Sitting here at the CyberStar Summit in San Antonio listening to Bill French, founder of MyST Technology, discuss the long tail of the web and how it relates to real estate.  We are all so enamored with getting control of the major search terms and phrases by which people find us in our markets.  But, statistics show that only 3% of searchers actually use those terms.  There are thousands of others that people use to search, including long phrases, like "Saucalito 3 bedroom home with a boathouse and maid's quarters."  Difficult to identify all those terms, but there are ways to get to those potential prospects.  Blogs may actually provide the best way, simply because creating relevant content about your marketand sending it out the web means that all those phrases, keywords and nuggets of information may bring you up first when someone searches.  

I have a Real Estate Blogsite (REB), and can tell you that the results are amazing.  I get more leads from my website that come through my blogsite that any SEO I've done on my website every produced.  I come up first in my market, for example, when someone types in "National Repertory Orchestra".  People who are interested in culture in our market, as well as in real estate, will find me while someone who searches strictly by "Summit County Real Estate" (one of my forwarding domains) may not.  

I pay for REB, but the cost is much less than I used to pay for PPC.  I get results because REB does so much more than just provide an tool for blogging.  It actively pings my messages every hour; it searches for relevant content on the web for all my posts and attaches to it; it prompts me every time for keywords and outbound links; and it provides provides a structured interface for my property posts.  Topic Cloud allows simple searches by visitors, and grows as I add content.  And the enhancements keep coming.  

Ah, well, I'll get off my bias and just say that the ways to reach people are changing, evolving, and smart agents will do their best to keep up.  

Good luck. 

Talked with my daughter, Adrienne, today.  She’s in Denver, an hour east of here, and 4,000 feet lower.  She’s jealous.  They are having balmy weather.  We are getting snow.   She is a snowboarder.  I prefer golf.  So, in a sense, we should switch places.  But, we are otherwise where we want to be, and happy that we have the weather we do.  And also happy that we are so close to the other extreme.  Diversity is that close.  An hour away, and I could be playing golf, and she could be shredding. 

She’ll visit soon.  And I will visit her.  So, life is good. 

At no time does this slogan of ours make more sense than at the first snow of the season.  So, as we near the end of this day of our first snow of 2006, it’s a good time to reflect.  Avid skiers and snowboarders are salivating.  Golfers and mountain climbers are groaning.  But, regardless, everyone knows that we live high in the Colorado mountains, that our ski resorts of Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, Keystone and Arapahoe Basin are the real reason that the majority of us live here.  If not for the skiing itself, then to support those who hang on for it. 

So it snows.  It won’t last.  Not this one.  We are used to having one or two good snows in September and/or October, then a balmy Fall season leading to the real thing.  However, nights are appropriately cold, and days do provide a bit of a chill any time we get a little breeze or cloud cover, that the resorts will start making snow soon.  There is always a competition to be the first to open the slopes – which usually means one slope – to get the earlier, hungrier, rock skiers.  And on we go.  

Home to a fire in the fireplace, watching our wild birds cling to the feeders, and listening to Sophie, our blue parrot, quietly chirp.  Snow Place Like Home.  Yeah.

Some of us mountaineers just like to rough it.  So, the Blue River mayor quit, not just when it was clear that her camp would lose the vote on paving, but also after she’d received some threats from neighbors who, well, like things just the way they are.  Then, within a couple of weeks from her resignation, she and her group withdrew the initiative.  Reasoning was that the quoted costs were too high.  Actually, stated too high.  She felt bids received were much higher than the work could actually be done for, so rather than sustain a defeat, she and her group, uh, re-grouped.  Presumably, they will come back with lower bids and try again. 

Meanwhile, somewhere around half the residents of the Town of Blue River has spoken.  They would rather have dirt roads with potholes than any semblance of civilization.

The Swan Mountain Recpath is to be a reality.  Many years in the planning, much of that is gathering funding, the first phase will have its ground breaking this week.  Swan Mountain Road traverses the south side of Lake Dillon, the only portion of the Lake currently without a pedestrian or bike path.  Now, the funding is in place for the first phase, which will help recreationalists on foot or bicycles avoid 2.2 miles of the Road.  The road can be dangerous, plus the elevation gain is daunting for many.  At a cost of just over $2 million, this first phase will break ground tomorrow at 2 p.m.  Halleluyah!

