Hoping to fund the Gunnison Valley Promise

[ By Katherine Nettles ]

Western Colorado University is working to provide free tuition to local high school graduates in the near future, and has begun looking in earnest for both public and private funding to make it happen sooner rather than later. The initiative, called the Gunnison Valley Promise, aims to make a Western degree more attainable to people graduating from high school within the Gunnison Valley where one of the highest costs of living in the U.S. intersects with one of the lowest median incomes. The concept has the support of the Gunnison Watershed School District (GWSD) and the Community Foundation, and Gunnison Valley Promise hopes to combine public and private funding to get the program up and running.

Gunnison Valley Promise would provide free tuition for four years to all full-time students who graduate from GWSD, regardless of financial qualifications. The university’s vice president/chief financial officer Julie Baca sat down with the Crested Butte News recently to discuss the concept and why the goal for free tuition has come forward.

“It’s brutal,” says Baca of the average college expenses. She notes that because of room and board costs, many students choose to stay at home with their families, and free tuition would make WCU an even more affordable choice for local students who have that option to live at home. She said it isn’t just for the lowest income group, either.

“There’s that missing middle, too,” she said of the middle income earning families who don’t have as much access to financial aid but still can’t afford a university education.

Baca shared a WCU report showing that the average GWSD graduating class is 155 students, and 60 percent of local grads are four-year college-bound, which is lower than the national average. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national rate of college enrollment was 62.7 percent in 2020, down from 66.2 percent the prior year.

The theory is that providing free tuition to local students would get more of them to pursue a university education and lead to greater pathways for them in the future. The idea started as part of the One Valley Prosperity Project’s economic sustainability goals and initiatives several years ago, and was recently reintroduced as the One Valley Leadership Council discussed ways to sustain long-term economic prosperity in the valley.

“The Gunnison Valley Promise will break the chains of generational poverty, give our valley youth permission to dream and the tools needed to fulfill that dream,” says Baca.

Baca believes this program could give locals who are struggling with the housing and high cost of living more of an edge. It could also benefit the industries trying to recruit new employees or retain the ones they have.

Western has an average of 19 new students enroll each year from a high school in the GWSD and aims to increase that number to 30. In order to provide free tuition, Gunnison Valley Promise set a fundraising target of $7.5 million to begin the program, which would come from public and private funding.

WCU tuition for in-state students is $6,816 for 2022, and last year local students received $4,078 in aid on average. WCU has estimated that it would need to provide an additional $2,500 per student beyond the current average tuition aid package for local students, or $75,000 per year of new enrollees. That number would increase annually to an estimated $300,000 when the program reached its fourth year and potentially began sustaining around 120 local students.

Western is approaching local governments for buy-in and has work sessions scheduled with Crested Butte town council on August 3 and August 17 in Mt. CB.

The goal is to partner with the city of Gunnison, towns of Crested Butte, Mt. Crested Butte and Gunnison County as well as other local anchor businesses to establish funding momentum that will serve to inspire the local community to support this effort.

“The Gunnison Valley Promise goes far beyond rewarding our local students; it is truly a community-building vision that strengthens the valley by enabling our kids to become leaders and creators of our collective future,” wrote Leslie Nichols, GWSD superintendent in support of the concept.

Baca echoed this sentiment. “We have so many awesome people in the community that I think are going to get excited and, I think if the local governments step up, they will have a transformational impact.”

Shredding the Stigma about mental health: a local snowboarder’s awareness project

[ By Victoria R. Jarosh ]

If you didn’t know, a crescent peaked giant lounges beside our tiny town. She offers a sense of place to locals here. Wherever you pause for a moment, she catches your eye commandeering your attention for however long you allow it; the snow clinging to her slopes and a chorus of mountains sprawling from her. At this moment, you might ask yourself, how can I stand to feel sad in such a beautiful place? News flash: paradise is a permeable concept in the real world.

The “Neverland effect” in towns like Crested Butte has been around since the 1950s, as coal mining or other extractive economies were replaced by a tourist one. This fantasized atmosphere offered a sense of western freedom and adventure. Slowly the hooligans trickled in; the population in 1987 was around 500 people, planning wild events like chainless bike races down mountain passes, pagan fall festivals, dog poop collecting competitions, etc. It definitely gets weird in Crested Butte. Today, the population is more than triple that number, and the party culture prevails on and off the mountain.

Work hard play hard—a live by it and die by it motto that reverbs throughout the community. For many, this fast-paced lifestyle can make paradise feel more like a solitary wilderness.

The Project
Suicide and lack of mental health awareness and resources are affecting the community of Crested Butte. That’s why local snowboarder Maddie McCarthy started her project, MENTAL Madness. The brand name is a homage to ski slang, said when someone drops a cliff, or does a backflip or some other sick stuff that I would never attempt—mental.

For eight years, Maddie had consciously dealt with her mental health—mood swings and sadness for seemingly no reason. She turned to the web, searched for others who shared her experiences, and eventually realized she has bi-polar disorder. Since accepting that she is living with a mental illness, she has found balance through camaraderie, professional help and the right medication.

MENTAL Madness is Maddie’s “baby of a project” that launched on Halloween. Maddie is building a social media presence, using her website as a platform for herself and others to share stories about their mental health journeys. She wants her platform to be a source of information for friends to help friends—like how to respond to a friend showing signs of addiction or expressing suicidal thoughts.

“To reach one person makes it worth it,” says Eggs, a local restaurant manager. Eggs has had more friends and acquaintances take their own lives in this small mountain town than back home in Detroit.

Crested Butte has 273 days of sunshine a year and some of the best recreation in the U.S. There is a lot of pressure to soak up every second of it, and some guilt when you want to stow away inside. With no breaks from work or play, paradise presents habitual patterns. Which usually means having a beer after work, or going on a bike ride and having a beer, or icing your torn ACL and having a beer, “which is not conducive to health,” says Eggs. Legend has it, around here you either tear your ACL or get a DUI—to achieve both is not mythical.
Another long-time resident described an image of ski bums and lawyers alike filling every bar down Elk Avenue before noon. People enable each other here, “you feel like you have to keep up.” One waitress reminisces how every night a server’s first hundred bucks in tips went straight to cocaine. For some people this lifestyle is manageable, but for others, the pressure is overwhelming, driving some people to recluse into their mental illness.

