County approves CS Irwin site expansion above Lake Irwin

Town likely to follow closely behind

CS Irwin Backcountry Guides has received final county approval to build a 1,854-square-foot maintenance barn and enlarge its existing fuel dispensary on its property above Lake Irwin. The Gunnison County Planning Commission approved the second half of a bifurcated application on Friday, August 5.

The backcountry guiding company’s original application also included a 6,554-square-foot parking barn, which received county approval on July 15. All that remains is a decision from the town of Crested Butte watershed district.
 As requested at a July 15 public hearing, the maintenance barn application approved on Friday included a written description of landscaping plans for the building. Planning Commission chair Ramon Reed made the request in response to community concerns that the building would be visible from Lake Irwin and the campground.
“They did submit a plan. It’s pretty minimal, but it’s the kind of thing where we have to trust them to do what’s nice with the layout out there. It’s hard to put specifics on that kind of thing ahead of time,” Reed said. “Of course, the main thing we were concerned about is they have to get final approval from the town on the watershed ordinance.”
According to public works director Rodney Due, the town will continue to accept public comments on the whole application—the maintenance barn, the parking barn and the fuel dispensary enlargement—until Friday, August 12. So far, comments have only been received from the Coal Creek Watershed Coalition, and according to Due their suggestions were in line with conditions already under consideration by the town.
“Having a monitoring well, a natural leach field, to have an inspection criteria twice a year—that kind of thing. Nothing we haven’t heard or weren’t planning to do, so I don’t see any roadblocks,” Due said.
Comments received by August 12 will be shared with independent consultant Lane Wyatt, hired to help the town implement the watershed protection ordinance, for inclusion in the town’s written findings. Final timing and approval will depend in part on the nature of any additional comments received from the public, but Due expects the staff report as early as Monday, August 15.
According to CS Irwin director of mountain operations Alan Bernholtz, once final approvals are received all systems are go.
“We know it’s going to be tight but we feel it’s a necessary thing. We’ll start building and finish when we’re done. Hopefully, we won’t get snowed on too much,” Bernholtz said.