmass Village rodeo is getting physically squeezed by improvements to the town park this summer, and its organizers are concerned about how they’re going to operate in the smaller space.
“We’re concerned that we’re being squeezed out by default, when (the rodeo) is an amenity people said they want to keep,” said Chris Kelly, executive director of the Snowmass Western Heritage Association, the nonprofit that runs the rodeo. “This is the space that’s left and the footprint has been reduced significantly, and it’s going to take some planning (to fit everything in).”
Kelly appeared before Snowmass Village Town Council on Monday during a discussion about the town’s support for the rodeo — Colorado’s oldest — which operates as a tourist amenity every Wednesday throughout the summer.
At issue was whether to move pieces of the rodeo, including the barbecue and bar areas, from the north to the south end of the rodeo grounds to make way for a children’s playground that will be part of an improved town park.
The rodeo association also asked Town Council to waive the $10,000 in rent it’s typically required to pay to use the town-owned land.
Town council members balked at the idea of moving the pieces of the rodeo around, as the move would only be temporary until a master plan for the area is approved later this year. The move would have cost $17,800 and would have involved moving 10-12 trees, said public works director Hunt Walker. Developer Related WestPac had offered to fund the relocation; the company uses part of the rodeo grounds for construction staging and storage.
“I don’t have a good feeling about it; we haven’t done enough research on where things belong,” said Councilman Reed Lewis. “Wouldn’t it make sense to incorporate things we’re doing today into a master plan? I just hate to waste dollars.”
Delaying construction on the playground means that it won’t be available this summer as planned, but town officials believe they may be able to start work on the area after the last rodeo on Aug. 20. Other planned improvements to that area include a park and a pavilion, plus some wetlands construction. The town is required to build the wetlands to comply with its permit from the Army Corps of Engineers.
The town is adding a lot of recreation amenities, including tennis courts and a gym, as part of its Entryway Master Plan.
Work on a master plan for the rodeo area is expected to take a couple more months. Councilman John Wilkinson assured Kelly on Monday that the master plan would include the rodeo.
To which Kelly replied, “It will include the wish and the want for a rodeo, but whether it includes the (adequate) physical space for a rodeo is another thing.”
The town also declined the rodeo’s request to waive the $10,000 lease fee. However, town officials did promise to look at the request again if the rodeo couldn’t make enough money this summer to pay it. The town has waived the lease fee in the past.
While the rodeo had a small profit from record attendance last summer, the Snowmass Sun reported in March that its future is in jeopardy because a large multi-year donation from an individual recently came to an end.
At least one Town Council member questioned whether the town’s marketing and special events department, which is funded by a tax that nets about $3 million per year, supports the popular summer amenity adequately. Town Manager Russ Forrest said that the marketing department provides the equivalent of a $25,000 contribution.
Kelly said it would probably make economic sense to fold the rodeo into the marketing and special events group, a concept she would “wholeheartedly endorse.”
lutz@aspendailynews.com