Of course “willy-nilly drug use” is going to drive some people into toxic cycles, says Maddie. She explains other contributions to mental stress such as the expensive lifestyle of ski-towns, expensive housing, the competitiveness of ski-culture. Even the regularity of concussions plays a role because it can cause difficulty in reasoning and processing emotion.

The Crested Butte dream comes with dark corners, but as Eggs says, “out here, there are more good days than bad days.” Some people are good at hiding their personal challenges behind the good times, but it’s time for mental health to become an open and supportive conversation in Crested Butte.

Looking Forward
From Maddie’s developing site: “[MENTAL’s] mission is to INSPIRE snowboarders, skateboarders, skiers, surfers & all other walks of life to seek professional mental health HELP, learn how to SUPPORT your loved ones through dark times, SHARE stories to create SOLIDARITY, ACCEPT that it’s okay to take medication, FIGHT to make mental health care more accessible & affordable, gain skills to build HEALTHIER mind & hold events to SPREAD AWARENESS & SHRED THE STIGMA.”

Mental health is for everyone. Stay tuned for website updates from Maddie and MENTAL Madness: https://www.mental-madness.com

Zoom-based free suicide prevention training December 17.
Thursday, December 17, 5 to 6:15 p.m. RSVP to preventsuicide@gunnisoncountry.org

Other local peer resources
Gunnison Valley Health (GVH) partners with The Center for Mental Health (CMH) has gathered certified peer support specialists that have overcome a mental health condition and mentor individuals who struggle with mental health, psychological trauma or substance abuse.
To schedule an appointment with a Peer Support Specialist:
GVH Peer Specialist—Gunnison: (970) 642-4762
CMH Peer Specialist—Gunnison/Crested Butte: (970) 252-3200

Like four years ago, Colorado woke up Wednesday after Election Day as a square blue island in a sea of red that is the Electoral College map. Crested Butte and the Gunnison Valley appear to be a darker blue bubble on that island and that is okay with me. Tuesday brought a wave of winners and losers as the votes were counted into the night. Let’s look at some of them…

The first loser Tuesday night was pretty much everyone’s nerves as the eastern states shut their polling places and everyone waited for numbers—numbers that would determine the state of the White House over the next four years. It is 2020, after all, and who would be super surprised if Kanye managed to pull it off in this strange year?

Tuesday night at 6 o’clock was sort of like your favorite football team losing by two points and lining up for a game winning 50-yard field goal with no time left on the clock. But as numbers started coming in there was some general relief that this election was finally over. For me, the big question early on was why do the Dems keep doing foolish things like talking about how they’ll end the filibuster and pack the Supreme Court because they’ll win everything including the Senate when aside from their obviously lame polling, there is no indication they’ll take anything besides California?

The best thing early on was the mellowness of Election Day across the country. There was no flurry of videos showing right-wing militias armed to the teeth blocking the doors to voting booths. There was no shouting between left-wing progressives at mainstream conservatives. In Crested Butte, election judges told me that people showing up to vote or drop off ballots were happy, respectful and wearing masks. That is a win.

And Colorado voting in general is a win. It again proved that a safe and open voting process is possible and can work efficiently. The Centennial State has had some experience with mail-in ballots and drop boxes. The process has been refined and most people living here have deep faith that their vote will count and the results are fair and honest. There is no reason not to tabulate ballots received before Tuesday. Other states might want to look around and copy what works in a place that has proven it.

The people with Ds next to their name won pretty big and pretty consistently in Gunnison County, so they got a huge win. In the county commissioner race, Jonathan Houck got 63 percent. Liz Smith tallied 61 percent. Joe Biden pulled in 64 percent. John Hickenlooper got 62 percent. Diane Mitsch Bush trounced Lauren Boebert in this county 63 percent to 34 but lost the district. That 60-plus percentile is a pretty big margin in politics. It can be safely concluded that the county is pretty blue right now.

That local grassroots blue wave sent a pretty strong message to the recently formed GV2H Political Action Committee that actively supported commissioner candidates Trudy Vader and Dave Taylor, along with Senate candidate Cory Gardner. Voters made it clear they don’t like the idea of a second homeowner PAC trying to influence their local elections.

Those heavily involved in the PAC might reconsider their tactics to have their voices heard by refunding the $29K left in their bank account and working with the local politicians and administrators who guide the valley we all claim to love. As was evidenced in the Corner at Brush Creek brawl, second homeowners actually can have a significant place at the table as part of the community in the political process. Ultimately, at least for the short term, they got what they wanted with Brush Creek. Second homeowners actively participated in that local political process and, while not always perfect, their opinions were heard and the process worked.

The tenants of an affordable apartment complex in Gunnison owned by KOA Dave Taylor came out winners in this election. When asked at the Crested Butte News Candidates Forum about broken windows, Taylor said they were the renter’s responsibility but he promised to replace them anyway. Driving by recently, I saw Dave had stuck to his word and new windows were installed this week. That will help keep families warm and heating bills smaller. Good on ‘ya, Dave.

And really, the citizens of Gunnison County are winners. The county clerk and election officials made voting easy for citizens. The citizens in turn decisively chose to elect smart, hard-working and committed neighbors to do the hard work of being a county commissioner. I trust Jonathan Houck and Liz Smith to roll up their sleeves and be pragmatic while figuring out how best to protect our public lands, set a path to build housing for local workers that is more than a simple ghetto for waiters and lift ops, and address how to mitigate the impacts of too much tourism in our backcountry. Congrats and good luck to them.

Nationally, what was expected to happen, happened. Close races in so-called swing states resulted in meticulous vote counting that stretched well beyond Tuesday. It is honestly the way it should work with every ballot getting a fair count. And if that fair count ends up with Donald winning a fair race, then it is what it is and it sends a message about our American culture and values. My friends who are Trump supporters say not to listen to his words but watch what he does. But for me as a writer, words matter. So I would expect more divisiveness, more Black versus White, more rich versus poor, less environmental regulation, less decision making based in science, less working together with political foes for the benefit of the greater country.