This is for those of you who live in metro areas, cities, places where you expect to transport yourself, your kids and friends, over roads made of bituminous materials known as pavement, where you aren't bothered by dust (or at least its effects are minimal).  Because you may not understand this story.  Then again, this is not where you live.  You see, there is a small community just south of Breckenridge a few miles.  It's made up of a mish-mash of irregular lots ranging from a third of an acre to about three acres.  Mostly single family homes with a few condos tossed in for good measure.  It's at the headwaters of the Blue River, in the valley between mountain peaks where the snow melts and flows down - to form wetlands, springs and ultimately the Blue.  And there are no paved roads, save for Highway 9, which cuts through the valley, bringing traffic the 9 miles or so to and from Hoosier Pass, that transitory monument that connects Park County (Fairplay, Alma, et al) with Summit County and its ski resorts, Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, Keystone. 

The little incorporated town is called, of course, Blue River, and there is a healthy debate going on regarding the roads that run from that paved Highway 9 into the various subdivisions and homes.  Do you pave or not?  Keep the dirt and usually pot-holed routes, or provide smooth tarmacs that, among other things, would be easier on the vehicles traversing the routes. 

Blue River is the type of place people look for that gives them a bit more privacy.  They can still easily get to the ski hills, but they don't have to live in frenetic activity at the base of any ski mountain.  This is historically second homes - getaways rather - that have become more and more primary homes.  And therein is the gist.  If you are "getting away", looking for privacy, wanting that "mountain feel", you are probably very comfortable with dirt.  After all, whether you use the home a few times a year or every weekend, it's still a second home, your private getaway in the mountains.  But, if you live there full time - and Blue River has provided some of the more affordable housing in the County - and commute to work every day, pavement probably makes more sense.  The lines, however, are not clear, and there are lots of crossover homeowners.

The Town Council seems to be leaning toward pavement, and some residents are a bit upset with that perception.  But, the vote is coming up.   And the lines are being drawn.  Donald Jones believes pavement will eliminate "obnoxious dust" and will improve property values.  But Jaime Frieze asks, "What's next, sidewalks and street lights?  This is a sleepy little town." 

So, enjoy your paved streets at home.  But, when you come to the mountains, what will you want?

A statewide smoking ban went into effect this year for all public and private buildings, with very few exceptions (like your own home).  However, a Summit County-wide ban went into effect a couple of years earlier - the limitations were somewhat different, but close.  One thing the State of Colorado did was to require that smokers do so outside, and at least 15 feet away from entrances.  That one provision, however, was left to local communities to modify if they so chose.  

So, Silverthorne, at a recent Council meeting, did just that.  The consensus was that 15 feet away from many businesses would put people in alleys or on roadways, and that was not acceptable.  So, now you are free to smoke in Silverthorne right outside the entrance.  Smoke 'em! 

It’s Ptarmigan Mountain for gosh sakes.  There are no “real” roads up there.  After all, when the Bureau of Land Management deeded acreages to Korean War Vets in the 50s, it did not plan a community.  Those original owners were left to fare for themselves.  They had to build a structure on the land, and then figure how to get to it.  So, neighbors cooperated to dig roads through each other’s properties to get up the hill, then entered into formal or informal agreements to maintain the roads.  Many are too steep to navigate in the winter, and Summit County will not take them over because none meet any semblance of County specifications.  In many cases, owners leave snowmobiles at the bottom of the hill in the winter in a cut-out where they park their vehicles at night and the snowmobiles during the day.  Not the best way to get home, perhaps, but it works.

So, when four Ptarmigan homeowners got together and applied to the County in 1998 to improve their road – at a shared cost of $90,000 – they were not too concerned where the road went.  In fact, they went over the private land of at least two of the homeowners per their mutual agreement.  However, they never anticipated that the County would then come back to add more improvements to that road.  You see, the County wants to make the road more navigable for even more people, and those original partners estimate that will bring 40 more cars a day over their road – and their private land.  So, you can see, perhaps, why they object to the improvements.  Oh yes, once the new road is built, maintenance will still be left to the current homeowners.  So, they plan to put a chain across the road they built. 

Doing battle with any governmental agency is no fun.  But these folks say they are in it for the long haul.  So, it remains to be seen whether you and I will be able to simply go sightseeing on Barking Dog Road in the future.  The views are some of the best in the County. 

Gary Lindstrom is a good friend of mine. He is also  our  State Representative for  Summit and adjoining  counties.  He posts  regular observations and encourages  their distribution.  This is his most recent, and one I like, because it  gives a look at the types of issues shared by so many of us who live here.  Thanks, Gary.

