Members of the Salida City Council about to start their meeting in Nov. 2022. (Left to right) are Jane Templeton, Harald Kasper, Dominique Naccarato, Mayor Dan Shore, Mayor Pro Tem Justin Critelli, and Alisa Pappenfort. Not shown: Mike Pollock, who attends virtually. AVV staff photo.
At their work session, which was combined with their regular meeting on September 5, the Salida City Council (SCC) heard updates from the Extraordinary Teen Council (ETC) and the Chaffee Shuttle.
Stella Veazey gave the ETC report. Recent efforts include peer mentoring at Salida High School, and some possible surveys directed towards high school students: one about whether they plan to live in Salida after graduation, and how feasible they see that possibility being; and also a survey about the Scout Wave. Veazey and Dibby Olson, FYI coordinator for the ETC, both agreed that these surveys could be done “pretty quickly”, and the ETC could present the results at the work session scheduled for December 4.
Mike Bischoff, the new Chaffee Shuttle Executive Director. Courtesy image.
Chaffee Shuttle “Moving Ahead”
Mike Bischoff, the new Executive Director for the Chaffee Shuttle, reported that the organization currently has 14 part-time drivers that serve Chaffee County and the San Luis Valley and is running several routes. These include a daily commuter route between Salida and Buena Vista, starting in the morning and running through into the night; a recently-added Howard-Salida route; on-demand service in both Salida and Buena Vista; and routes in the San Luis Valley, which will soon include an Antonito-Alamosa route.
Bischoff also reported that Chaffee Shuttle is undergoing a “rebranding” as Mountain Valley Transit, in recognition of their status as a regional transit authority; and that the Shuttle was still looking for new drivers. Prospective hires do not need a Commercial Drivers License (CDL), but will need to pass a drug screening test.
Chaffee Shuttle Board President Kate Garwood and Salida’s Community Development Director Bill Almquist added to the report.
“The next big transition we had was going into the San Luis Valley,” said Garwood. “We are the only public transit option open to them. We won a HOPE Grant from the feds…to hire a firm to help us compile data on what these communities wanted – now we have a road map.
“We are purposefully moving forward to be part of a sustainability program, to keep better air in our community – for every ride we have from BV to Salida, that’s 20 pounds of greenhouse gases not going into the air,” she added. “We have good drivers – they help passengers pick up their groceries, check in on people – they are good quality people trying to help the community.”
Chaffee Shuttle (now rebranding as Mountain Valley Transit) and their latest van. Courtesy photo
“We really look at Chaffee Shuttle as one of those three elements that underpin the wellbeing of the community — housing, childcare, transportation,” said Almquist. “As we continue to grow as a community we are going to need more from Chaffee Shuttle.
We are working to envision what they could be doing, like [intra-city] Salida routes. It’s all about trying to plan ahead – do we have areas where the Chaffee Shuttle bus can pull over and pick people up?”
“Do we see some demand for going from the east end of Salida through downtown to Poncha Springs?” asked Treasurer Merrell Bergin. “Yeah, that wouldn’t shock me,” Almquist replied.
“The Salida Circulator is one of the top 10 items that are on the list of things to do,” Garwood added. “It might even be in the top five. Your folks want to move around town. Maybe we could distill that Salida-based data to you – we got a lot of response from Salida.”
“It’s played into the South Ark Neighborhood plan – we are looking for opportunities to put stops for people to go downtown or to the hospital,” said Almquist.
“Anyone with a 20-mile round-trip commute in a car can save anywhere from $7,500 to $17,500 per year on transit costs,” said Garwood. “That money can go towards housing or daycare costs. We may need to come back to you for financial support – you can be thinking about what your needs are.”
“It takes a while to change people’s habits,” Almquist concluded. “Things won’t change overnight, but there are things we can do that might change quickly – like people staying in hotels on U.S. 50 who might be driving or taking a cab [into downtown]…a beautifully-branded new shuttle may spur questions about how to access it.”
“It might even help with parking,” quipped Mayor Dan Shore, to appreciative laughter from the Council. (Lack of convenient parking has been a source of constant complaint from Salida residents in recent months.)
Recent Comments