The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
New entrance coming next spring
The south entrance to Riverland Industrial Park will remain open this winter, while the state awaits an application for a new entrance from the Riverland Lot Owners Association and a nearby landowner. Once construction begins on a new entrance next spring, the existing entrance will be closed and landscaped.
Riverland is a commercial subdivision about two miles south of Crested Butte that is home to more than a dozen businesses—and a few residential properties.
The Colorado Department of Transportation is considering closing the south entrance to Riverland due to a dangerous cross-highway access issue, created by the close alignment of Riverland’s south entrance on the west side of Highway 135 and the entrance to the Lacy family’s property on the east side. CDOT’s main fear is the problem that could arise when a southbound vehicle attempts to cross the highway to the Lacy property, while a northbound vehicle attempts to enter Riverland. In that situation traffic can get backed up in both directions, essentially blocking both entrances.
Furthermore, according to CDOT, a south entrance to Riverland was never legally approved. The entrance technically belongs to local rancher John Rozman and United Gravel. CDOT informed Riverland and Rozman last fall that the entrance would be closed unless a solution was devised.
In May of this year representatives from CDOT, the Riverland Association and Gunnison County, Rozman and other nearby landowners met at the site to figure out what should be done.
CDOT had originally anticipated closing the south entrance this fall, but after being informed that the Riverland Association was working with Rozman to create a new entrance, the state agency has apparently decided to allow the existing entrance a little more time.
Riverland Lot Owners Association manager Danny D’Aquila says the board approved spending $100,000 for a new entrance during their July 30 meeting. Earlier this month the association wrote a letter to CDOT saying they were working with Rozman and would turn in an official application soon. “We’re still hoping it will all work out,” D’Aquila says, but he admits there are some unanswered questions with financing the project.
Dan Roussin, CDOT’s Region 3 permit manager, says, “At this point, CDOT hasn’t received a joint application for this use. However, CDOT is pleased that the property owners are working together to come up with a solution.”
Roussin says the south access will still close in the future, but he did not provide any specific date.
Gunnison County Department of Public Works director Marlene Crosby says, “I’m not sure when they [Riverland and Rozman] will do the work, but I think that having a plan buys them some time.”
The existing entrance sits about 200 yards north of the entrance to the Lacy property, while the new entrance will be located directly across from the Lacy’s entrance. The new alignment, coupled with additional acceleration and deceleration lanes, should alleviate CDOT’s safety concerns.
D’Aquila says Rozman will pay for the asphalt and surface work at the main branch of the new intersection, while Riverland has agreed to pay for acceleration and de-acceleration lanes, landscaping along the highway corridor, and any necessary infrastructure such as lights, signs, culverts and guard rails.
D’Aquila says the county and CDOT have both been cooperative with Riverland’s efforts. “They know big projects like this don’t happen overnight. As long as CDOT was under the assumption that we were working on a new entrance they weren’t going to shut us down,” he says.
D’Aquila says the south entrance is very important to Riverland. He says closing the entrance could negatively impact the businesses at the south end of the industrial park, as well as put excessive traffic through the north entrance. D’Aquila says big trucks also have better visibility when using the south entrance.
But one issue Riverland still must deal with is finding asphalt with the lowest cost. For the new acceleration and deceleration lanes, D’Aquila says the subdivision is hoping that CDOT will allow the use of asphalt that doesn’t have lime, a strengthening agent, added in the mixture. He says using asphalt without lime could save $40,000 on the project.
Crosby says the county is supporting Riverland in that request. The county was allowed to use asphalt without lime on the re-alignment of the Ohio Creek intersection.
“That’s like a make or break deal, but it should work out. It’s just an acceleration and deceleration lane. The county supports it, but the state has to give us the go-ahead,” D’Aquila says.
D’Aquila says Riverland sent a request to CDOT in mid-September asking about the asphalt mix. He says once they hear back on the asphalt issue, the Riverland Association and Rozman will send CDOT a permit application for the new access.
