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Battle over heli-skiing plan divides Silverton community

SILVERTON – Inside an old courthouse in San Juan County, the adage “all politics is local” rings true.

Sitting and standing shoulder-to-shoulder inside a small room in the county courthouse in Silverton, surrounded by historic wood-framed windows and doors, an energetic audience discussed a proposal by the owners of Silverton Mountain to diversify terrain for helicopter skiing on federal land. Interest was so high that even when the room filled, onlookers attentively peered in from an outside hallway or sat on the floor.

The residents and regular visitors of Silverton – a town of about 630 in the former silver mining camp of Southwest Colorado – are split. Opponents worry about limiting precious backcountry terrain, while supporters point to economic benefits.

“These are our public lands,” said Nicole Bellman, a property manager in the Silverton area, who acknowledged having problems with Aaron and Jen Brill, the owners of Silverton Mountain, after she was prohibited from using their facilities.

“These are lands that we pay taxes on,” Bellman said. “We live here for a reason, access to backcountry.”

Once struggling after the end of mining activities, Silverton Mountain, after it opened in 2002, boosted tourist visits.

“I have nothing but respect for him. He has never tried to do anything sneaky; he has never tried to do anything bad,” Jackie Kerwin, the library director for Silverton, said of Aaron Brill. Kerwin said her library budget would have disappeared without the revenue brought from Silverton Mountain.

“I really don’t like hearing from people who don’t contribute to our economy and say that this is their backyard,” she said. “We need to be fair, and we need to listen to the people who live here.”

San Juan County Commissioners – who hosted the meeting Wednesday night – ultimately supported the proposal 2-1, but they asked that federal officials dig deeper into their analysis.

Many complaints ring similar to frustrations expressed across the state and nation. Some residents are less concerned with the proposal itself; they are more worried about the analysis being conducted by the Bureau of Land Management – echoing a distrust with federal agencies.

The BLM’s Tres Rios Field Office is charged with assessing the proposal. The office quickly moved a deadline for feedback on the first phase of the analysis from July 17 to Aug. 17 after people demanded more time.

The Brills have requested a change in their helicopter-access permit to swap northern terrain in exchange for adjacent areas. Silverton Mountain’s base is situated off County Road 110. The biggest swath under consideration would be on the east side of County Road 2.

Concerns were initially raised when the BLM released a map including terrain in Prospect Gulch, Minnehaha and Corkscrew. But the Brills have not asked for that to be included in the exchange.

Connie Clementson, field manager for the Tres Rios Field Office, said her office decided to use the 2008 map because of a previous terrain review.

“We felt like that was a very familiar place to start as Aaron fine-tuned his proposal to give to us,” said Clementson, who attended the meeting. “This is a really good starting place for us to talk to the public. It’s the very beginning. ... We didn’t realize that people wouldn’t remember what happened in ’08.”

Once the initial input phase closes, officials will continue through the environmental analysis, which would include a 30-day comment period. While the Brills have requested the modification for the 2015-16 ski season, Clementson said the BLM does not have to make any changes in that time.

For the Brills, the issue is about safety. They want to exchange high-risk avalanche terrain for low-risk avalanche areas. But it’s also a business decision, because the operation faces less snow over the years. Without additional terrain, the Brills say they may have to end helicopter operations and cut staff.

“Guests go home and ask for a refund. They have a bad time, and they go home unhappy and don’t end up returning to ski,” Aaron Brill said. “It wouldn’t be fair when there’s perfectly good adjacent terrain.”

Some of Brill’s staff members came to his defense, pointing to a close bond they have with him. Justin Ebelheiser was laid off from another job at a time when he needed money for a new house. Brill offered him a chance.

“If he was gone and that option wasn’t there, I’d be in a much worse situation,” Ebelheiser said.

But Chris George, the owner of nearby St. Paul Lodge and Hut and a longtime backcountry ski-business operator, worries about handing over pristine environment to tourists who don’t fit the mold of the community.

“What I have witnessed in 40 years in the county is a steady degradation by motorized recreation to the backcountry experience,” George said. “I understand the BLM is charged with protecting historical structures. Should they not protect a historic way of life?”

pmarcus@durangoherald.com

To comment

Comments about Silverton Mountain’s proposal to modify guided helicopter skiing on Bureau of Lands Management lands can be emailed to Jeff Christenson, jchristenson@blm.gov, or mailed to BLM Tres Rios Field Office, 29211 Colorado Highway 184, Dolores, CO 81323. For questions, call 882-6811.



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