The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Get your applications now
by Mark Reaman
The town of Crested Butte, in conjunction with Bywater Development LLC, is preparing to break ground on a $7 million Paradise Park affordable housing project in about two months. While the first shovel of dirt is slated to be turned on block 76 by Rainbow Park on June 1, the lottery to select those interested in purchasing one of the first 15 deed-restricted units is set for June 20.
Applications for the lottery are now available on the Gunnison Valley Regional Housing Authority website (gvrha.org). Applications are due in by May 17.
“It takes some time to ensure those in the lottery are qualified buyers for the properties,” said Crested Butte community development director Michael Yerman. “Please do not wait until the last minute to complete and turn them in. If there are details missing you may have to provide more information to have them fixed before your application is deemed complete before the deadline.”
There will actually be 17 units constructed in the first phase of the project but the town of Crested Butte has dibs on two units, to be used as employee rentals. The town will purchase the duplex for $600,000. Yerman said the other 15 units would be offered for ownership to qualified buyers. Six of the units will go to persons making below 120 percent of the Annual Median Income. The rest will go to people making up to 200 percent of AMI, or about $124,600 for a three-person household. Depending on income and the number of bedrooms, prices will range between $197,769 and $397,877.
“Phase 1 units will be move-in-ready for applicants starting December 1, 2019 to May 1, 2020,” explained Yerman. “Depending on the level of interest, a second lottery for an additional 10 units will be held. The Phase 2 lottery would take place on August 8.
The total vertical construction costs for the project are $6 million. According to Yerman, the town is assisting with an additional $900,000 to subsidize the project by paying for water and sewer taps, offsetting fire suppression sprinkler costs, surveying and title work, and the installation of a water main. The purchase of the town duplex as a pre-sold unit brings the total town contribution to $1.5 million.
Anyone interested in applying for affordable housing is encouraged to take the town housing survey by going to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/block76.
