We agree: the Pearl Property is valuable land, and should be treated with the utmost sensitivity.

But my family and myself applaud the work of the hospital district, which is trying to build a gorgeous new state-of-the art med center on a sliver of that land. We know how important it is for this town to set aside differences about the Pearl. Because I’m literally dying to see a new med center built.

Telluride’s Medical Center, because of where it’s located, simply cannot expand. We have no room here to add prenatal care, no room for a dermatologist or an osteopath. And helicopters have to land in Town Park. In the event that someone were seriously injured, it might be tough to ferry him or her to Grand Junction or Montrose.

But nowhere is the situation as bad as in the emergency room, which is far too cramped. There aren’t separate bays for each person, which means that injured people have zero privacy. What if someone were — God forbid — severely suffering or even dying right next to you? You’d have to hear every breath, maybe even their last one.
There are those trying to say that strictures on the Pearl Property prevent us from building on what is now the RV lot. Well, if it takes a vote, I say, let’s do it. Without a med center expansion, our family’s long-term care could suffer.