The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Not a lot of public comment in the public comment phase
[ By Mark Reaman ]
With little public discussion at two public hearings on Monday, March 1 the Crested Butte town council approved a Planned Unit Development (PUD) for a cottage-hotel development at Fifth and Whiterock and a so-called Carrier Neutral Location (CNL) lease to house technical equipment at the marshal’s office building that will facilitate broadband expansion in the North Valley.
The PUD application was approved 6-1 with councilman Will Dujardin voting against the Academy Place lodging proposal. That proposal basically will allow eight buildings on the old Crested Butte Academy lot. Twelve privately owned, condominiumized rental units will be built and rented like hotel rooms. The plan includes two deed-restricted housing units and public open space. Instead of 29 parking spaces there will be 28 and that concerned councilwoman Mallika Magner. But staff felt losing one parking space to gain affordable housing units and retain four mature evergreen trees on the property was worth the trade-off. Staff didn’t feel it necessary to make the adjoining alley one-way since they did not anticipate a significant increase in traffic use.
The only public comment came from Kent Cowherd who said the proposal was a good project for the town.
Dujardin voiced a desire to see more permanent affordable housing utilized on the site now and potentially in the future.
Council voted 6-1 to approve the PUD. As part of the project the section of the lot that runs along Sixth Street will no longer be used for public parking but instead will be used to stage the construction project.
As for the approval that will allow for the installation of a Carrier Neutral Location at the marshal’s office that will be operated by Region 10, the move will make inexpensive tap-ins available to local Internet service providers. That will basically allow them to use the so-called middle mile Internet access and ultimately provide better, faster and cheaper Internet service to the North Valley.
That project has been in the works for many years and with the help of several grants should come to fruition in 2022. The project includes a new 40-foot tower on the site that will accommodate several antennas and the project must go the Board of Zoning and Architectural Review (BOZAR) process.
No member of the public made a comment on the CNL proposal and the council approved the lease agreement with Region 10 by a vote of 7-0.
