Year in summary, lessons, directions in 2026? Sure, let’s do a bit of that.
National, global, economic, generational, societal, and other forces created much turbulence in 2025. Some of the most impactful national items: the cuts to national parks, forests, and monuments; global tariffs; the elimination of most student loan relief; heightened tensions with other nations; slashed support for world health; erasing and ignoring science; denigration in words and deeds of people of other countries, cultures, color; a national culture of divisiveness and fabrication; and so on.
So, how do all of these broad factors affect Estes Park? Do some of these impact tourist patterns? Yes. Do some create societal stresses that lead to ever-increasing behavioral health issues? Yes. Do they impact caution in the family budget when shopping for groceries? Yes. Do they negatively impact how some of our residents and visitors treat each other? Yes.
We are living in a time of cultural upheaval and economic uncertainty. In the meantime, and always, we must do the right things locally. We’ll continue to work on maintaining roads, repairing infrastructure, strengthening services, hiring strong leaders and skilled staff, listening to you, and making improvements for Estes.
So, what in 2025 advises actions and behaviors in 2026?
Rocky Mountain National Park must prepare for more substantial budget cuts. Estes proved its compassion with great support for furloughed employees. Visitors and residents were good stewards as they treated the park with respect, even while support staff was significantly pared.
Hike in pairs or groups! I have great sympathy for the deceased Crosier Mountain female hiker. My wife and I have personal stories of dangerous wildlife close encounters, and so we are very much touched by the tragedy, for the woman and her family.
Childcare services continue to be supported, nurtured, and expanded, notably by Rut Miller and her amazing EVICS team, as well as through the town’s expansive efforts.
The artistic future of Estes is bright. Whimsadoodle, the sale of the Stanley to safe perpetuity, renovated Cleave Street, the creative arts district designation, the jubilant Chocolate Factory, and more: Estes arts and entertainment are unique, growing, and inviting.
With most major road/street constructions completed in recent years, we have had significantly fewer impediments on that front. 2026 should be similar.
The voters spoke, and Initiative 300 is now the law of the land. While I would always prefer 100 percent of voters to weigh in, we had around 40 percent. If my arithmetic is correct (53 percent in favor of Initiative 300, out of 40 percent of voters who voted), about 21.2 percent of the Estes voting population made that decision, and the town now owns that ordinance. Democracy in action!
Nonprofits continue to provide critical and highly useful services: the Bridge of Estes, Estes Valley Crisis Advocates, Restorative Justice, the Education Foundation, Harmony, the Recycling Committee, the League of Women Voters, the Pet Association, Rocky Mountain Conservancy, and many others. Salud is still in operation, and I hope that their leadership can find a way to continue apace. In 2026, I will continue to support Mary Mesropian and Peter Sinnott’s progress toward Dementia Day Services.
Our work to maintain dependability and affordability while moving toward green electricity continues. There’s a possibility that the feds will tell us that we (through PRPA) can’t shut down the Rawhide coal plant as planned in 2029. This would substantially disrupt our green plans. I believe it should be left to the four municipalities to determine our green future, not the federal government.
In the meantime, our local electrical team members continue to be superstars, and Trailblazer will continue to close the gap toward 100 percent coverage. Tech workers, come on up and use our bandwidth!
I’m encouraging business owners and other organizations to establish a support group and pathway for our summer student workers (J-1s) to provide them with recourse when needed.
Transportation continues to evolve with expanded routes and options, though we have a long way to go to reach the glorious future of fast mass and micro transit everywhere in Estes, Rocky Mountain National Park, the Front Range, and beyond. But incremental progress occurs each year.
Visit Estes Park has had its ups and downs, but is now on a path of restructuring, led by new CEO Sarah Leonard. I do expect them to focus on keeping summer strong, making winter ever more viable, and cultivating destination stewardship.
Superintendent Ruby Bode and her team continue to evolve an inclusive, forward-thinking student population. I’ve seen more than a glimpse of the astuteness of our local students. I answered questions in high school civics and government classes, had sixth-grade classes visit the boardroom for an afternoon of fast-paced Q&A, and attended the elementary school job fair. All gave me faith in the future.
Finally, for now, we continue to have civility in our public discourse to a great degree. We need to continue to work on the trust factor. On a local level, it takes effort from all parties to maintain a positive atmosphere of public trust. Great achievements are possible when we can all share a trusting environment.
You have to have a little faith in people.