 He wanted the city to have a hotel that equaled European ones in its refinements and amenities.It was one of the first buildings west of the Mississippi to have full electric lighting and it has the only above ground ballroom in Aspen.It was the only hotel to remain open through the city's "quiet years" in the early 20th century, as a family business run by a former bartender and his son that often served as the town's social center.