Langmaid named Vail mayor; Coggin mayor pro tem

The town of Vail on Tuesday issued the following press release on Kim Langmaid being named Vail mayor and Travis Coggin being named mayor pro tem:

Kim Langmaid and Travis Coggin will serve as mayor and mayor pro tem, respectively, for the next two years following an organizational meeting of the Vail Town Council. The two were unanimously elected by their colleagues following a swearing-in ceremony of the incoming Town Council members on Dec. 7 which seated newcomers Pete Seibert, Barry Davis and Jonathan Staufer, as well as Coggin who was re-elected. They are joined on the Town Council by current members Kevin Foley and Jen Mason.

Langmaid is in the middle of her second Town Council term after being elected to her first four-year term in 2015 and again in 2017. She has served as mayor pro tem for the past two years and steps into the mayor’s post effective Dec. 7 until the next Town Council election in 2023 in which her seat will be vacated due to term limits. 

“It’s an honor to serve with my fellow Town Council members, the Town of Vail team and the citizens of our great community,” she said. “I look forward to continuing a strong tradition of town leadership and building on the momentum becoming the premier mountain resort community in the world. The town has incredible and important opportunities ahead and I’m excited to play a role ensuring the success of our shared future.”

A third-generation resident, Langmaid’s parents and grandparents were among Vail’s early entrepreneurs with the longtime operation of their ski shops on Bridge Street and in Lionshead.

Langmaid is an active founding member of the Climate Action Collaborative for the Eagle County Community, the Eagle County Community Wildlife Roundtable, and the National Forest Foundation and Vail Resorts’ Eagle Valley Ski Conservation Fund Advisory Committee. She was part of the team that created the Mountain IDEAL Standard for Sustainable Destinations that led to Vail becoming the first certified sustainable destination in the United States in December of 2017. She is a trainer for the Global Sustainable Tourism Council.

Langmaid holds a B.S. in Biology from Colorado State University, an M.A. in Environmental Studies from Prescott College in Arizona, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Studies from Antioch University New England.

While growing up in Vail, Langmaid became inspired by the natural surroundings and the dreams of Vail’s founders to build a world class resort. That passion for Vail and its future led her to create the Gore Range Natural Science School in 1998 that has since evolved into the Walking Mountains Science Center. She currently serves on the Center’s board of directors. She began her career at the Vail Nature Center where she became Director and Outdoor Division Supervisor for the Vail Recreation District. She served on the Environment Committees of the 1999 and 2015 Vail/Beaver Creek FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. She is currently an Associate Professor of Sustainability Studies at Colorado Mountain College.

As a community leader on the Vail Town Council, Langmaid is following in the footsteps of her grandfather, Joe, who was elected to Vail’s first Town Council in 1966. She is the second woman to hold the mayoral position, following Peggy Osterfoss who served from 1991 to 1995.

Langmaid and her husband Peter Casabonne are avid outdoor enthusiasts and enjoy skiing, biking, hiking and observing the wildlife and natural wonders of the mountains around Vail.

Travis Coggin won re-election to his second four-year term in November 2021. He steps into the mayor pro tem role effective Dec. 7 and will serve in that capacity until the next Town Council election in 2023. His term on Town Council continues to 2025.

“I’m excited to join this new council and continue to expand the world class community that Vail has become through the decades of thoughtful growth and citizen involvement,” said Coggin.

While on Town Council, Coggin has focused on strengthening the Vail community by supporting the acquisition and development of deed restricted homes for locals, supporting local schools and small businesses. In 2019 he championed the idea of a new community focused event, the Vail Social. The annual community event hosts 600+ community members from throughout the valley for a potluck dinner in downtown Vail.

Coggin has served on multiple community boards including the Vail Economic Advisory Council, Eagle County Regional Transit Authority (alternate member), Bravo! Vail, the Vail Local Housing Authority Subcommittee, as well as the Vail Community Relief Fund where he worked to direct the $500,000 of Town Council allocated relief funds to support the community’s medical and behavioral health, housing and food relief needs.

Coggin grew up in Vail, graduating from Vail Mountain School in 1998. He attended the University of Colorado at Boulder where he received an undergraduate degree in International Affairs and Political Science as well as an MBA with an emphasis on Real Estate and Finance.

Professionally, Coggin is involved with real estate planning, brokerage, investment, development, and construction both locally and nationally. He is a part-time member of the Vail Ski Patrol and an active volunteer throughout the community. He is a former member of the Vail Valley Young Professionals Association and served as the organization’s president from 2014-2017. Outside of work, Coggin can be found exploring the Vail Valley on hikes, bike rides and backcountry skiing.

Prior to today’s leadership elections, Dave Chapin had served as Vail mayor since 2015. He became term-limited in November. 

The Town Council meets the first and third Tuesdays of each month. Agendas are posted on the town’s website. Follow the Town Council on Twitter @VailTownCouncil and Town of Vail Facebook for meeting updates.Click here for more information