Sam Rose doesn't understand why he, Torre, and Bill aren't the decision makers on Highway 82's Entrance to Aspen.

Regarding the Colorado Department of Transportation: "They're just like this boogieman of an entity I feel like I get very little clarity from" (ADN, Aug. 14).

I'll explain ... Say Pitkin County adopted building codes suggested by the fire district requiring hard-to-access homes have fire suppressions sprinklers; a homeowner may protest, ask for exemptions, and say you're "just a boogieman of an entity!" "I'm special, my house won't burn!" They can grumble and stall but must follow code, or they won't get their building permits.

The boogeyman is a scary, make-believe character. Why is Sam afraid to review the three-lane bridge under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)? Perhaps because the city's own consultants demonstrated its functional obsolescence.

His plan: doesn't provide safe fire evacuation routes, increases head-on collision dangers, sends Cemetery Lane residents left through the roundabout to go into town, expands Hwy. 82 into the golf course removing hundreds of mature trees, and significantly increases cost while degrading RFTA transit services for thousands of workers, residents, and guests.

Informed in April and July that NEPA reviews are required, Sam -- hoping for third-time charm -- asks again to skip NEPA with a more "collaborative" and "cooperative" letter.

Environmental impact statement processes are collaborative and cooperative! Maybe it's scary when the alternative you want is fatally flawed, and NEPA doesn't allow predetermined outcomes.

Hwy. 82 doesn't start and end at Aspen city limits -- Aspen's economy and community depends on others to sustain itself. The stakeholders deliberately excluded must be included, their needs considered. That's the law, and why even as time is of the essence -- Torre, Sam, and Bill wasted 16 months trying to bully, buy, and insult their way out of federal requirements.