| Aspen, Colorado | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
| View south along Galena Street in downtown Aspen. The Aspen Mountain ski area is in the background. | |
| Location in Pitkin County and the State of Colorado | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | State of Colorado |
| County[1] | Pitkin County - seat[2] |
| Founded | 1879 |
| Incorporated | April 1, 1881[3] |
| Government | |
| • Type | Home Rule Municipality[1] |
| • Mayor | Mick Ireland[4] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3.5 sq mi (9.1 km2) |
| • Land | 3.5 sq mi (9.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation[5] | 7,890 ft (2,405 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 6,658 |
| • Density | 1,902.3/sq mi (731.6/km2) |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP codes | 81611, 81612 (PO Box)[6] |
| Area code(s) | 970 |
| FIPS code | 08-03620 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0204686 |
| Highways | SH 82 |
| Website | www.aspenpitkin.com |
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States.[7][2] The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005.[8] Founded as a mining camp in the Colorado Silver Boom and named because of the abundance of aspen trees in the area, the city is now a ski resort and an upscale tourist center.
In the late 20th century, the city developed as a popular destination for celebrities, attracting people like Charlie Sheen, Hunter S. Thompson, and John Denver, the latter having written several songs about the town, including "Aspenglow" and "Starwood in Aspen". Aspen boasts the most expensive real estate prices in the United States.[9]
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The city's roots are traced to the winter of 1879, when a group of miners ignored pleas by Frederick Pitkin, governor of Colorado, to return across the Continental Divide due to an uprising of the Ute Indians. Originally named Ute City, the small community was renamed Aspen in 1880, and, in its peak production years of 1891 and 1892, surpassed Leadville as the United States' most productive silver-mining district.[10] Production expanded due to the passage of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890, which doubled the government's purchase of silver. By 1893, Aspen had banks, a hospital, two theaters, an opera house and electric lights. Economic collapse came with the Panic of 1893, when President Cleveland called a special session of Congress and repealed the act. Within weeks, many of the Aspen mines were closed and thousands of miners were put out of work. It was proposed that silver be recognized as legal tender and the Populist Party adopted that as one of its main issues; Davis H. Waite, an Aspen newspaperman and agitator was elected governor of Colorado on the Democratic Ticket; but in time the movement failed.
Eventually, after wage cuts, mining revived somewhat, but production declined and by the 1930 census only 705 residents remained. Remaining, however, were fine stocks of old commercial buildings and residences, along with excellent snow. Aspen's development as a ski resort first flickered in the 1930s when investors conceived of a ski area, but the project was interrupted by World War II. Friedl Pfeifer, a member of the 10th Mountain Division who had trained in the area, returned to the area and linked up with industrialist Walter Paepcke and his wife Elizabeth. The Aspen Skiing Corporation was founded in 1946 and the town quickly became a well-known resort, hosting the FIS World Championships in 1950. Paepcke also played an important role in bringing the Goethe Bicentennial Convocation to Aspen in 1949, an event held in a newly designed tent by the architect Eero Saarinen. Aspen was now on the path to becoming an internationally known ski resort and cultural center, home of the Aspen Music Festival and School. The area would continue to grow with the development of three additional ski areas, Buttermilk (1958), Aspen Highlands (1958), and Snowmass (1969).
In 1977, notorious serial killer Ted Bundy, while in the Pitkin County Courthouse in Aspen for a pre-trial hearing, jumped from a second-story window and escaped. He remained free for six days, hiding out on Aspen Mountain, before he was arrested while attempting to drive a stolen car out of town.
In 1977, Aspen was thoroughly photographed for the Aspen Movie Map project funded by the U.S. Department of Defense. The Movie Map is one of the earliest examples of virtual reality software.
Aspen is notable as the smallest radio market tracked by Arbitron, ranked at #302.
Local media in Aspen includes two radio stations: KSNO and KSPN; two daily newspapers: The Aspen Times and The Aspen Daily News; three local, lifestyle magazines: Aspen Sojourner [1], Aspen Magazine [2] and the bi-annual Aspen Peak; one digital magazine, Skollie Magazine's Aspen Edition; as well as local and lifestyle television channels: TV Aspen and Plum TV Aspen - Channel 16.
Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality[1] under Colorado law. It has a council-manager government. An elected council of four members and the mayor supervise the city's operations, managed on a day-to-day basis by the city manager, an appointed official who serves at their pleasure. Steve Barwick has been city manager since 1999; Mick Ireland is the mayor.
