Groundbreaking takes place for facility made for winter sports enthusiasts with disabilities
The parking lot of Eldora, one of the front range's closest ski resorts, normally has two trailers and a permanent porta-potty sitting near the beginner slopes.
Now, it has construction crews, massive concrete pipes scattered around, along with really excited people who have been working for this day for years.
Ignite Adaptive Sports, a program that provides children and adults with disabilities access to winter sports, has had an instillation outside the ski hill for years.
While it has done its best with the space provided, it is now getting a new building with a lot of upgrades.
"This is a big moment for me!" Rick Herrmann said, beaming.
Herrmann has survived seven strokes in three years time and while he's got a few more hurdles to get through to get on the ski hill, it hasn't stopped him.
He's fought alongside other board members to get this new building and upgrade the quality of life for their athletes.
"It's getting more and more real every day!" Herrmann exclaimed.
The new 12,000 square-foot facility will be two stories, the top floor being the children's ski school, while the bottom is set to be the Ignite headquarters.
It will provide much more space than the two trailers it was working out of before and include indoor bathrooms as well. It also will include an elevator and bridge that goes right to the base of the ski lifts.
Volunteers used to have to push athletes up the first part of the hill which can be very heavy.
Aside from practical improvements, it's an social optics upgrade too.
"It puts our athletes on even footing with the other athletes, so instead of like 'well the real ski school is over there, adaptive ski school is in the sheds over there,'" Bill Goldstein, an Ignite spokesperson said.
He knows it all too well the kind of freedom the program provides. Goldstein lost his leg to a diabetic infection eight years ago, but got back on skis and inspires others to do the same.
The new building has just broke ground and hopes to be finished within the next two years.
