The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Change orders and land transfers
by Mark Reaman
Affordable housing isn’t always cheap. The new Crested Butte affordable housing project in Paradise Park continues to make its way through the Board of Zoning and Architectural Review (BOZAR) and is preparing for a spring start to break ground, but the costs are rising out of the gate. Thus far, 17 units have gone through the BOZAR review process and been approved. Another 10 are still on the docket.
As with most construction projects, there are some changes taking place in the process, with two significant changes to the overall cost with Bywater Development, LLC and the Paradise Park project. The first was an additional $65,000, because BOZAR did not want all Smartside siding on the buildings, so cedar siding and stucco were added to the designs. The addition of fire suppression sprinkler systems will cost an additional $17,500 per unit, or more than a quarter million dollars. The Crested Butte Town Council is looking at reconsidering that requirement.
The Town Council approved an amended contract with Bywater at the February 19 meeting. In part, the new contract allows a duplex instead of a triplex to be built on a lot that had a smaller than expected water service line. Bywater was also refunded the $5,300 design costs for that triplex.
A public hearing will be held Monday, March 4 to consider the official transfer of some of the lots from the town to Bywater Development LLC so Bywater can secure construction financing. A second phase of lot transfers will occur after the lottery is held for the units in Phase 1.
Council also heard from affordable housing consultant Willa Williford at the February 19 meeting. She sat on the developer selection committee for the project and assured the council that all considerations between Bywater and the other finalists were done on an “apples-to-apples” basis.
If everything goes as planned, the official groundbreaking for the 27-unit project should occur by June 1 but could be earlier if the snow melts.
In an affordable housing project that is nearing completion with High Mountain Concepts, the town made an error with the type of firewall it had in the budget, so an additional fire coating will be needed, resulting in a $43,000 change order. A second major financial hit came in at the start of the construction process after some additional soil work was needed for some of the lots. The foundations required some soil replacement. Overall, $76,883 in change orders has been approved for that six-unit project, which includes a duplex for the Gunnison School District and should be ready this summer.
