Name and age? Jacque Whitsitt, 62
What brought you to Basalt and what keeps you here? Basalt was my husband’s childhood vacationland. His family traveled from Kansas City to spend many summers riding horses and recreating in Emma. No arm twisting was needed when he suggested that we leave corporate jobs in Denver to relocate here. The rural, laid back nature of the midvalley is still what keeps us here. Living on the river in Basalt is a dream come true.
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Have you ever been arrested? If so, why? No
Who is your personal hero and why? My father. He was humble, thoughtful and unselfish. Everything I bring to politics originated in conversations with him. He would always stick up for the underdog or the underrepresented and expected my family to do the same. The Basalt community can count on me to support the greater good even when I am against vocal and high-pressure opposition. And, I will continue to carry out my promises if I am re-elected as mayor.
Why should you be elected to Basalt Town Council? My supporters want me re-elected because over the years I have stood for reasonable slow growth, parks and trails. I am transparent to a fault and believe in straight-forward communication. I have a down-to-earth style and am specific and clear about my vision. This is what I admire in good leaders. I believe most people are looking for these same traits in their elected officials.
If you could accomplish only one thing as a Basalt Town Council member, what would it be? The current format for land use reviews is outdated and fails us as a community. I favor a neighborhood caucus approach to gathering input and advice from neighborhoods. This is already successful in Pitkin County and Eagle County is considering a similar approach for us. Basalt’s neighborhoods are where the town should look for direction. Master planning, trails, street improvements, development applications and budgetary issues can and should start at the neighborhood level. This can happen with leaders who have the courage to share political power with citizens.
What about the current Basalt Town Council that needs to change? Council’s attention has been too focused on the short term. We need to take the long view. We need a town government that believes development should pay its own way. For example, $15 million in subsidies for more (and massive) Willits growth doesn’t pass the stink test for most citizens. I agreed and voted against them; I would again. I believe that proposed development should be analyzed for the impacts it will have on traffic, housing, childcare, education and congestion. We must keep our eye on any and all potential negative implications to our current businesses and the community. In Willits, against my warnings, an additional 90,000 square feet of development was just approved without so much as a cursory look at these impacts. I believe when 400 Basalt voters bring a petition to council asking for a public vote on the purchase of the Pan and Fork parcel, those citizens should have been heard. Council should have taken action on their behalf to make that happen. Instead, these residents were rebuffed by the majority, including my opponent and by councilman Hershel Ross. This flies in the face of our Democratic principles. The majority of our current council aggressively supports unmitigated growth. I support thoughtful and slow-paced growth. The current council has shown a lack of respect for the Democratic process. I believe neighborhoods are the starting place for decision-making.
Basalt is grappling with several issues. A big one is how to go about the Pan and Fork property. As a Basalt Town Council member, what would you advocate for? The Pan and Fork is a one-of-a-kind community gem. It could be the identity that Basalt has been looking for and we couldn’t see it because the river was blocked off. We must never block it off again. We are the only downtown in the valley that sits right on the lap of the river. Make it our label and identity. It’s so obvious. The focus of the park needs to be year-round community events — recreation (such as a white water park), concerts, kids yelling and having fun, ice-skating and more. I would love to see another job generator such as Backbone Media to complete the small business park with Rocky Mountain Institute and Roaring Fork Conservancy. And lastly, I believe that a world-class brew pub or distillery with the capacity to host medium-sized events on the park would complete the picture. Heavier density, including housing, commercial and parking — supported by inspired design —should be located at the Clark’s Market parcel. I still support density and development in the right place.
Some people say Basalt is split over how to manage the Pan and Fork. Others say most people want the same thing, it’s just some of the details are different. What do you think? Our community is 10,000 to 15,000 square feet apart on our visions of size and mass. The incumbents are fine with 55,000 and high-end residential (read: condominiums that would be vacant most of the year and would be restrictive in how the park could be used.) The citizens have clearly stated that 22,000 is their vision of acceptable footprint with no high end residential. It’s close, but no cigar.
Old Town Basalt is still struggling to fill storefronts. How much does town government play a role in changing that? Old Town is filling up with new and fresh businesses every day. The government’s opportunity to support new business in downtown has been potentially derailed with the massive approvals at Willits. When the first 500,000 square feet was approved at Willits, our financial consultant warned us large commercial development in the suburbs will always take the steam out of a downtown. The prediction was it will take about 20 years for downtown to fully recover. The majority on council just approved another 90,000 square feet at Willits. Downtown’s hole-in-one is the river. A lively park that capitalizes on the shear beauty of the river is a powerful draw. It is a way back for the downtown.