Frankly, if Joe pulls it off, he will get to deal with the hyper-partisan Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell. Mitch will no doubt waste little time before throwing rocks and barricades every time Joe tries to do something. That would be a torturous four years for Joe. McConnell has shown he would just as soon work to make the rich richer, have corporations set the national guideposts, allow only judges with his antique view to get a hearing, and work to have only members of his political party count as real citizens. And of course he can and will blame Joe for not making it better for everyone.

Here in Crested Butte and the Gunnison Valley, we live on the island of blue in a sea of red. We are fortunate that here, most of us believe in science, have respect for people of different backgrounds, have compassion to help those who need it and can trust the results of our elections. Who the heck knows what the next several years will be like in this country. But it is at least good to be on the island.

—Mark Reaman

Surprise sales tax revenues help with financial confidence

[ By Mark Reaman ]

Crested Butte’s 2021 budget projections are looking better than anyone would have expected just a few months ago. Town staff and council are putting the finishing touches on the document and despite a pandemic that in the worst case scenario was expected to cut 2020 sales tax revenue by more than half of the 2019 figure, the numbers are actually expected to top last year’s.

The somewhat surprising sales tax collection is putting the town in a continued excellent financial situation but the staff is remaining conservative, given the unknowns of what to expect with tourism and sales tax this winter. Finance director Rob Zillioux is also consolidating some town reserve funds from different accounts and that will bolster the 2021 general fund reserves to more than $6.2 million—or more than a year’s worth of operating revenue.

“September sales tax collections were up 20 percent over 2019,” Zillioux told the council at a November 2 work session. “That is pretty remarkable when you think back to March and brings us to being just 2 percent off year-to-date. I think October will be pretty strong too, given the weather. I fully expect us to catch up.”

Zillioux’s figures show that in September, grocery sales tax revenue was up 40 percent, retail sales were up 39 percent and lodging was up 25 percent. Even the bars-and-restaurants category was up 10 percent in September.
In a memo to council, Zillioux said the numbers are coming in thanks to people visiting the area longer and even moving here. “It is a reflection of the Zoom Boom and people wanting to be in places with more space,” he said.
The other town fund that is booming is the Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT). A 3 percent RETT is collected with every property sale in town and there is almost $2 million in the fund through October. “There have been 27 properties in town that have sold for more than $1 million. Eight properties this year have gone for more than $2 million and three have topped the $3 million mark this year. Crested Butte free market real estate is now officially only affordable for the wealthy,” Zillioux commented. “And this puts more pressure on housing everywhere in the valley. The flow moves down valley and all prices are going up. It is more and more difficult for a working person to buy a house in this end of the valley.”

As for proposed expenditures in 2021, the budget is calling for an electric-powered police vehicle worth $110,000, the purchase of a unit in Red Lady Estates mobile home park for $105,000, and lots of studies, including a comprehensive “Community Compass” planning process meant to gauge community values and a study on how to maximize housing opportunities in the Slate River annexation. One planner position will be replacing Bob Nevins, who left this year, and an engineer position is being considered as well, but no other personnel is expected to be hired next year. Water and sewer rates will go up $2 each per month due to costs of recent facility improvements in both those areas.

Zillioux explained the town expects that implementing the Climate Action Plan will cost $915,000 but town will pay only a small part of that. He explained that $300,000 will come from grants and $600,000 through a so-called “contingent payment performance contract” where the contractor makes improvements that will save the town money on energy costs and those savings are then used to repay the up-front costs put up by the contractor. “They get the financial benefit we derive from savings and we get a project without big costs up front,” he said. The town is expected to spend about $73,000 in Climate Action Plan expenses.

Looking a little further down the road, the council hopes to have money set aside to purchase more snow storage space if and when something comes available; planning for a new skate park to replace Crank’s Tank will begin in 2021 with construction slated for 2022. Parks and Recreation director Janna Hansen said the current skate park is at the end of its life so a “design-build” is scheduled for 2022. That is expected to cost about $550,000.
Another contributor to the positive revenue flow for Crested Butte is the newly implemented nicotine tax. Zillioux said he expected that source to bring in another $170,000 to the coffers this year.

“Given what we are seeing now, we are confident the 2021 general fund budget will be up another 2 percent,” Zillioux said. “That seems a realistic view of what to expect. Departments are planning for conditions to be more normalized in 2021, although that is still speculative.”

It is election season and you should have your ballots in hand. I’m sure many of you have voted and sent back your choices but others like to wait until the last minute. The important thing is to do it, so please vote in the next couple of weeks. 

Of course it is next year’s election that will bring everyone out. How could it not? My mind already hurts with what to expect in the 2020 election. This coming November, you have a few state issues, some tax increase requests and a Crested Butte Town Council election. All are important, but not in the Donald league.

Yes on 2A

Let’s start with the local desire to raise taxes to address some pertinent issues. There are two that are pretty important this fall. The first is the Mt. Crested Butte request to put a 2.9 percent lodging tax on short-term rentals in town, including hotel room rentals. The revenue would be directed toward workforce housing projects in the area. If passed, the lodging tax is projected to bring in about $950,000 a year for workforce housing projects. That’s real money for a real need.

It seems everyone pretty much understands that it is more and more difficult for workers and middle class families to afford to live up in the north end of the valley, so deed-restricted housing is becoming more and more necessary. This tax that would hit the visitors could have a significant impact on that issue and help keep locals living near the tourist jobs in Mt. Crested Butte and Crested Butte. 

There are several housing projects in the works throughout the valley at the moment and more on the horizon. Having a dedicated revenue source tied directly to the tourism industry that needs nearby workers is a good deal. Adding another $900,000 or $1,000,000 a year to the effort is a good deal. It’s a good deal to find compatible ways to keep workers residing in municipalities like Mt. Crested Butte where there are existing services such as bus routes, water and sewer and the opportunity to have an impactful vote over local issues and representation. 

