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These few ‘Indian beads’

Don Rogers

Just counting Indian beads here, which Vail Councilman Kent Logan asserted was all the town was getting in exchange for approving the new Crossroads:n New three-screen theater, written in with substantial daily fines for failing to operate. The old Crossroads Theater now has closed for lack of business, and the Cascade Theater is headed that way soon. So, one “bead” is a movie theater in Vail vs. … none.n Bowling alley with 10 lanes, likewise etched in the agreement. The one in Eagle continues to do well. n Public plaza where shows such as Street Beat and other concerts currently held at Checkpoint Charlie won’t bruise the tulips or otherwise make the Bridge Street mechants cranky.n Ice skating rink, public art, streetscape and other road improvements.Bigger buildings going up in the neighborhood don’t offer any of this, which leads us to wonder if the controversial Crossroads approval came for “beads,” why did the council approve Four Seasons and Vail Plaza Inn, for example, for nuthin’ at all by this measure? The biggest benefit, of course, will be finally tearing down the old, worn-out Crossroads and getting on with the renamed Solaris. Not that the referendum petitioners seem particularly concerned about losing movie theaters and bookstores and such. But this part of Vail truly needs nothing so much as some life. These few beads seem like a pretty fair exchange. Vail, Colorado


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