Summer paid parking at Buttermilk approved, winter still undetermined

The Pitkin Board of County Commissioners this week approved a summer parking fee schedule for the Buttermilk base lot. They plan to conserve 30 to 40 spaces for free transit and recreational parking. Parking at Buttermilk Ski Area’s main lot will no longer be free starting April 7, but winter management plans are still to come.

Vehicles will be charged $6 per day and oversized vehicles $40 per day. About 30-40 spaces will be free for transit riders and people using the mountain for recreation. The new parking management will coincide with the end of ski season at Buttermilk.



The Pitkin Board of County Commissioners approved the budget supplemental request for an approximate $260,000 contract for an outside company to manage parking at both Buttermilk’s main lot and the Schultz Health and Human Services building’s lot. They approved the expense without including revenue derived from the fees because the potential winter parking rate has not yet been set. “We haven’t talked about the fee schedule yet,” said Commissioner Kelly McNicholas Kury at the BOCC’s Tuesday work session.

“We’re assuming we’re going to approve a fee schedule that’s going to raise that amount of revenue, but maybe it’ll raise more. Maybe it’ll raise less.” Public Works Director Brian Pettet said summer parking fees would not amount to enough revenue to cover the cost the county is paying to Chicago-based firm SP+, which will manage the lots.

“The winter season is where we would make this type of revenue through a paid-parking program,” he said. The crux of the decision is to incentivize people to park their vehicles at the Brush Creek Park and Ride from where they take free bus rides into town, effectively reducing traffic at the pinchpoint between the Aspen-Pitkin County Airport and Buttermilk. It’s also to maintain an increased presence in the lot.

Aspen Skiing Co. CEO Geoff Buchheister presented concerns about the parking management program in a letter sent to BOCC members on Tuesday, obtained by Aspen Daily News through an open-records request. SkiCo owns a small share of the parking spaces in the lot.

He wrote that Buttermilk’s role as a beginner-friendly ski area and ease of access should extend to the parking lot. Without increased transit capability, incentivizing parking at Brush Creek will not work. “To Aspen Skiing Company, the current rollout process for parking management at the airport, Buttermilk, and HHS feels rushed and largely driven by providing a new operator at the airport,” the letter said.

“The management plan for Buttermilk in both summer and winter, to our view, lacks clear operational, maintenance, and communication plans.” The management plan currently includes an SP+ employee who monitors the airport, Schultz Health and Human Services and Buttermilk lots. Buccheister wrote they’d prefer an onsite employee to manage issues that arise and remain available to answer questions — and signage distinguishing county-owned spots from the SkiCo-owned spots.

“Visitors and many locals won’t distinguish that some of the parking lots are County-owned and managed and some are not. We have little doubt that Aspen Skiing Company will receive most of the community’s frustration and blowback,” he wrote. “A signage and communication plan will therefore be essential to explain the different roles of the parking lots.

” Pettet pushed back that the process was rushed, citing the county’s request-for-proposals bidding process that attracted SP+. They are also assuming control of parking at the airport. In a statement to the Aspen Daily News, SkiCo re-emphasized their commitment to the county and their clientele.

“We deeply value our partnership with the County and remain committed to working with them as they continue to discuss next steps with their selected parking contractor. We also recognize the impact these changes will have on the experience of our guests and community — to that end, our focus remains continuing to prioritize preserving their experience as conversations continue.” Pettet said in an interview Thursday that the public works department will engage stakeholders like SkiCo and nearby homeowners associations in the winter management planning, likely in May.

For the county commissioners, the board wanted to see community benefits in exchange for charging at Buttermilk in the winter. “Please include a way of getting to Highlands without having to use two buses,” said Commissioner Jeffrey Woodruff. “I think the win for the community would be to bring back Brush Creek service so we don't have to go to 8th Street or the roundabout and transfer.

” Pettet has said before that depending on the fees, the county could consider funding a Highlands-specific shuttle from Brush Creek, like the one that currently operates between Buttermilk and Highlands..