Hopefully the voters of Mt. Crested Butte step up and vote to pass the proposed lodging tax that will ultimately benefit them and all of us who care about keeping locals in the places where locals work. It will improve the town by supporting depth of community. It might help house the cop or teacher or snowplow driver you need in the future. It would ultimately benefit the tourist experience that people are coming here to enjoy, so the tax is being targeted to the right spot and paid for by the right people. Vote yes for 2A.

Yes on 6A

Libraries that have stored knowledge and records have been around since ancient times. Community libraries are more modern but have been around hundreds of years. In the United States, one of my favorite founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, is usually credited with helping to start the first public circulating library in the nation as the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1731. I am a fan of libraries. Libraries provide opportunity and build up community. 

Some say libraries are outdated. They aren’t, and they actually show how a societal institution can adapt to changing times and remain relevant. I have used the Crested Butte, the Gunnison and the Western State libraries since moving here. Last week, I returned my latest book to the Crested Butte library through its book drop and that book, I Heard You Paint Houses, will be returned to the library in Aspen for someone else to read. What a country.

The Gunnison County Library District is a great example of how libraries have changed over the years. Sure, you have access to more than 30 million titles through a regional book share system and you can get most of the books within four days if they’re not in the facility. But this district offers a number of activities ranging from hosting discussion groups to presenting speakers and even renting telescopes. The district provides certified GED preparation and testing for free to locals in both English and Spanish. The libraries provide food to families and children in need through an established partnership with the Gunnison Country Food Pantry. There are yoga classes and after-school programs and a lot more.

It is rarely not busy in any of the local libraries. There are adults using the computers, kids being read to by their parents and classes studying anything in the world. Libraries provide free access for anyone to get information. And in these days when the truth seems constantly under assault, having a place where someone can go to discover truth is pretty important. It really is one of the best community hubs we have in the valley.

The Library District is asking the community to support that community asset. Currently, the district relies on the county to pay its bills, to the tune of about $910,000 a year. They want a dedicated source of revenue to expand the services at both ends of the valley. That will free up hundreds of thousands of dollars for the county. The county has first committed to facilitating the construction of a new library facility on the Van Tuyl property in Gunnison. County manager Matthew Birnie says the money that currently goes to the library will be redirected to service the debt of building that new facility. 

Libraries are an important element in a strong, vibrant community. This ballot issue will increase property taxes a bit but it will significantly enhance opportunities for everyone in the county. Pull the lever and vote yes for ballot issue 6A. 

No on 2B

The town of Crested Butte is asking its voters to impose a 40% tax on nicotine products sold in town. The purpose according to the town council is two-fold: to raise more revenue for town and to discourage nicotine use, especially by young people. I don’t smoke or use nicotine but one of the longest chairlift rides I took last season was when some young guy was vaping an awful faux-vanilla-flavored smoke up the Silver Queen. If the proposed tax stopped my chairlift partners from being rude, I’d be a big supporter. It is not a tax I will pay since I don’t use the product. And I did understand the concerns brought up by longtime local business owner John Penn of the Tobacconist who felt targeted by the tax and said it could put him out of business in a resort community. The council tried to tone down some of the tax application after listening to John but it will be expensive to buy nicotine products in Crested Butte. 

It is becoming apparent that vaping sucks and kids vaping really sucks. But I don’t think the town action will stop people who use nicotine from spending the money anyway or finding it somewhere else. I disagree with tax increase proposals that don’t explicitly show where the revenues will be spent. This one goes into the town’s general fund and mentions the money will be spent on generic “health services, public safety and other needs as deemed necessary.” That could literally mean anything.  If even part of it went toward specific programs to keep kids from vaping or counseled vapers how to break the addiction, I’d like it a lot more. But it doesn’t. The town isn’t in any dire financial shape but can always find ways to spend the money to benefit the general community or just put it in the bank for a time of need. As it is, I imagine this easy sin tax will pass but I wouldn’t vote for that tax increase in its current form.

Who do you know?

The Crested Butte Town Council election race has seven people basically vying for six seats. Whatever the outcome, the council will be made up of a majority of females. Jim Schmidt is a given to return since he is running unopposed for mayor in what he says is his last term. Deli brings great history and perspective about some of the “whys” the council deals with regularly. Having him at the table is a positive thing for the community.

Just one of the others will not be voted in this November—but as someone mentioned to me last week, considering the history of council moves recently, no one should be surprised if a council appointment is needed soon and whoever doesn’t make it this fall might find themselves part of the magnificent seven relatively quickly.

Practically speaking, the seven candidates are pretty similar with their big picture positions. They all want to do more for affordable and workforce housing. They all want to implement a real Climate Action Plan. They all want to represent the community and try to maintain what they see as the soul and funkiness of a unique Crested Butte. No one is advocating this place move at lightspeed to become Vail. The details differ and how to get to the big picture results take slightly different roads, but all council candidates come across as part of the expected left-leaning, progressive Crested Butte foundation. No real surprise there. 

The previously elected incumbents, Laura Mitchell and Will Dujardin, have worked hard and added effectively to council discussion over the years. They have also taken contrarian views at times on some issues that I appreciate. The appointed incumbents, Candice Bradley and Mallika Magner, have stepped up to seriously take on their representative roles. The outside challengers, Anne Moore and Mona Merrill, have brought some fresh energy and perspective to the discussion. 

There are some differences with parking plans and money spent on marketing. But they are all sitting not only in the same ballpark but in the same section and row of box seats. Who you know and who you feel comfortable talking issues with is probably the determining factor on your best vote for Town Council. Each has different local constituencies they can represent effectively. All are sincere in their passion for the place and that is what is most important. 

Tuesday, November 5 is the last day to cast your ballot, but why wait? Fill it out and send it in by the end of the month so when the county counts them it will be easier for everyone.

—Mark Reaman

Sticking to 156/2/5 could end project

By Mark Reaman

While an official vote was not taken Monday by the Crested Butte Town Council on whether to move off the compromise conditions set with Mt. Crested Butte over the proposed Corner at Brush Creek project, all indications are that the majority of the council is done negotiating.

The council majority appears ready to stand with last week’s Mt. Crested Butte vote to stay with the three conditions of allowing no more than 156 units, requiring two parking spots for each unit and setting aside five acres of the property for a future use.