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There is a small town near where I grew up in Iowa named Lake City.  As you drive into Lake City there is a sign welcoming you with the greeting, “Welcome to Lake City.  We have everything but a lake.” 

Such is evolution.  That part of Iowa was one huge lake and wetland in the 1800s.  Lots of lakes in Lake City then.

I now live in a subdivision six miles north of Breckenridge called Lakeview Meadows.  We should erect a sign:  “Welcome to Lakeview Meadows.  We have everything except a lake view.” 

We had a nice view of the lake when I moved into my current house in the early 1990s.  The Dillon Reservoir (not really a lake according to the Denver Water Board) is about one half  mile north of my house.  There are virtually no trees along Highway 9 so I had an unobstructed view of the water in the summer and the ice in the winter.

Then came progress.  Then came a new housing project.  There went my view.

Actually  I can still see the town of Dillon across the reservoir if I look carefully between the houses.  I can still catch glimpses of blue water on the far end.   

Reminds me of Hawaii.  I can squint my eyes and imagine the palm trees along the Dillon Marina.  After all they do have a “Tiki Bar”, or at least that is what they used to call it.

That is the bad news.  The good news is that since they realigned the bike path (aka the recreational path) to the west side of the highway several years ago I can watch the bikers, walkers, runners, and roller bladers on the recreational path (informally known as the bike path). 

Some of us can remember when planners called the recreational paths Hiker Biker Trails.  When I was with the City of Lakewood in 1970 there was a big push for Hiker Biker Trails.  We would not have known what a recreational path was then.

It is all nomenclature of some sort or other.  Regardless of what you call it the rec path is an amazing success and is used by hundreds of people every day.  How do I know this?  I can count them out my window. 

Another neat thing is that I am visited daily by coyotes and foxes.  I think  they live above me in the forest to the west and come down across my yard on their way to the Blue River across the street to get water.  They probably forage for food along the way. 

I can always tell when they are successful foraging because the photos of the missing cats and small dogs go up on the telephone pole near the mailboxes.  Sad but true. 

If you want to keep your cat or small dog then keep it  in the house all the time except for short potty breaks.  If you want to let them roam then say farewell each time they leave because you might not see them again.

Life in Lakeview Meadows out my window is hazardous for cats and small dogs. 

I can also see a large number of swallows out my window.  The reason I can see them is that they live under the eaves of my house.  I love having them around.  Yes, they poop on my deck but that is a small price to pay to have nature that close to my  bedroom.

I see people using water hoses to blast down their nests from their homes.   They may not know that it is a crime to do that during nesting season.  I am sure  they do not like bird poop near their houses or maybe they don’t like the noise early in the morning, but it is the law and we need to obey the law. 

I have two dogs living in my house at the present time.  Why I have two dogs living here is a different story but both dogs have a thing for UPS trucks and FedEx trucks.  Any other truck can come into the subdivision and the dogs will not even open their napping eyes.  Let either of those two companies’ trucks even think about turning into our circle and the dogs are up at the window barking at the top of their lungs.

Is it the kind of exhaust system the trucks have or the odor of their loads or the uniforms the drivers wear?  Whatever it is, it sure makes the dogs go crazy.

Regardless of the distractions I know I have the very best view in Summit County or perhaps the world this summer.  Ask me again in February and my opinion might be different.

Colorado State Representative
House District 56
Eagle Lake  Summit
138 Lakeview Circle West
Breckenridge, CO  80424

970.453.5298  Voice and Fax
970.485.0295  Cellular

gary@garylindstrom.com
www.garylindstrom.com

Higher education takes on new meaning when it occurs in the - um - high country.  Colorado Mountain College has several campuses in the Colorado Mountains, two in Summit County.  These are located in Dillon and Breckenridge.  But, there has been a long-held desire to combine the campuses into one large campus, to make it modern and efficient, and to allow for future growth into the middle of this century.  So, it's no wonder that the board has been looking for land to make that a reality.  It has not been an easy search.  There is very little land to be had, and what is available generally is small acreage at best.  Finally, the Town of Frisco, which has been very interested in nabbing the campus has made an offer that is difficult to refuse.  It will leases for a dollar a year about 20 acres on the Frisco Peninsula and right on Highway 9, to CMC (provided Frisco voters approve the plan this fall).  Now they are just working on wording for the ballot.  I for one hope it wins.