Editor:
Thank you, Aspen Daily News’ columnists, for your views on the future of the Aspen-Pitkin County Airport. Thank you for your history, perspective and authenticity.
But it is clear to me they no longer offer objective journalism around the airport; rather, they want air time (pun intended) for their bias that Aspen has outgrown their personal happy space.
For that, I am sorry. For the rest of us, that ship has sailed. We cannot turn back the clock to live in the Aspen of decades prior. We need to work toward a future that works for the community as a whole.
A new airport that meets Federal Aviation Administration guidelines allows for future safety, sustainability and democracy of access. Making it better and safer for more people to come to our fair city as tourists, spending money in our restaurants and stores and creating economic vibrancy, is important to folks who live and work in the Roaring Fork Valley.
Mick Ireland’s narrative around 737s and the Hunter Thompson episode of the 1990s isn't relevant, nor the point. The decision around the airport is a decision we will live with for another 50 years. No one can tell us what types of aircraft will be flying in the sky five decades from now. But saying no to the FAA’s financial support will eventually make it so that the airlines fly older, less environmentally positive aircraft into Aspen. Or, they will stop coming altogether.
Rather than resisting growth, let’s manage it. And not kill the airport.
Jack Cohen
Aspen