The city's main office is at City Hall, the former Armory Hall listed on the National Register of Historic Places at the intersection of South Galena Street and East Hopkins Avenue. Because of its expansion in the late 20th century, it has outgrown that space. Several city departments are housed in satellite offices around town.
The historic character of the city has been challenged in recent decades by skyrocketing property values and the proliferation of second homes, increasingly shutting low- and middle-income workers out of the city and creating a large pool of commuters from nearby bedroom communities such as Snowmass, Basalt, Carbondale and Glenwood Springs. At the same time, in stark contrast to its historic character, the city has emerged into international fame as a glitzy playground of the wealthy and famous. Aspen has become a second and third home to many international jet setters.
The downtown has been largely transformed into an upscale shopping district that includes high-end restaurants, salons, and boutiques. Aspen boasts Ralph Lauren, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Fendi, Bvlgari, Burberry, Brioni, theory and Ermenegildo Zegna boutiques.[11]
Aspen is the most expensive place to buy real estate in the US.[12] Aspen is a mixture of high-end luxury estates and condos intermixed with single-family homes and mobile home parks. As of March 2011, the lowest-priced single-family home on the market was a trailer for $559,000.[13] The median listing price for homes /condos for sale in Aspen is $4,229,558 according to Trulia.[14] It isn't uncommon to see listing prices reaching the mid-eight figures.[14]
The city sits along the southeast (upper) end of the Roaring Fork Valley, along the Roaring Fork River, a tributary of the Colorado River about 40 miles (64 km) south of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. It is surrounded by mountain and wilderness areas on three sides: Red Mountain to the north, Smuggler Mountain to the east, and Aspen Mountain to the south.
Aspen is located at [15], along State Highway 82.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km2), all of it land.
| Climate data for Aspen | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 1 (34) |
4 (39) |
7 (45) |
11 (52) |
16 (61) |
22 (72) |
25 (77) |
24 (75) |
21 (70) |
14 (57) |
6 (43) |
2 (36) |
12.8 (55.0) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −14 (7) |
−12 (10) |
−7 (19) |
−4 (25) |
1 (34) |
5 (41) |
8 (46) |
8 (46) |
4 (39) |
−2 (28) |
−8 (18) |
−13 (9) |
−2.8 (26.9) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 60 (2.36) |
50 (1.97) |
55 (2.17) |
43 (1.69) |
38 (1.5) |
32 (1.26) |
52 (2.05) |
53 (2.09) |
44 (1.73) |
34 (1.34) |
44 (1.73) |
58 (2.28) |
563 (22.17) |
| Source: http://weather.yahoo.com/Aspen-Colorado-United-States/USCO0016/statistics.html?unit=c | |||||||||||||
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 125 |
|
|
| 1890 | 5,108 | 3,986.4% | |
| 1900 | 3,303 | −35.3% | |
| 1910 | 1,834 | −44.5% | |
| 1920 | 1,265 | −31.0% | |
| 1930 | 705 | −44.3% | |
| 1940 | 777 | 10.2% | |
| 1950 | 916 | 17.9% | |
| 1960 | 1,101 | 20.2% | |
| 1970 | 2,437 | 121.3% | |
| 1980 | 3,678 | 50.9% | |
| 1990 | 5,049 | 37.3% | |
| 2000 | 5,914 | 17.1% | |
| 2010 | 6,658 | 12.6% | |
| source:[16][17] | |||
As of the census[18] of 2000, there were 5,914 people, 2,903 households, and 1,082 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,675.4 people per square mile (646.9/km²). There were 4,354 housing units at an average density of 1,233.5 per square mile (476.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.94% White, 0.44% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 1.45% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.64% from other races, and 1.20% from two or more races. 6.14% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 2,903 households out of which 16.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.8% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 62.7% were non-families. 43.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.94 and the average family size was 2.67.
In the city the population was spread out with 13.1% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 42.1% from 25 to 44, 27.6% from 45 to 64, and 7.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 115.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 117.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $60,418, and the median income for a family was $70,300.[19] Males had a median income of $41,011 versus $32,023 for females. The per capita income for the city was $40,680. About 3.6% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 2.6% of those age 65 or over.
Cities listed alphabetically (together with their respective regions/departments).
Aspen has seven sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:
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