As 2015 gets underway, Durangoans and Coloradans can look forward to a lively year of significant conversations that will shape the state and local community for years to come. From airport upgrades to City Council elections, to local playing fields, to Lake Nighthorse, to gas and oil regulations, to changes at large local businesses – there are many important issues on the 2015 docket. For many, there will be opportunities for public input. Offering such is worthy of a New Year’s resolution.
Durango-La Plata County Airport was a topic of consternation and consideration for much of 2014, with Aviation Director Kip Turner leading a charge for upgrading the facility. The endeavor will be costly, with all the various proposals carrying price tags north of $140 million – whether for a new terminal or major remodeling of the existing facility. The need for such a project is influenced by failing grades for the airport’s baggage system, parking, and inadequate size: The airport was built to accommodate 100,000 travelers annually; it sees more than 200,000 currently.
Finding the right answer to the airport challenge will require realistic expectations from all parties. While the airport is in need of an upgrade, investing $140 million or more in the facility is a major commitment. It would certainly improve the airport experience, but it is not necessarily correlative to improved air service. That is a question unrelated to the airport’s size and amenities. The renovation and associated conversation should be scaled accordingly.
In 2015, Durango voters will be asked to renew the sales tax that funds the Animas River Trail and the Durango Community Recreation Center. In crafting the ballot initiative, the city will have to consider the projects the renewed tax would fund beginning in 2019. Whether to include the Science, Theatre, Education Arts and Music Park in the funding is an important question. So, too, is identifying – at long last – a functional, safe pedestrian crossing at 12th Street to connect the Animas River Trail with downtown Durango.
Among other long-lingering challenges on deck for solutions in 2015 is opening Lake Nighthorse to recreation – a complex discussion that hinges on identifying an appropriate manager and adequate funding. The city’s new soccer field at Fort Lewis College is also ripe for opening this year. Because of construction problems, the field is sitting unused. Fix the defects and open the field in 2015.
Two critical local businesses will likely see changes this year. Mercury Payment Systems – which Cincinnati-based Vantiv, Inc., purchased in May for $1.65 billion – may enact structural shifts. As a large employer and important local economic driver, Mercury’s reorganization will have implications for Durango. Durango Mountain Resort’s new owner, James Coleman, has promised changes there as well. The year ahead could be transformational for both companies.
At the state Legislature, which is now split – Republicans control the Senate, while Democrats have the majority in the House – lawmakers will attempt to settle the ongoing tension between state and local regulation of gas and oil activities. This policy debate will surely be divisive and the extent to which all stakeholders can reach consensus about who and how governing the extraction occurs will drive the effort’s success. The outcome is likely to be pivotal – either by settling the debate through compromise or driving the various parties to the ballot with what would surely be polarized answers.
The year ahead promises to be crucial for shaping our future. Be involved in the key conversations.
