The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Pending final inspection, opens this week
By Alissa Johnson
A pump station failure in Prospect subdivision played a role in the continued delay opening the new Umbrella Bar at Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR). The failure affected Prospect water pressure to the north of the pump station and fire suppression at Ten Peaks, where the bar is located.
The Umbrella Bar is expected to open this week after final inspections.
The issue came up at a December 15 meeting of the Mt. Crested Butte Town Council where community development director Carlos Velado explained that the largest of four pumps at the station failed in August.
“The town and the fire district were not notified of this issue until about a month ago,” he said. In addition to affecting water pressure in parts of Prospect, it affected fire suppression for the Ten Peaks kitchen and bathroom.
Town staff held a meeting with the Mt. Crested Butte Water & Sanitation District to determine when the pump would be fixed. Velado did not know why it had taken so long to be notified of the situation, but said the pump was getting fixed that week.
Erica Mueller, spokesperson for CBMR, confirmed that the pump had been repaired but the resort was waiting for a flow test and inspection by the fire district as of Monday, December 21.
“We were hoping to get the flow test done Monday, but the fire in town (and their investigation) delayed the fire protection district from coming to test the system,” Mueller said.
She expected the Umbrella Bar to open this week.
According to Frank Glick, district manager for water & sanitation, the situation was discovered over Labor Day. Because the system is custom-designed, a Denver-based firm with the capabilities to assess the situation was brought in, and they weren’t available until the end of the month. In October, an engineering firm was selected and subsequently completed the work in December.
“We are grateful for help from CBMR staff regarding service for the Ten Peaks facility,” he said.
For its part, the Mt. Crested Butte Town Council wants future issues to be reported in a more timely manner.
“If it isn’t in writing, I personally think it should be,” said councilmember David O’Reilly.
Town staff will review the Intergovernmental Agreement with the district and confirm the process.