So unless the project developer, Gatesco, Inc. either agrees with the two towns’ 156/2/5 compromise or can convince the Crested Butte council to move to its latest proposal of 156 units with a 3.5-acre set-aside and 1.65 parking spaces per unit, this particular project could be over.

The Gunnison County commissioners gave Gatesco until October 31 to obtain the formal consent of at least three of the four parties to the Memorandum of Understanding between the county, the two towns and Crested Butte Mountain Resort (the four owners of the land) before allowing Gatesco to submit a preliminary plan application.

Crested Butte Town Council members Will Dujardin and Candice Bradley advocated to continue negotiating with Gatesco, while the rest of the council voiced support to stick with the 156/2/5 numbers. Councilwoman Laura Mitchell was not at the meeting.

Mt. Crested Butte councilman Dwayne Lehnertz attended the October 7 meeting and said his council voted 4-3 to remain on the 156/2/5 compromise since that was agreed to with the town of Crested Butte after five months of discussion. “That was something we all spent a lot of time getting to in good faith,” he said.

Dujardin said he agreed with the tone of a letter from project supporter Jim Starr and said the two sides were so close in numbers that the town should consider more negotiations.

Starr’s letter to the council asked, “Are we really going to pass up or significantly delay 156 units of affordable rental housing and $20,000,000 in private equity for a $40,000,000 project at Brush Creek over a difference in parking of .35 parking spaces per unit, and 1.5 acres of set-aside?”

“A 4-3 vote would suck either way it went,” Dujardin said. “I wholeheartedly stand behind what Jim Starr says. Gatesco is saying that’s it from their end. Now is the time to explore all other options in the next few weeks. Maybe we push for four acres to be set aside to try to get it into the preliminary plan review. If you think 1.65 parking spaces is not enough, maybe we get 1.8.”

“I agree with Dwayne,” countered Crested Butte mayor Jim Schmidt. “What we did with Mt. Crested Butte was a big compromise. It was a long way from the number of units I wanted. I think about Anthracite Place, where the community came together to support that and the county and Mt. Crested Butte and this town all contributed money to it. And again, this project seems so controversial and laden with doubts. I am fine with the numbers we got to.”

“We’re not that far away from making something happen,” said Dujardin.

“I’m not convinced this is the right proposal,” said Schmidt.

“I see no reason to keep revisiting the issue we worked out with Mt. Crested Butte just because they keep asking,” said councilwoman Mallika Magner. “We want a good project. We want a project where the people there will have a good lifestyle, not a place where someone gets home to after working a double and can’t find a place to park.”

“You are making a lot of assumptions, Mallika,” said Dujardin.

“I’m questioning this process,” she replied.

Lehnertz suggested the council review the latest numbers in a revised Housing Needs Assessment that he said proved the Gatesco project misses the mark with what is needed.

Friend of Brush Creek attorney David Leinsdorf said he felt Starr’s letter contained some misstatements and reminded the council that of the 156 units in the proposal, many could charge essentially free market rents, so all 156 units shouldn’t be considered “affordable rental housing.”

Leinsdorf refuted a line in Starr’s letter that stated, “We are experiencing a significant slowing in the generation of sales tax and I can’t help but believe it is caused in part because of the decreasing work force available for our businesses,” by noting that sales tax collections in town were again reported as up over last year by 5.5 percent in August and 2.7 percent for the year.

Leinsdorf also said the parking should be based on number of occupants as opposed to the number of units. He estimated there would be about 400 people living in the 156 units, so 312 parking spaces would not be adequate. “I also urge you to not abandon your ally of Mt. Crested Butte if the north end of the valley wants to have any influence at the county,” he said. “This town initiated the discussion between the two towns and you all worked hard for five months on a compromise.”

Former councilman Kent Cowherd, who had been heavily involved in watching the evolution of the project, also encouraged the town to stand by the 156/2/5 compromise, which he said was fair. “I don’t understand why Gatesco doesn’t fully embrace the three conditions. Then the two councils would support it. All of this friction is unnecessary.”

Dujardin again asked his fellow council members if there was room to compromise in the next couple of weeks, but he didn’t get much support.

Councilman Chris Haver indicated he supported the two towns and didn’t want to negotiate with themselves.

Councilman Paul Merck said he was surprised Gatesco hasn’t agreed to the 156/2/5. “We worked hard for five months to reach this compromise, which was pretty amazing,” he said. “I was surprised we got there. So I think we should stick to it. I feel the compromise is a win for the Gatesco team if it meets those three conditions,”

Bradley disagreed, as she pointed out she was looking for rental housing while no one else on the council was in such a position. “I just have a weird feeling that I’m starving for housing and someone is holding up a loaf of bread and we are saying you can’t have it,” she said. “I think we should work to make something work.”

“I agree with you,” responded Merck. “And I feel we worked a lot to get to the compromise.”

“Is there no way to compromise more?” asked Dujardin. “I feel that compromise was designed to kill the project.”

“I don’t think the compromise was ever meant to kill the project,” retorted Haver.

The only Gatesco representative at the meeting was Jeff Moffett, who didn’t say much other than that the letter sent by Gary Gates to the two councils on October 1 was “designed to provide more thorough explanations” of the Gatesco team’s reasoning for their proposal.

Schmidt noted that there was no requirement to take a formal vote on the issue but that it would be on the agenda at the October 21 council meeting.

Planning Commission to continue PUD discussion August 7

By Kendra Walker

Major alterations have been proposed to the planned unit development (PUD) to expand the Nordic Inn and develop it into a high-end hotel that includes a restaurant, spa and conference area.

The developer, Pearls Management, LLC, submitted an application to the town of Mt. Crested Butte to amend the previous PUD plan that was approved in the fall of 2018. The alteration proposes zoning for a new layout for the hotel building, additional hotel units and underground parking.

Attorney Aaron Huckstep, representing Pearls Management at the Mt. Crested Butte Planning Commission’s July 17 meeting, noted that Pearls “desired to accommodate and address some of the other concerns of the neighbors” from the previous PUD. Gary Hartman, principal at Sunlit Architecture, presented the new proposed plan during the meeting.

