Outdoors businesses support Christo art project over Arkansas River
Taylor Edrington, owner of Royal Gorge Anglers, believes "Over the River," Christo's proposed art installation, could attract more clients to his shop and more tourists to the area. Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post
By Jason Blevins, The Denver Post
New York. Miami. Paris. Berlin. Cañon City.
The prison-heavy Fremont County seat will get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to play in the big leagues of tourism if final approval is granted for artist Christo's plan to drape the Arkansas River just upstream from the Royal Gorge.
"It's like winning the lottery," said Doug Shane, executive director of the Cañon City Chamber of Commerce and board member of the Fremont County Tourism Council. "This takes us to a whole other level."
While Fremont County commissioners mull a temporary permit for Christo's mammoth "Over the River" project — the final of many regional and federal approvals for an art project 16 years in the making — Cañon City is preparing for launch.
Boosters are reluctant to detail specific plans, but those schemes are under way.
Christo's plan to envelop 5.9 miles of a 42-mile stretch of the Arkansas River in shimmering fabric could draw more than 400,000 visitors to the river between Cañon City and Salida.
Read Jason Blevins' full story and learn what locals, including a fly fishing shop owner and whitewater river outfitter, hope Christo's project will mean for southern Colorado.
An illustration of the proposed "Over the River" art installation by Christo. Courtesy of Christo
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