Council split over initial funding of rental project

Council takes leap of faith…

On a split 4-3 vote, the Crested Butte Town Council awarded $65,000 to the Gunnison Valley Housing Authority’s proposed 30-unit affordable housing project that would be located at Sixth and Belleview.

While all the council members said they thought the proposal was an exciting idea, the three “no” votes of John Wirsing, Shaun Matusewicz and Roland Mason indicated they felt rushed into making a decision on a major project that would cost the town money and, given its size, have a major impact on the entrance to town.
One of the project’s developers, Bill Coburn, reiterated that the site was favorable given the building size that would likely be in the 21,000-square-foot range. The three-story building would accommodate 24 one-bedroom apartments and six two-bedroom units. It would service workers on the low end of the income scale and carry a minimum one-year lease.
Former Board of Zoning and Architectural Review (BOZAR) chairman and Councilman Glenn Michel made it clear that just because the council was willing to contribute the initial $65,000 in pre-development costs didn’t mean he or the council would vote for the project if certain issues weren’t solved in the BOZAR process. “Parking and snow storage is a real concern,” he said.
“Allocating this money doesn’t mean we automatically will say yes. There are still a lot of questions about things like zoning.”
“We understand all that,” said GVHA executive director Karl Fulmer. “We want to meet the desires of the town and the BOZAR.”
Under the proposal, two lots currently zoned as business would have to be re-zoned to T-zone parcels. Some of the rules that go with a T-zone project would have to be adjusted.
“I’m really concerned about snow storage, parking and toy storage,” added Councilperson Jim Schmidt. “The lot is tight. It looks like you have six pounds of flour and you’re trying to get it into a five-pound bag. These are big issues. As it goes through BOZAR, I hope they take a serious look at it.”
“Those issues are more the purview of BOZAR than the council,” said Mayor Aaron Huckstep.
“I’m willing to move forward but we need to be realistic about this,” said Schmidt.
“The concept of all this is awesome,” said Wirsing. “But the reality we’ve seen is struggling. It’s frustrating that we haven’t really had time to get feedback on  this. There are some major obstacles here. It is hard to commit to something so challenging. Knowing that it’s affordable housing, I don’t want to see a big pig of a modular project right when people come into town. We’re rolling the dice here. I wish it had gone to the town’s affordable housing subcommittee or through a preliminary BOZAR review so we could have had time to talk about this in more detail.”
“We went to the town staff and we’ve spent a lot of time on the project,” responded Fulmer. “There’s been considerable time and money invested so far. I understand your concerns and we are supportive of the town’s design-review process. But to add the time and money needed to go through that first? No developer would probably do that.”
“We’re the biggest stakeholder and we’ve gotten minimal information on this. I’m a little insulted you presented the project to Mt. Crested Butte and the county before us. That makes me a little uncomfortable since it will be located here,” said Wirsing.
“This could well be the first time a collaborative effort to this extent on a project like this might take place,” said Huckstep.
Matusewicz asked several questions of the developers. “It is okay to take the time to ask hard questions,” he told Coburn and Fulmer. “Is it normal for a town to put in pre-development funds?”
“It’s not typical but it happens, more often in expensive resort communities,” answered Fulmer.
“Are we signaling BOZAR that we support the project with this contribution?” Matusewicz asked. “Will they look the other way on some important issues that come up? That’s a concern of mine. How are we between the legislative and quasi-judicial aspects of our duties here? Do we have legal issues?”
“I’m not sure there are really legal issues but it is definitely awkward,” replied town attorney John Belkin. “You’re giving money up front and you obviously want to protect that money.”
“You are weighing the risk right now,” added town manager Todd Crossett. “You have an issue with unique circumstances. It’s not a perfect situation.”
“If we had had some time or given it to the town housing committee, we could have solved some of these issues,” said Wirsing. “We shouldn’t wait until the last minute.”
“With what you said was a one-in-four chance of getting the funding on the first try, why is there no upfront money from the three entities that will get some pre-development funds?” asked Matusewicz.
Fulmer explained that all the participating entities were putting in time, money or experience.
Councilperson David Owen, who is also chairman of the housing authority, supported the project. “I’ve been an affordable housing advocate since the day I moved to town. All the needs assessment surveys ever done scream that this type of project is needed,” he said. “This segment is just not being met. This is a risk assessment. Is this the right team? I’ve been impressed with the level of expertise this team has brought to the project. I feel confident this is the right team. I feel strongly the gamble is worth it and we can leverage a huge amount of federal funds to get needed housing up here. $65,000 is a good gamble to take on the potential return.”
“To me, it’s kind of early to make a decision even on the $65,000,” said Mason. “We’ve had no input from the public. We’re putting a really big building over there and we had a room full of people voicing concern about a similarly large building with the proposed art center expansion. Putting up that initial money sends a signal that we’re behind the project. I’d like more public feedback and feedback from the neighbors. I feel like there’s been so little information given to the council. I’m uneasy that with the town money on the table, we’re influencing BOZAR.”
“Having spent time on the board, let me assure you that BOZAR is quite comfortable saying ‘no’ to people,” said Michel. “They are professionals. They aren’t politicians. They will do their job.”
“There is a time sensitive element to the project,” said Coburn. “Delaying it a month could be significant.”
“I think the project could be really good,’ said Mason. “I just want to have time to digest it all before we get a building sitting on that lot over there. I just want time for some more input from people. I’d rather wait two weeks until the next meeting.”
County commissioner Paula Swenson advocated for the project. The county, she said, was pledging $250,000 toward the proposal. “This $65,000 is really answering the question of whether the council wants to join as a partner with all these other entities,” she said. “This point isn’t about details like what it will look like. It’s whether or not you are willing to commit to a private-public partnership for what could be one of the best projects we’ll ever see. Are you willing to take the leap of faith? We’ve been talking about this type of project for 20 years. This type of rental project is part of a viable infrastructure for a community.”
“There might be a whole lot more support if we waited a meeting to get more input,” suggested Wirsing. “We could use more feedback from the community.”
Michel moved to approve the $65,000 request. He, along with Schmidt, Owen and Huckstep voted yes while Matusewicz, Wirsing and Mason voted no.
Coburn said he hoped to have the first of dozens of meetings with BOZAR by October 4.