Among the alterations, the plan increases the number of rooms in the original PUD, from 120 to 148 units. Nine additional units (4,500 square feet of gross residential floor area) will be required to be deed restricted and included for community housing, such as affordable or employee housing.

The original PUD also consisted of separate hotel structures along with a 140-space surface parking lot. The new plan moves the hotel farther south and proposes a hotel building that crosses the common lot line shared by lots N1-1 and N1-2, with a two-level underground parking garage that will accommodate 220 parking spaces. A portion of the parking will be designated for public parking.

The alterations also propose new heights for the buildings, with 46 feet (six stories) on lot NI-1 and 56 feet (four stories) on NI-2. The building will also include an architectural projection that will extend to a height of 66 feet.

The Mt. Crested Butte community expressed concern about the proposed alterations during public comment of the Planning Commission meeting on July 17. The majority of concerns stemmed from the new building heights and obstruction of surrounding views; parking and traffic overflow; noise; and general expansiveness of the project from the last PUD.

“I think we’re all here with the concern about the impact of quality of life that exists in that area, and I appreciate a lot of the work you’ve done to mitigate the impact of a project of this size,” said Jerry Magnetti, an Evergreen Condo owner. However, he cautioned, “How do you stop the next one? Are we setting a stage for more of these big projects to come in there and squeeze out whatever little open space that we might have?”

Lois Einsiduer, an owner in the Redstone condos, referenced the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) design guidelines, saying, “Each development and building should look and feel like they belong to a particular neighborhood and have a direct relationship to their context… It should express the spirit of Mt. Crested Butte to create quality and consistency of town,” she said. “Does this project fit your DDA standards? This project is architecturally out of place in this community… It’s imposing.”

She continued, “This complex is being inserted in a quiet community, private homes and condominiums. This project will negatively impact the property values of the surrounding community because of noise traffic, density, possibly overflow parking needs and diminished views to property owners. So let’s make sure it’s as minimally impacting as possible.”

In a letter to staff, Bill Eggert, owner of a unit in Evergreen Condos with his wife Elizabeth, wrote, “Our unit—the third floor, northeast corner—is one of the closest units to this project and perhaps most impacted by the construction proposed by Pearls.” He went on to share concerns about a new six-story structure hindering their views, and the closeness of the hotel to their unit negatively impacting their privacy and value of their property. He concluded, “We are strongly opposed to the size and scope of this project and urge the Planning Commission to not approve the expansion and compel Pearls [to] move the project farther away from the Evergreen Condos.”

Sunlit Architecture’s Hartman later clarified some of the confusion around the proposed building heights. “One of the things I misstated on is this elevation is a six-story elevation, and that’s not true because we buried it into the ground,” he said. “The discrepancy that I think is happening between the old and the new is the building used to sit back—it was buried into the hillside because of how far the parking lot was. So when we moved the building forward, our average grade came down in elevation.”

For example, Hartman said, ”It’s six stories off this side where it faces the pool and then we’re two stories buried on the ground.” He clarified, “So it’s not that the roofline got taller or we raised it up. It’s the same height as it was in the original PUD, but because our average grade is based on existing grade, we’re much lower and shallower.”

Lauri Wright, another Redstone condo resident, is concerned about the parking impacts to the surrounding neighborhood, saying, “I’m afraid if people come in with trailers and off-road vehicles and snowmobiles then instead of trying to get down into a covered parking area they may just try to park along the street somewhere. And I don’t want to see that happen.”

Town Manager Joe Fitzpatrick clarified what the town does for those recreational vehicles. “Currently what we do with vehicles like this is we provide a permit to the owner and take a description of what the trailer might be, etc. and they’re allowed to park either in the Snowmass lot or the service lots,” he said. He also noted that recreational vehicles are more likely abundant during the non-snowy months. “We haven’t seen that many snowmobile trailers in the hotel or base area.”

Hartman responded, “We have the ability to bring in an oversized vehicle if it has a roof rack or something. We could get those into that level of the garage. We’ve got about a 16 feet height. What we could do is pull trailers in, anything like that.”

Jayne Palu, an owner in Redstone, brought up a 2007 geotechnical report that was prepared by engineering consultant Buckhorn Geotech. “This is a massive enlargement from the original project when these studies were done,” she said. “I think it would be very irresponsible to build this size of a project without significantly updating and analyzing this project…”

Referencing the report, Palu said, “Two feet to eight feet below this ground, there’s a significant water problem and I don’t see anything in this amended PUD that addresses how we’re going deal with that. When you draw the ground water down, it may induce settlement of the structures around it and impact it. Nowhere in this amended plan does it address this or talk about the impact it will have on the existing homeowners.”

“We will not proceed into design review without a revised geotech report,” Hartman responded later in the meeting.

Mt. Crested Butte community development director Carlos Velado also added how those reports would come later in the process. “There’s a geotechnical report for general site conditions but then there’s also as part of the building permit a geotechnical report that determines and makes the foundation recommendations for the structure, and so the structures have to be designed according to those recommendations.”

While many of the public comments arose from design concerns rather than zoning, Hartman did also address the public concerns about noise and privacy, and noted that more specific design plans would come later once and if zoning is approved. Pearls would look into possibilities for incorporating privacy fences, walls and landscaping to mitigate noise from the proposed outdoor bar and pool areas.

“If approved, Pearls hopes to begin construction in the next couple years” in one phase rather than multiple phases, said Huckstep.

The public hearing was closed, and the Planning Commission will continue discussion on the proposed PUD alterations during their next meeting on August 7. Velado added that any additional public comments should be sent to staff by email. The Planning Commission also recommended that Pearls look over the DDA guidelines again.

“We’ll work with you to obtain a recommendation, or what we hope is a recommendation, for approval,” said Huckstep. “We don’t doubt that there will be conditions. We will then go to the Town Council for their approval and have another public hearing and they will consider the application.”

As might be expected in a controversial issue, another kerfuffle has emerged with the Corner at Brush Creek proposal.

