The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Large $10M facility should be done in late 2027
[ By Mark Reaman ]Construction of a new, nearly 10,000-square-foot library should get underway this month with an official groundbreaking taking place sometime in June. Gunnison County issued a building permit for the project on May 4.
Gunnison County Library District executive director Drew Brookhart said the expectation is to open the library in late 2027. He explained that under the county’s process, the project was okayed by the planning commission after the statutory 30-day deadline for their review expired on March 6. He said the planning commission approval could have been appealed to the Gunnison County Board of Adjustment by any party with standing, but no appeal was made and so approval was solidified at the end of March. “The first stages of work will include earthwork, in-ground utilities and concrete,” he said. “The building will start to go vertical later this summer.”
Located on a more than one-acre lot at 100 Glacier Street in Crested Butte South, Brookhart said the new facility furthers the strategic goal to provide the best possible public library services within the financial resources of the Library District. “The new library will complete a vision to provide three unique public library experiences: The Old Rock Community Library, the Gunnison County Public Library and a new modern public library in the North Valley.”
In a press release issued by the county library board, it was noted that the facility will provide the community with indoor and outdoor amenities, free public meeting rooms, event spaces, an active children’s library, teen space and a community workshop. The library will be heated and cooled by a ground source geothermal system. The bore holes for the system are already in place.
During the review process, Brookhart said that Gunnison County, the Crested Butte Fire Protection District and the State of Colorado Fire Inspector all have a responsibility to review the design for issues impacting life, health and safety.
“The driveway access permit issued by Gunnison County Public Works requires the south entrance to the library parking lot to be a one-way entrance,” said Brookhart. “The Fire Department required us to move electrical meters to locations that are protected from falling snow or ice. Overall, our design team did a fantastic job of delivering a design that will be safe for library users and the community.”
As the project was moving from the design phase to the permitting stage, there were some tensions between the library district and the Crested Butte South Property Owner’s Association. The POA contended the library was not following some of the regulations of the POA, particularly when it came to the proposed eight units of employee housing on the library site. The library board does not have funding for the housing units and that element of the plan is not part of the building permit. There is no timeline for the housing portion of the project moving forward.
The library board has contended the POA made a threat to take the library district to court, so it proceeded with the county permitting process. Brookhart said now that the building permit has been issued, the library has sent a letter through its attorney to the POA asking to sit down with them.
“The Library District has formally reached out to the POA to address their threat of litigation and hear their concerns about the project,” he said. “A meeting date has not yet been set. We look forward to the opportunity to discuss the project with them now that we have completed the building permit process with Gunnison County.
“As evidenced by the issuance of a building permit, the library is in compliance with all of the applicable rules that govern the project,” Brookhart continued. “The project is also compliant with all of the POA’s covenants and the Special Area Regulations as we understand them.”
Crested Butte South POA manager Derek Harwell said their attorney received the letter from the library’s attorney this week and they are analyzing it. While he said most of the issues with the project were tied to the rental units, the POA covenants require that before any building is started on a property, an application and formal review for any building project must go before the CB South Design Review Committee. That has not yet happened. Given that, POA officials are discussing how to move forward.
Brookhart said one of the “unsung successes” of the project’s design was a drainage study of a 100-year storm event. He said the resultant civil design will solve a multitude of drainage issues for the entire commercial area of Crested Butte South. “The Library District is excited to deliver a more than $10 million-dollar public investment to the community.”
Funding for the new library’s construction is made possible by existing Library District savings and from a December 2025 sale of Certificates of Participation. A groundbreaking celebration will be announced in June.
