20 years ago
Apr 26, 2006
Vail’s “billion-dollar renewal” series of infrastructure projects was ramping up, the Vail Daily reported, with crews working on utility and snowmelt improvements, demolishing areas along the Gore Creek Promenade and upgrading portions of Mill Creek Chute and Hanson Ranch Road.
“Work started Tuesday on utility improvements on Vail Road near the Lodge at Vail and Checkpoint Charlie for Vail Resorts’ Front Door project,” the Vail Daily reported. “Work should be completed May 19 … the project includes work on storm sewers, water lines and sewer lines.”
The Vail Plaza Hotel and Club was nearing exterior completion, while nearby projects like One Willow Bridge Road and the Sonnenalp expansion continued with interior work and streetscape improvements. The FirstBank building underwent exterior renovations, and the Alpenrose restaurant prepared to reopen after upgrades.
In Lionshead and nearby areas, construction advanced on the Arrabelle, Gore Creek Place townhomes and additional condo projects. Early work also began on the future Four Seasons. Across town, crews moved from foundation work into framing and exterior phases, marking the start of a busy construction season expected to continue into 2007 and beyond.
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30 years ago
May 3, 1996
The Vail Breakaways women’s hockey team reclaimed the Colorado state championship, finishing the season 18–2 for the team’s seventh state title, the Vail Trail reported.
“But this year’s title means more than many of those in the past,” the Trail reported. “That’s because Colorado’s women’s hockey league has made dramatic strides in recent years, expanding to eight teams with several talented women.”
Following their win, the Breakaways turned their focus to an upcoming trip to China, where they planned to compete internationally and face the Chinese National Team.
40 years ago
May 2, 1986
Reports of UFOs over Eagle and Summit counties on were likely to have come from the planet Venus, the Vail Trail reported.
Multiple residents, including law enforcement officers, described seeing a bright, color-shifting, pulsating object low in the western sky that appeared to hover or slowly descend over the course of the evening.
Quoting Dr. Richard Altrock, an astrophysicist with the Air Force Geophysics Laboratory, National Solar Observatory at Sac Peak, N.M., the Vail Trail reported that UFO sightings are often reported when Venus sets in the early evening, and on the date in question, Venus set around 9 p.m. at a spot on the horizon slightly north of due west.
“It is common to see rapidly flashing colors and multiple images as Venus approaches the horizon,” Altrock said. “This is especially true when the planet is viewed over mountains or canyons.
High winds and turbulence from peaks and valleys create packets of air that act like prisms, Altrock said, fragmenting white light into different colors with each color scattered in a different direction.”
Wind and turbulence also cause single objects to appear as many, Altrock said.
“It’s like looking through a piece of badly shattered glass,” he said. “To the untrained observer, the flashing colors and breakup of image seem unusual but are in fact quite normal.”
50 years ago
May 7, 1976
An election for the Bighorn Water District board drew attention when 22 newly minted property owners were bused in from Denver to vote, the Vail Trail reported.
The dispute stemmed from a long-running conflict over water availability for a proposed commercial and condominium development in the Bighorn area near Vail, where developers claimed the district was not expanding water resources quickly enough, while the district argued its supply was already at capacity.
The district’s attorney expressed skepticism over the bused-in voters, requiring them to answer detailed questions about the sudden and simultaneous property acquisitions among the group, which allowed them to vote in the election. A legal challenge to the election was expected to follow.
60 years ago
May 5, 1966
Sylvan Lake, formerly known as Zurcher Lake, was expected to be the most popular game and fish department development in Colorado following a new development effort south of Eagle, the Eagle Valley Enterprise reported.
“Sylvan will crane in for a portion of $982,000 expected to be available from federal sources for funding of outdoor recreation projects on a matching basis,” the Enterprise reported. “A total of 24 projects were received for submission for consideration for funding under the Land and Water Conservation Fund … on May 6 the commission will evaluate the projects and will give each a priority for funding.”