The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
By Katherine Nettles
Who’s responsible for CB South roads?
Gunnison County commissioner Laura Puckett Daniels, public works staff and the county attorney’s office have been revising the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the county and CB South on road maintenance. “We had a series of meetings over the course of 2025 to clarity some questions that keep arising from residents in CB South and help the folks in CB South understand where the Metro District responsibilities lie and where the county’s responsibilities lie,” said Puckett Daniels.
Supporting wildlife road crossing legislation
Commissioners approved a letter to Colorado congressman Jeff Hurd, who represents Colorado’s District 3, this month asking for support for the Wildlife Road Crossing Reauthorization Act of 2025. The county’s Sustainable Tourism and Outdoor Recreation (STOR) Committee recently received a $225,000 grant from Great Outdoors Colorado to launch local wildlife crossing plans with Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to reduce collisions between wildlife and vehicles and to improve wildlife connectivity. Commissioner Puckett Daniels commented in an email to the News, “There’s no straightforward state or CDOT process, so we’re just in the initial stages of getting organized and figuring out how to go from here to there.”
Colorado adopts new wildfire code
The state of Colorado has adopted the first-ever wildfire code for the state, called the Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code (CWRC), and all jurisdictions across the state have until April 1 to meet the same standards at a minimum. Gunnison County environmental health official Crystal Lambert explained to the planning commission last month that parts of the new code are stricter than the Gunnison County code. The county has formed a stakeholder group, including the West Region Wildfire Council, Gunnison County Fire Protection District (GCFPD) and some landscape architects to help them work through defensible space ideas and some local materials suppliers.
“One of the benefits of adopting this code versus the Gunnison County Wildlife Urban Interface (WUI) Code is that it’s a little more straightforward for the end-user,” said Hugo Ferchau of the GCFPD.
The commission discussed the differences between the county’s WUI code and the new state standards, and Lambert recommended they adopt the state wildfire code with some additional provisions such as not exempting 35-acre parcels from certain defensible space/building envelope standards.
Commission members agreed unanimously and county commissioners will make the final decision.
