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Vail to report to citizens

Don Rogers

Vail follows the world, at least the world that can afford ski vacations.So while the snow matters greatly, so does the economy that reaches well outside the mountain town’s boundaries.The stock market, the dollar’s strength against other currencies, consumer confidence, real estate – these things really matter. So no, it’s not just the snow and how well the top ski resort in America is marketed. Of course, this season the snow is great, the Dow just nudged past 11,000 at last, and the economy here and everywhere is robust. So it’s a big year all around.But look hard enough and storm clouds always loom. Pine beetles, global warming, traffic on the highway into town, lifestyle trends tilting toward the sedentary, competition for those dollars currently rolling into Vail, and on, and on, and on. Challenges (and the consequential opportunity!) never disappear. The rubric is never quite solved. And so it is with Vail, as will no doubt be highlighted at the annual town meeting at 4 p.m. Thursday at the Donovan Pavilion.After justifiably celebrating a remarkable year, no doubt town leaders will point to a looming gap between revenue and expenses, about $1 million a year starting in 2007 – the wrong way.Heating village streets and running a West Vail fire station have been ID’d as the culprits of the future. At last there’s time to see this one coming. And time to fix it.Vail, Colorado


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