This one involves Gunnison county commissioner John Messner, who a few months ago reached out to some Crested Butte Town Council members to discuss the project, specifically the density issue and what might be acceptable to the town. It appears to me, after I spoke to Messner, that the intent was simply a politician being a politician and trying to solve an impasse. He said he was explaining to other local politicians how to perhaps better use the county process to be constructive. But it threw a wrinkle into that very process.

The tricky thing for some is that he did so after the project was already under county review. Some see that as a breach of the county’s review process. In the so-called quasi-judicial process, the county commissioners are expected to act as unbiased judges and not talk about the project outside of official hearings. John’s outreach on the issue apparently made the council members uncomfortable and the conversations were short and did not result in any deep conversation or solution on density.

John explained to me that while he did reach out to some Crested Butte representatives to discuss “process,” that was not a violation of the quasi-judicial LUR review. He wanted to let the councilmembers know that while the town is a referral agency it might be more helpful in the county sketch plan review to not just list what they didn’t like about the proposal but, as part of the process, to also include some ideas that would make it more acceptable to the town. For example, instead of just saying 240 units is too many for that site, he said the process could be helped and it might be more fruitful to include what density would be acceptable to the town.

Now, I’ve never been a fan of politicians having to suddenly be a judge and adhere to different rules that cut off elected representatives from the casual interaction of the people. At the same time, I understand such delineation. For me personally, I understand Messner’s move as an attempt to move a contentious process forward. I too have tried to find that common ground with both sides—but I’m not on the Planning Commission with ultimate decision authority.

Basically at a deeper level, it appears John was sort of doing what many people in the upper end of the valley asked the county to do in the first place—hold conversations to talk about the general proposal—before putting it into the official review pipeline. The idea being that the big picture faults of the project could be identified and discussed and the development polished before going to the Planning Commission. Thus, in theory, the venture would have an easier time of being approved with broad community vetting and support. But the county representatives rejected that idea at the start and insisted on using the formal LUR process. And here we are with a third public hearing continuation slated for early May after a couple of long and contentious gatherings already.

I am sure there will be some who view John’s actions with a cocked eyebrow. Some may want him to recuse himself from the ongoing process. That is up to him and his fellow commissioners and planners. If he had called to advocate that the council jump on board the Brush Creek train, it would be one thing, but trying to get the town to include some specific mitigation ideas as a referral agency seems an attempt to move a process forward—even if the process he insisted on using was pretty restrictive.

I’ve suggested before and will do so again: Perhaps the best thing to do is for the county commissioners to utilize their authority and call a timeout from the current formal review process and start talking big picture again in a political sense.

Messner’s instinct was not wrong to pinpoint density as a prime issue early in the review process. The ramifications of that density have always been the sticking point with this particular project. Taking a timeout could be fruitful for all involved if there is common ground that can be reached on this idea of affordable workforce housing on this particular site. I bet there is such common ground if given a broader opportunity to find it.

—Mark Reaman

“Density is a good thing”

By Toni Todd

Density was the topic of discussion for the Gunnison County Planning Commission last Friday as they continued their evaluation of the proposed Corner at Brush Creek rental housing development.

Gatesco, Inc. seeks to build 240 residential units on roughly 14 acres at the corner of Brush Creek Road and Highway 135, about 1.5 miles south of Crested Butte. The project has entered the sketch-plan phase of the county’s Land Use Resolution (LUR) development approval process.

The plan promises 65 percent of the units at The Corner will qualify as deed-restricted workforce housing, meeting the income requirements for residents earning from 50 to 180 percent of Area Median Income (AMI). For a single person, 100 percent of AMI is $49,600.

“From the staff’s view,” noted Gunnison community development director Cathy Pagano as the meeting began, “[Gatesco is] generally compliant with the requirements of the LUR.”

The Friday meeting began with architect Andrew Hadley and Margaret Loperfido of Sprout Studio Landscaping sharing design strategies. “Quality architecture pays its way,” Hadley said. “Margaret and I have really done a lot of work to reduce the perceived density. We have five different buildings with different unit types. Vertical and horizontal diversity, balconies, a mix of pitched, flat and shed roof buildings—there’s a lot you can do to break up perceived densities and preserve views.”

“It’s also important to install and maintain a landscape that is compatible with the surrounding landscape,” added Loperfido. “To reduce the perceived height of some of the buildings, the front of the buildings will be bermed to visually bury the first six to eight feet of those buildings.”

Hadley said there would also be plenty of room for people to stash their stuff. “It’s a large concern of ours to have a maximum amount of indoor storage so they don’t turn into junk piles.”

“We saw the comparative size of the Crested Butte South sewage treatment plant,” said Planning Commission member Molly Mugglestone. “What’s the comparative size of this one?”

“This will be about a third the size, with similar technology, though newer, so it may be better,” said spokesperson for The Corner at Brush Creek and attorney Kendall Bergemeister.

“I recently spent time with friends who live in an apartment complex in the city,” said Diani. “The number of packages delivered from Amazon has grown exponentially there. Are you making accommodations for that?”

“We hadn’t thought about that, but maybe we should consider that,” Bergemeister replied.

Getting back to the issue of density, Bergemeister said, “We’re providing more open space than required by the LUR. We’re also clustering residences to minimize visual impact as well as the impact on wildlife.”

“Density is not a bad thing,” added project manager John O’Neal. “Density is a good thing, and it’s a necessary thing in order to provide for a sustainable future. It’s far more environmentally friendly. It prevents sprawl. It’s better for creating community. Density is cheaper, and less costly to heat. It’s a good thing for the community, for the environment and for the sustainable future of this community. Lack of density leads to the growth of suburbs that we’ve seen all around the country. Density is an essential part of this project and starts to help solve the housing problem at the north end of the valley.”

“People in Crested Butte are concerned they’re going to be overwhelmed with people using their parks and school,” said Diani.

“We’re sensitive to the concerns the town is expressing,” said Bergemeister. “We’re trying to get some more data regarding how this might impact the town.” He pointed to a loss of housing inside the town of Crested Butte due to a proliferation of vacation rentals. “We’re sort of filling in the gap that’s already been created.

“Growth is going to be an issue,” Bergemeister continued. “All the public entities are going to have to deal with it. We’re certainly interested in studying it further to resolve the concerns.”

