We are full-time residents and local voters living in the Telluride R-1 School District. We love the iconic gondola. And we care about a legal, transparent, and fair path forward for funding its continuation beyond 12/31/27.
- The 3A tax is an attempt to launch a very expensive gondola machine and station replacement in the name of a gondola capacity problem we do not have.
- Ballot measure 3A advocacy was supported by a significant amount of taxpayer funds and resources.
- The 3A taxes are a burden to locals.
- 3A ballot was defeated by ALL precincts except Mountain Village.
- The Friends of the Gondola, aka The FOG, misinformed the public.
- 3A was approved by voters who were not fully informed about the issue and the implications to the residents of the SMART district.
- Backed by contributions from the TMVOA and the Four Seasons, the FOG spent $140,000 to pass 3A.
- The FOG only talks about the gondola post 1996. But the Mountain Village Development was approved in the 80's on the condition that the town of Mountain Village maintain its infrastructure in perpetuity.
- The Mountain Village was required to construct its own infrastructure which included the gondola as the alternative to improving the highway the Mountain Village needed for its development.
- Real Estate Sales in the town of Mountain Village currently fund the gondola as the primary source of funds.
- Telluride Mountain Village Owner's Association (TMVOA), a non-profit, collects the Real Estate Transfer tax in the town of Mountain Village.
- The SMART district favors the Mountain Village Entity in that it is the only precinct within the district where non-residents are allowed to vote.
- Decisions impacting the citizens of Telluride and San Miguel County need to be decided by citizens of Telluride and San Miguel County equitably with the Mountain Village and its entities.
