The Zele Community Table brings together shakers and bakers in Aspen with the online world. Nobody in Aspen is in the mix quite like Andrew Kole, now running for Mayor and preparing for his debut as a playwright under the tent at Rio Grande Park for Theatre Aspen. Since his play is called “Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time,” it sure seemed like a good idea–for bloggers Keith Hemstreet and Michael Conniff, and Zele marketing director Lisa Zimet–to ask the candidate/playwright what’s on his mind about Aspen, art, and commerce at the Zele Community Table on Hopkins Avenue.
“Certain people say things to get elected, but I’ve never done that because I’ve never been elected.” – Andrew Kole

Michael Conniff: You’re running for Mayor of Aspen and you’ve got your debut as an Aspen playwright [Thursday August 17, 2006] coming up with “Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time.” Did it seem like a good idea at the time to be running for Mayor?
Andrew Kole: Every time I have run for office it seemed like a good idea at the time. I give Roger Marolt half-credit or blame. We’d been talking about affordable housing and the straight shot [road into Aspen]. I’ve been doing the show [on GrassRoots TV] for seven years, that’s 1,200 shows about the same three things. I wanted to run instead of waiting till four weeks before the elections to talk about it when you got four minutes. This way people think about it, make a statement, and keep their word about it. Certain people say things to get elected, but I’ve never done that because I’ve been elected.

MC: What are the issues this time around?

AK: Rental housing and old housing as an example. There’s not enough rental housing if they want people to come here for a couple years…some of them might want a real career, and I don’t think there’s a real career here like a big city. We’re limited, therefore by adding in rental housing, we become more vibrant. The Zupansis property was initially bought with housing money but not because they were going to build affordable housing. But [Aspen City Councilor] Rachel [Richards] and [Pitkin County Commissioner] Mick [Ireland] are always talking about how we need more housing in town—and now they want to build office buildings [on the Zupansis property]. That’s not what they said what they wanted to do. Years ago, I thought Burlingame should have been a rental community. People would take the bus, so it had a lot of upside—300, 400 rental housing units. But things change. There’s a segment of the population that can’t leave. They’re held hostage. Because the CPI [Consumer Price Index] of 2 percent has not allowed anybody to make enough money to move anywhere in the country [after they sell their affordable housing units]. Improvements allowed that are only 10 percent of your original purchase price. You can hardly re-carpet the place. My thought is that pushing the issue out there would force them [Aspen politicians] to say what do we want to do in the future for people who’ve been here 15 to 25 years. Let’s assume they could start from scratch. There are  2,800 [affordable housing] units, and they’re turning over just 96 units a year.

MC: How many people have owned affordable housing for 15 to 25 years?

AK: Most stuff is in the 5-10 year range. I would say less than 10 percent of it are 20 years and up.

MC: You’re saying it’s a problem. Do you have an exact number?

AK: I’m guessing. I don’t have the numbers here.

MC: What have you learned as a playwright that will help you as Mayor?

AK: What I’ve discovered as a playwright, no matter what you do there’s a lot of rewriting. I wrote 53 versions of this over one year. With dress rehearsals and walkthroughs you have to rewrite even more. From the Mayor’s point of view, you’re able to make a decision. It turned out by luck that I have to make decisions in minutes. But I don’t know if there’s that much of a comparison to the play. From the Mayoral point of view, my play doesn’t have an agenda. It’s funny. I think it’s a funny play. My agenda was to be funny. As a Mayor I would have no preconceived notions. I learned this is better than having a preconceived notion. A lot of politicians know what they’re going to do before they’re even elected.

Lisa Zimet: What time period does you play cover?

AK: My play runs from age 11 to age 45.

LZ: Is it your first play?

AK: The first play I’ve ever written was a kids play in the 1980s, “Happy Birthday, Liberty” about the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty. It was a play with 108 kids. Years ago I wrote short stories in a collection called “Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time.” A book agent told me: “Shorts stories don’t sell. So become famous or die.” I put the stories away for almost four years, then 18 months ago I pulled it out.

AK: I wrote the play in South Beach, Florida.

Keith Hemstreet: Have you ever written anything else? Short stories, a novel?

AK: I just wrote a sitcom called “Aspen Bean” which recently went to [the agents at] William Morris. It’s about a bunch of guys at a coffee shop, but there’s more to it than that. One of the guys is a Sam Malone type who runs a web cam and really stirs up some controversy in town. 

