5 Star Certification Program
The 5 Star Cerfication Program will discontinue on May 28th. For more information see this press release.
Pitkin County’s application for the 5 Star Certification Program was submitted to the state on January 22, and on January 29th, we received approval from CDPHE, contingent on metric eligibility. Applications for businesses opened on Thursday, January 28th.
If you have witnessed a 5 Star certified business violation, use this form to file a complaint.
Week of May 10, 2021 Updates:
Effective Monday, May 10th, Pitkin County will be moved to Level Green on the state dial. 5 Star Certified businesses should follow Level Green allowances with the understanding that your certification can increase consumer confidence.
- Restaurants may operate at 100% capacity with 6 feet distancing between parties.
- Indoor Unseated Events may operate at 50% of posted occupancy limit or 500 people, whichever is less, per room, with 6ft. distancing required between parties.
- Indoor Seated Events may operate at 100% of posted occupancy limit, not to exceed 500 people with 6ft. distancing required between parties of up to 10 individuals. Venues may apply to their local public health agency for a variance to exceed 500 people, to be finally approved by CDPHE.
- Recreation, including gyms, recreation centers and pools, may operate at 100% capacity with 6 feet distancing between parties.
- Personal Services may operate at 100% capacity with 6 feet distancing between individuals.
**The daily report card may not be indicative of when the program can operate or not operate. If any program changes occur, Pitkin County will be in touch with businesses and will update the website accordingly.
What is the 5 Star Certification Program?
The State of Colorado’s 5 Star Certification Program is a way for businesses to operate with less restrictive capacity limits by implementing safety measures beyond what is already required by public health orders and guidelines in order to help slow the spread of COVID-19. This program is for responsible businesses that are following public health guidance, and going above and beyond to prioritize the health and safety of employees and customers.
What counties are eligible for the 5 Star Certification Program?
The chart below depicts what counties are eligible, based on the level of restrictions.
| Level | Eligibility | Benefit for Certified Businesses |
|---|---|---|
| Green | An automatic capacity increase process is already built into Protect Our Neighbors | Increases consumer confidence |
| Blue | Eligible if incidence, percent positivity, and hospitalizations ALL meet Level Blue thresholds. Incidence and percent positivity must be maintained for 7 consecutive days. | Restaurants: 100% capacity with 6 feet of distancing between parties Gyms: 100% capacity with 6 feet of distancing between parties Indoor events: 50% capacity or 500 people |
| Yellow | Eligible if incidence, percent positivity, and hospitalizations ALL meet Level Yellow thresholds. Incidence and percent positivity must be maintained for 7 consecutive days. | Certified businesses can operate at Level Blue allowances |
| Orange | Eligible if incidence, percent positivity, and hospitalizations ALL meet Level Orange thresholds. Incidence and percent positivity must be maintained for 7 consecutive days. | Certified businesses can operate at Level Yellow allowances |
| Red | Eligible ONLY if a county has had a two-week sustained decline in incidence, a percent positivity under 10%, or 10 cumulative days of decline in the previous rolling 14-day period, and less than 90% of regional ICU beds in use in addition to 10 cumulative days of decline in the previous 14-day period for hospitalizations. | Certified businesses can operate at Level Orange allowances |
| Purple | Not eligible | Not eligible |
- For more information on local metrics in relation to the 5 Star Program, please visit the COVID-19 5 Star Qualification Report Card for Pitkin County.
Metrics and Operating Capacities
| One week comparable case count (in lieu of incidence rate) | 5-Star Certified Business | Non-5 Star Certified Business |
|---|---|---|
| 151+ | Orange Level Capacities *Restaurants must allow for 10 ft between parties & only people from the same household may sit together | Red Level Capacities |
| 91-150 | Yellow Level Capacities | Orange Level Capacities |
| 31-90 | Blue Level Capacities | Yellow Level Capacities |
| 5-30 | Restaurants: 100% capacity with 6 feet distancing between parties Gyms: 100% capacity with 6 feet distancing between parties Indoor events: 50% capacity or 500 people Personal Services: May allow up to 50 additional people from Level Blue capacities. | Blue Level Capacities |
5 Star Businesses may not operate in Protect our Neighbors unless the county is formally in Protect Our Neighbors
Pitkin County 5 Star Certification Program Timeline
Begin Accepting Applications
Week of January 25, 2021
CDPHE to approve Pitkin County and applications will open up to 5 Star eligible sectors – restaurants, gyms/fitness centers, and personal services.
Review & Inspect
Week of February 1, 2021
Review of applications and site inspections will occur. Eligibility to operate at different 5-Star capacity is contingent on data trends per CDPHE report card.
Monitor CDPHE Report Card
Ongoing
Continue to monitor the CDPHE 5 Star Report Card for metric eligibility status.
Pitkin County 5 Star Certification Program Information
When – We started accepting applications on January 28th.
Who – Effective March 25, the Administrative Committee voted to accept and certify the following sectors: restaurants, gyms/fitness centers, personal services, and indoor event venues. Therefore, as long as our report card is “passing” on all metrics, certified restaurants, gyms/fitness centers, personal services, and indoor event venues will be advised that they can operate at 5 Star capacities.
How – Businesses must apply and then the county will start to conduct site inspections, with the understanding that businesses must follow Dial Level restrictions until further notice. Contingent on metric eligibility. Certified businesses will be able to open and operate at 5 Star Certification Program capacity. If applying, ensure that you are taking your time to fully complete the application with as much detail as possible regarding each 5 Star requirement when prompted. This will allow your application to be processed more quickly and therefore, the inspection process will happen more quickly.
