Report shows housing issues impacting jobs and community

A lot more work needs to be done

By Mark Reaman

The consultants who put together the Gunnison Valley Housing Needs Assessment report told a small gathering of about 30 people Tuesday that now is the time to act to put a dent in the local housing shortage.

The report from Rees Consulting, Inc. estimated there is a need for 960 more housing units throughout the valley to completely address the current and expected need between now and 2020.

Lead consultant Melanie Rees told the group at the Crested Butte Center for the Arts there are several things that can be done but “the key findings are probably not a surprise to anyone.”

Rees said there is an extremely low vacancy rate throughout the valley and rents are rising; there is an increase in the number of second homes in the valley; there is a decrease in local home ownership; there is an aging population; and housing costs are rising rapidly relative to incomes.

“As part of all this, when we interviewed employers, we determined that in August, there were about 360 unfilled jobs in the Gunnison Valley,” Rees said. “This is a very connected valley, economically. What happens in one end of the valley impacts the other end. The problems are widespread throughout the entire valley.”

Consultant Willa Williford went over the details of the report. A majority of people surveyed responded that, no matter their income level, housing is a major issue in the county. Williford said about a third of the people owning or renting in the valley are paying more than 30 percent of their income for housing, and that figure is rising.

The valley’s Area Median Income (AMI) is $55,000, which would allow for a comfortable housing purchase price of about $216,000. That’s well under the median prices of housing in the valley, which range from $912,000 in the north end to $499,000 in the mid-valley area of Crested Butte South and Almont, to $398,000 for the south end of the valley.

“People are having a hard time just finding any housing,” Williford said, “and a third of the inventory out there was described as fair or poor. The biggest issue appears to be that units need to be more energy-efficient.”

Williford said the south end of the valley acts as a bit of a bedroom community for the jobs in the north end of the valley, “but the trend is that after a while people look for jobs closer to where they live so they don’t have to keep commuting.”

It’s not all bad news, though. Williford said there has been some success addressing housing in the area. “There are 443 deed-restricted units in the valley and that is tremendous. Anthracite Place is an amazing example of regional collaboration and that makes the project successful but complex.”

The last of the 30 units in Anthracite Place is anticipated to be filled within the week.

“Anthracite Place only serves a segment of the rental market so we figured it would take about four months to lease up and that’s about on target,” added Rees.

Rees reviewed statistics showing that 335 additional housing units are needed immediately just to catch up with job demand between Gunnison and Mt. Crested Butte. Given growth in the valley, an estimated 625 additional units will be needed in the next four years.

“The free market is likely to step in and serve about 540 units, so the housing gap of 420 probably needs some public assistance,” Rees explained. That should provide a tighter 5 percent vacancy rate that would help keep rents down.

“People want to live in the north end of the valley and that’s where the jobs are,” Rees continued. “Communities are finding out that in many respects, it is cheaper to build housing near jobs instead of continuing to subsidize commuter programs.”

Specific recommendations from the consultants included trying to develop housing that put rents at about $1,000 per month, and house prices between $450,000 in the north valley and $170,000 in the south valley.

“You all should continue regional collaboration effort,” Rees said. “You should increase the diversity of inventory, develop a master plan and prioritize possible land use, and engage in ongoing monitoring of the situation so you don’t lose deed restrictions like has happened here in the past during economic downturns.”

Rees said waiting to develop more affordable housing only extends the problem. “There are several parcels near Gunnison that can be used. There is a parcel at the entrance to Brush Creek Road that has been talked about as a place for workforce housing for years. We don’t understand what you are waiting for. It only gets harder and more expensive,” she said.

The final recommendations included development of a detailed strategic plan; establishing compatibility between various programs and deed restrictions across the valley; hiring more people to work on the issue; proceeding with new housing projects immediately and keeping a constant pipeline of projects moving; finding the money via new taxes or fees to make it happen; and encouraging private development projects through incentives and a review of regulations that might be prohibiting private projects.

Rees said the report—the fourth such study in the valley since 1992—produced a ton of data. She said compared to other mountain communities, “The trends you are seeing here are very similar. Crested Butte tends to lag behind. Things happen slower here but they happen.”