WOLF CREEK PASS Years have passed since the fight began over plans to build a resort village near the top of Wolf Creek Pass, but emotions remained as heated as ever Tuesday as a crowd of nearly 100 gathered for a site visit.
While the crowd ate lunch next to a picturesque pond surrounded by spruce trees, an argument broke out that came close to a shouting match, as a supporter of the Village at Wolf Creek grew tired of constant questions by opponents.
Tom Malecek, a district ranger for Rio Grande National Forest, led the trip and fielded a barrage of questions about wetlands protection, the resorts water supply and highway access.
Malecek said he had few definitive answers, because the Forest Service is studying the plan in an Environmental Impact Statement. He hopes to have a draft EIS ready by late winter.
Developer B.J. Red McCombs has tried for years to begin building a resort for up to 10,000 people at the base of Wolf Creek Ski Area. His last attempt failed after several lawsuits did not go his way.
He now proposes to trade some of his land to the Forest Service for land closer to U.S. Highway 160 and farther away from the ski trails. If approved, it will be built in phases and may never reach its originally proposed size.
Both opponents and fans of the village mustered supporters to attend Tuesdays field trip. Based on a show of hands, roughly two-thirds of the people were from the San Luis Valley and a third from around Pagosa Springs, with a scattering from elsewhere.
Critics repeatedly pressed Malecek on whether the village should be built at all, and if so, to what standards.
Its not necessary to get into the nitty gritty of the development, although I know that concerns a lot of folks, Malecek said.
That answer did not satisfy Alamosa resident Don Thompson.
So is the Forest Service saying the development proposed is appropriate? Thompson asked.
Malecek demurred.
Were saying thats the jurisdiction of the private landowner, he said.
Mike Blakeman, spokesman for the Rio Grande National Forest, said the Forest Service can study the village but not block it.
One of the things this EIS does is it shines a light on the potential impacts, but we may not have jurisdiction to mitigate those impacts, Blakeman said.
Malecek at times agreed with critics who noted the difficulties of building a town at 10,000 feet in one of Colorados snowiest locales.
Theres all sorts of big things and little things that this climate is a lot less forgiving than if you were to build it in southern Arizona somewhere, Malecek said.
Good idea! someone in the crowd shouted out.
For Clint Jones, McCombs point man, it was at times a frustrating day.
A lot of the issues that came up in the past are being re-raised. If everyone would just be patient, the Forest Service is analyzing these things, Jones said.
If the land trade does not happen, Jones said McCombs intends to build the village anyway on land he already owns.
The Forest Service is preparing for that. The EIS will have a number of alternatives, and one of them will be to grant McCombs road access to his existing property.
The Forest Service already gave him access after a previous EIS, but a federal judge threw out that decision as flawed.
Village opponent Paul Joyce, field program director for Rocky Mountain Wild, also was frustrated.
Im a little alarmed at the constant I dont knows again, Joyce said.
He wants to know in greater detail how much the Forest Service will study whether the village is appropriate at all.
Joe Hanel can be reached at joeh@cortezjournal.com