What should an applicant expect throughout the application and approval process?
- How to Submit: Pitkin County is currently accepting applications from restaurants, gyms/fitness centers, personal services, and indoor event venues. If a business falls within one of these sector categories, the business can apply to the program by:
- Ensuring the business has an updated Business Safety Plan (if your business has submitted one between 11/13/2020 and now, this does not apply to your business).
- Completing the 5 Star Application. If applying, ensure that you are taking your time to fully complete the application with as much detail as possible regarding each 5 Star requirement when prompted. This will allow for your application to be processed more quickly and therefore, the inspection process will happen more quickly.
- Application Received: Once a 5 Star application is submitted, our inspection team will ensure that the business has a current and complete Business Safety Plan on file. If this is met, the team will move on to the next step. If this is not met, the team will reach out to the business asking for updated information.
- Application Sent to Administrative Committee: The 5 Star application will be sent to the Administrative Committee for review and approval. During this time, the inspector will also reach out to the applicant letting them know that their application is under review. If the Administrative Committee asks for additional information from the applicant, the inspector will reach out.
- Application Approved: Once the application is approved, a member from the Consumer Protection team will reach out to the business via email to let the business know the application has been approved and therefore, an inspection can be scheduled.
- During Inspection: Inspections should take approximately 30 minutes. We ask that the business be prepared for the 5 Star inspection. This includes ensuring that the business manager, owner, or whoever is meeting with the inspector that day is familiar with their application responses. Additionally, we highly suggest that the business has any necessary documentation on hand during the inspection. For example, an inspector may ask to see the Exposure Notification poster and if the business has a record of the maintenance on the HVAC system.
- Certification: If the business passes the inspection, the inspector will certify the business on the spot. However, operating at the 5 Star capacities is dependent and contingent on Pitkin County’s qualifying metrics, which are reported daily on the CDPHE 5 Star Report Card. The Consumer Protection team will work closely with certified businesses to ensure they know when they are eligible to operate at 5 Star capacities so be sure to keep an eye out for an email!
Certified Businesses (updated once a day)
Restaurants
7908
3 Peaks Snowmass Club
ABA Snowmass Club
Ajax Tavern
Artisan
Aspen Mountain Club
Aspen Pie Shop
Aspen Tap
Betula
Bosq
Bumps
Campo De Fiori
Caribou Club
Cliffhouse
Cloud 9
DBA Clark’s Oyster Bar
Dinner & Drinks at Hooch
Ellina
Elk Camp
French Alpine Bistro
Hickory House
High Alpine
Hotel Jerome
Jimmy’s
Kenichi
L’Hostaria Ristorante
Limelight Hotel Aspen
Limelight Snowmass
Lynn Britt Cabin
Matsuhisa
Mawa’s Kitchen
Merry Go Round
Mezzaluna
Pine Creek
Pinons
Platos
Propaganda Pie
Ritz-Carlton Restaurant
Roaring Fork Club
Sam’s Restaurant
Snowmass Kitchen – Westin Snowmass
St. Regis Social Bar
St. Regis Velvet Buck
Tatanka
The Edge
The Sundeck
The Village Tasting Room
The W Hotel – Wet Deck, Living Room, 39 Degrees, Townie Truck
Two Creeks
Ullrhof
Up 4 Pizza
Viceroy Snowmass – Nest
Viceroy Snowmass – Toro
Village Tasting Room
White House Tavern
Wine Bar
Gyms/Fitness Centers
Aspen Crossfit
Aspen Gymnastics
Aspen Meadows
Aspen Recreation Center
Full Circle
Ice Garden
O2 Aspen
Red Brick
Snowmass Recreation Center
Vimana Yoga
Personal Services
Alux Spalon
Full Circle Salon
Indoor Event Venues
Aspen Meadows Resort:
1. Walter Isaacson Center
– Davis Commons Restaurant
– Albright Pavilion
– Bernhard Room
2. Doerr-Hosier Center
– McNulty Room
– Kaufman Room
– Catto Board Room
3. Koch Seminar Building
– Booz Allen Seminar Room
– Lauder Seminar Room
– Stranahan Seminar Room
4. Paepcke Building
– Paepcke Auditorium
– Paepcke Library
– Paepcke Gallery
Hotel Jerome:
– Grand Ballroom
– Antler Bar
– Aspen Times room
– Dunaway room
– Bad Harriet
St. Regis:
– Monarch Hall
– Grand Astor Ballroom
– Maroon Bells
– Capitol Room
– Pyramid Room
– Boardroom
The Little Nell:
– The Sundeck
– Aspen Mountain Club
– Wine Bar
– The Gallery
– Grand Salon
– The Boardroom
The W:
– 39 Degrees
– Strategy Meeting Room
– The Living Room
Resources for Businesses
CDPHE 5 Star Framework
Regular Sanitation and Cleaning Resources
CDPHE Worker & Customer Protection Guidelines for Non-Healthcare Industries
Employee Symptom and Exposure Check Resources
Outbreak Detection, Reporting and Response Resource
Ventilation Improvement Resources
CDPHE guidance of sufficient ventilation
Exposure Notification Service Promotion Resources
COVID-19 Exposure Notification App
Toolkit (e.g. graphics, videos, flyers)