MC: If you have to choose between being mayor and a playwright?

AK: Playwright.

MC: You sure you want to say that on the record? 

AK: I don’t know why I can’t be the “Mayor Playwright.” 

MC: People say you’re running not so much to win but to prove a point. Is this something that you really want to do?

AK: It is something I want to do.

MC: What offices have you run for?

AK: I ran for City council, Mayor, City Council, and School Board. When I ran for mayor no one was running against Helen because she was unopposed.

AK: When I run I always try to get someone to commit to something. Like when I ran for Mayor, Helen [Klanderud] completely flipped on Burlingame. She was against it, then for it.

MC: You grew up in New York. Why do you care?

AK: This is where I live. I found a lot of niches that I really like. I like working with the kids and for the non-profits.

MC: Do you think you’ll live here the rest of your life?

AK: I think I’ll be here part of each year for the rest of my life. I’m not a skier. My production company is called “Indoor Guy, Outdoor town.”

LZ: Did you purposely exclude your Aspen experience from your play?

AK: No, I basically told a story and ran out of time. It could only be ninety minutes.

MC: Where are you on the moratorium? 

AK: I am against the moratorium. It’s lazy. Lazy politics. One of the things I don’t like about some city council members is that they are talking heads. Helen was angry with me because I called her a liar over the Burlingame issue. She said she had changed her mind for legitimate reasons, but she wouldn’t say what those reasons were.

MC: What is your relationship with the City Council members?

AK: Jack Johnson and I get along. I get along with Torre. I also get along with the Judge [deVilbiss] though we disagree on some things. Rachael [Richards] doesn’t like me for personal reasons.

MC: What reasons?

AK: When I was doing my radio show we pushed every button we could. Here’s the thing. I don’t see anyone on the council with the ability to negotiate and make deals. I can do a lot of things at once.

MC: Is there a difference between Andrew Kole on the show and in real life?

AK: A lot of people don’t separate me from the show. They say, “Oh, I don’t trust him.”  I create havoc on the show. My objective on the air is to find listeners. Some can do it pleasantly, I chose the Jay Thomas, Howard Stern format. To quote Howard Stern: “People that like me listen for twenty minutes. People that don’t like me listen for three hours.”

MC: You worked hard to create a persona?

AK: No, not really. It just kind of came up. When SkiCo bought Powder Pandas from Kristine Johnson they promised her a job and when she started they gave her one third of what she was making. I called the Skiing Company to ask them about Kristine and they would hang up on me. I kept calling and they would hang up. They were afraid to pick up the phone because I kept calling everyday on the air. We made a big thing of it. 

MC: That’s an aggressive approach. You want to bring people together as Mayor but on the show you’re take this approach.

AK: I push people. The key phrase is “on the show.” 

MC: Do you ever regret doing it that way on the show?

AK: I regret it when someone says something negative to someone I’m with.

MC: What’s the difference between on the air and off the air Andrew?

AK: “On the air” Andrew is looking to create an entertaining show. It’s a different job. The job of Mayor is not to be entertaining. The job is to do good for the community.

MC: In the Theatre Aspen program guide I wrote: “If Andrew Cole didn’t exist, Aspen would have to invent him.”

AK: I thought that was one of the most complimentary things anyone’s said about me.

MC: Could Andrew Cole have existed anywhere else?

AK: I was a writer for “The Wire” in South Beach. I had a life there. It could have happened in South Beach. Aspen or a small liberal community. Not in New York. I’ve heard from people: “You say what a lot of people are thinking.”  I don’t know if that’s true or if it’s just the four people who have said it to me.

LZ: Who do you expect as the other candidates for mayor?

AK: Mick [Ireland]. Torre, if he thinks he can beat Mick. I’ve heard Tim Semrau. The great thing is that everything Mick has said is on record. For example, Mick said: “The one thing we need to do is create housing in the community for our employees.”  Then why are you supporting an office building?  Mick and Torre have to show what they’ve accomplished in four years. I don’t think the Red Mountain community will want to work with Mick. He has the bartenders and working class. But not the Red Mountain community and that can backfire over time.

MC: Last question. Why should people see your play and vote for you as Mayor?

AK: They should go to the play because it’s funny. Go stand outside the tent the first night and if you hear laughs buy a ticket for the next night. As for Mayor, listen to what everyone has to say. The only reason they should vote for me is if the people end up wanting me to have a vote.