I am continually impressed with how the Steamboat Springs community plans for the future and thinks long-term. I was reading the Steamboat Today this morning and saw that the City of Steamboat was evaluating what to do with the 1% lodging tax they collect. Annually, this tax generates between $650,000 and $800,000. What was interesting to me was how progressive and well, just neat, that my neighbors have voted in this tax and attempt to use it wisely. The projects that are up for consideration are all projects that will greatly benefit our town. And these aren’t just infrastructure or boring things like that. These projects will directly benefit the locals and visitors alike for the long-term.
Four applicants made their presentations and four more are scheduled. The four that have already made their presentations were:
City of Steamboat Springs Help Funds 26 Events for 2013
The City of Steamboat Springs City Council approved the annual budget for funding 26 events for the upcoming year. Steamboat Springs hosts a huge variety of events every year and this year, we will see at least six new ones. These events bring in much appreciated tourism dollars and overall increase the value of our community. It’s what makes Steamboat, Steamboat!
Flash Mob at Winter Carnival 2013
According the Steamboat Today, the committee that awards the available funds had a tough time making their selections. The usual requests for funding were almost double compared to last year. The committee likes to encourage new venues while at the same time, support the old, much loved venues. Eventually, the more established venues are encouraged to develop 100% of their own funding over time.
This year, funding for 26 events was granted. It’s pretty exciting to see six new events added to the list this year:
This is a preview of City of Steamboat Springs Help Funds 26 Events for 2013. Read the full story.
The 3 Best Things About Moving to Steamboat Springs, Colorado
I just asked a friend who recently moved here what the 3 best things she liked about moving to Steamboat Springs. Her quick response was:
- The People
- The Wildlife
- The Sunsets
Elk on Steamboat Springs Ranch
People
Steamboat Springs is filled with wonderful, friendly people. Honestly. Everywhere you go, from the lift operators, to the store clerks, to your neighbors, you are greeted with smiles. I think it comes from living in such a great place and Steamboat attracts energetic, happy people.
Wildlife
Steamboat Springs is located in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. We are surrounded by ranch land and mountains. The connection to nature is just automatic. Even when you visit the Bud Werner Memorial Library you have a connection to nature. You often see fishermen from the numerous library seating areas that overlook the Yampa River just yards away. It’s pretty handy to have a river full of fish run through town. In the winter especially, it is not uncommon to see large Bull Elk foraging in someone’s backyard.
This is a preview of The 3 Best Things About Moving to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Read the full story.
The forecast calls for SNOW. With a slow start, the Steamboat Ski Area got off to a slow start primarily relying on man-made snow. Now I applaud the Steamboat and Howelsen hill ski areas for we were skiing on schedule albeit just a few runs. But now, Old Man Winter has been hanging around Steamboat Springs, Colorado for the last two weeks and that’s making everyone happy. Snow is just a good thing.
With this added natural snow, Storm Peak opened today. I’m sure there’s some powder turns being cut today. At least for first track skiers. Now this snow is not only vital for skiing in Steamboat, but the reservoirs in Colorado are low from a dry season last year. So we all need this snow for the health of our rivers like the Yampa river and the Elk river here in Steamboat Springs.
If Steamboat Springs didn’t have snow making, we’d be doing a lot more fishing. With little snow making, my old stomping grounds Crystal Mountain in Washington State is getting dumped on with 28 inches over the last 2 days, here in Steamboat Springs, we’re all still doing “the snow dance.”
Snow making is the lifeline to skiing for many Colorado ski resorts this year. Across Colorado, these high pressure weather systems are keeping us out of the trees so far an on groomed runs kept alive by snow making. So far, Steamboat’s is off to a slow start this winter. But things will get better. Now skiing on man made snow isn’t much different. Snow making combines water and cold air to produce snow. Here’s a great video on how snow making works.
While here in Steamboat Springs we’re not skiing the “champagne powder” Steamboat is known for yet, but soon enough. The skiing is decent and snow is on the way for Steamboat. In the meantime, keep on dancing and praying for snow.
This is a preview of Snowmaking Provides Steamboat Spring Skiing. Read the full story.
We really need snow here in Steamboat Springs. Any precipitation will do. Rain, snow, we’ll take it. The ground is dry, the rivers are low, the reservoirs are low. What we need is a good old winter with tons of snow. We also need it because the bears are getting restlessand need to den up for the winter. See video below.
“Steamboat Springs — The slopes of the Steamboat Ski Area above 9,000 feet could see as much as 1 to 3 inches of snow overnight Friday into Saturday as a complicated, two-phase storm system takes over the weather in Colorado’s northern mountains.
The National Weather Service in Grand Junction is forecasting a 70 percent chance of showers in Steamboat Springs on Friday night and Saturday with an overnight low of 28 degrees Fahrenheit, but little or no snow. The forecast is different above 9,700 feet on Mount Werner during the same period where the chance of precipitation will be 80 percent and the overnight low is expected to reach 22 degrees, producing snow that will at least temporarily stick to the ground.
This is a preview of Snow on the way for the Steamboat Ski Area. Read the full story.
Fly Fishing in Steamboat Springs and Northwest Colorado
Brown Trout in Steamboat Springs
The New York Times recently published an article in its Travel section about the pleasures and perils of fishing in Colorado, mainly Northern Colorado. Please see Casting in Colorado, Away From The Crowds for the full article. As you may or may not know, Colorado has some of the most complex water laws in the nation as it applies to fishing. In many other western states, a fisherman is permitted to walk along a river’s waterline, even though the river may be located on private land. In contrast, private landowners in the state of Colorado have ownership rights to the shore, as well as the land underneath the river, too. This can make fishing on private land in Colorado pretty complicated.
Buildable Lot on the Yampa River in Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Have your very own piece of paradise in Steamboat Springs, Colorado when you purchase this 1/2 acre buildable lot with 83 feet of Yampa River frontage!
Home to some of the best fishing in Northwest Colorado, the Yampa River is well-known for its abundance of rainbow, brown and cutthroat trout. Imagine waking up a little earlier than usual one crisp late summer morning, slipping on your waders, grabbing your fly rod and an assortment of your favorite flies and walking out the back door of the custom home you’ve just built to practice your casts only steps from the warm bed you just crawled out of. This is the kind of life that many will only dare to dream of. You can choose to make it your reality.
This is a preview of Buildable Lot on the Yampa River in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Read the full story.
If you know anything about me you’d know I love using video in real estate. It’s just an easy tool to bring homes and lifestyles to the world of what Steamboat Springs is like. Well, seems others are catching on. He’s a interview I had with Wellcomemat.com.
With the record low levels of snow we saw over the past winter continuing into extremely sparse rainfall so far this summer, it’s certainly no surprise that everything’s looking pretty parched around here. With June 2012 precipitation at its lowest in years, the drought conditions we’ve experienced so far border on the absurd. To many that reside here, what is now our reality was once almost inconceivable.
According to the most recent information available from the U.S. Drought Monitor, approximately 70 percent of Colorado is experiencing some level of drought. And if that news isn’t bad enough, drought conditions for those of us living in Steamboat Springs and Routt County, Colorado were upgraded last Thursday to the “Exceptional” category. That’s about as bad as it gets, folks.
This is a preview of Exceptional Drought Conditions in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Read the full story.
"We were very appreciative of Charlie's outstanding professionalism and creativity as our realtor. The flyers and video he did of our home were unique and beautiful, and we believe they were key in selling in a difficult market."