“Are we going to hear from RTA to learn about the transit center?” asked Mugglestone.

“If the RTA is able to serve it or not, if Mountain Express is able to serve it or not—we’re still working on that,” said Pagano.

“My understanding is that there is no government subsidy other than the price of the land. If the county were to build this, how much would it cost? If we were to do this with public funds, how much would it cost?” asked Mugglestone.

“We’re talking tens of millions of dollars,” responded Pagano. “We have enough money to build a few units per year, but no entity in the county has the money to build something like this.”

“When we start to talk about density, it’s not just talking about bigger buildings, but how tightly you pack different kinds of homes,” said Planning Commission member Vince Rogalski.

“I haven’t driven through Skyland in years and had kind of forgotten how much territory has been built on,” added Planning Commission member Tom Venard.

“I have never been to Pitchfork and didn’t realize how packed everything is up there, and how snow storage is such a big issue,” said Diani. “It made me think about your snow storage plans and how you’d really thought about it and how you can get it out of the way.”

“I know we’re comparing things in terms of units per acre. I guess I’m interested in the number of people per acre,” said Coleman. “These [density comparisons] are all smaller parcels. Can you give us some information on a comparable acreage [to the Brush Creek parcel] to give us a comparison that’s more similar in size to this one?”

Planning Commission questions provided ample homework for The Corner at Brush Creek applicants to conduct further research and return with answers on their return visit.

Several members of the audience also took advantage of an invitation to make short comments on the project.

“One of the things you need to consider is that there’s about two acres of transit, so when you’re looking at the residential density, that is going to increase the density,” suggested Bob Pannier.

“I would like to take issue with the comparisons of other high-density subdivisions,” added Mike Wright. “All the ones in Gunnison are within the city limits. The one in Crested Butte South is within the Crested Butte South limits. Anthracite Place is in the town of Crested Butte. And the two in Brush Creek are about half the size, and are within a giant subdivision. I don’t believe any of this is apples to apples.”

“My experience with density is that when you have a project, you look at the adjacent neighborhoods,” said David Leinsdorf, representing Friends of Brush Creek, an organization that stands against The Corner at Brush Creek development.

Leinsdorf continued, “Now we’ve been talking about properties that are far removed from this neighborhood, and if you look at the projects that are contiguous, the Brush Creek proposal is almost 10 times the density of Larkspur… and many times the density of adjacent property. If you look at the traditional way the Planning Commission has compared a project with the neighboring properties, you will have to cut this density way, way back. There are nine structures proposed that are of comparable size to Anthracite Place. So, what you’re really looking at here is nine Anthracite Places out in the county with no central public services.”

Other commenters questioned the affordability of the units and the fact that only a relative few will be made affordable to those who earn 50 percent to 60 percent of AMI, and expressed concern for this development setting a precedent for future large projects in the area.

New non-profit seeks to build houses, curriculum

By Aimee Eaton

The Crested Butte Community School student build project is heading into a second year with a new lot in Crested Butte South, a new duplex design, and a new non-profit changing the way the Upper Valley may look at both classroom learning and the current housing situation.

The recently named Student Organization Achieving Results for Community, or SOAR, is the brainchild of Crested Butte Community School teacher Todd Wasinger and local builder and owner of High Mountain Concepts, John Stock.

“This is the natural progression of the project,” said Stock. “The school should be the one that benefits from the construction and the students should be making as many of the decisions behind the build as possible.”

With a goal of providing students with a hands-on education in the industrial arts, business and the trades, while also providing the Community School with a self-supporting line of funding to back the program, SOAR takes what was learned during the first year of the student build project and expands student responsibility and community buy-in.

On the ground, that looks like SOAR purchasing a lot upon which community school students enrolled in Wasinger’s design/build class design and build a house that meets all zoning, construction, and professional requirements. They will then advertise and sell the house, potentially without any deed restrictions, on the open market. Money from the sale will be used to pay off debt accrued during construction, with all profits funneled directly back into the program for use in the next build.

“We have a group of people who want to do something good,” said Stock of the individuals helping to get SOAR up and running. “Essentially, they’re offering zero percent loans to build the house. The money will be paid back with no interest when we sell the house, and the profits will go to the school for the next project. The mission is to make it self-sustaining over the course of a few years.”

Along with the initial investors who helped purchase a lot in Crested Butte South, Stock said numerous local businesses, individuals and corporations have gotten behind SOAR and its mission as in-kind donors. These donations range from lumber and supplies to ground work and earth moving.

“There has been a lot of support already,” said Wasinger. “Eventually the goal is to generate money to feed back into the school and the industrial arts program, but already it’s generating curriculum. It’s an educational program that makes money that then comes back to the school to sustain the program.”

And while neither Stock nor Wasinger is selling the SOAR program, or the houses it could produce, as an answer to the Upper Valley’s housing crunch, neither are they negating the benefits the projects could have for the community.

“The project being worked on now is a duplex in Crested Butte South with a garage for each unit,” said Wasinger. “These are going to be for sale, family homes that aren’t going to be huge.”

In other words, SOAR will be building affordable workforce housing at the upper end of the valley.

“We’re building on a lot that is part of an established community,” said Stock. “The construction and approach is avoiding separation of the classes—I see it as a mistake to have whole areas designated as deed-restricted. We want to create neighborhoods that suit everybody.”

Wasinger’s students are currently beginning the design phase for one side of the planned duplex and the garages. They’ll spend this school year designing the home and moving through the planning and review process to begin construction in late spring. They will then work under Wasinger and CBCS industrial design teacher Adam Ofstedahl, as well as Stock’s crew to build the structure during the summer. They’ll repeat the process for the other side of the duplex during the 2018-2019 school year. The approach is due to time constraints placed on the students and crews.

“This is just one class,” said Wasinger. “We don’t have enough hours to build both sides at once, but this gives us two years of work.”

Stock added the size of the home is also dictated to some degree by the students’ schedules and his crew’s availability.

“I don’t see us ever going over 1,400 square feet,” said Stock. “Small is a better fit for us in terms of time constraints and teaching opportunities. I’m hopeful that at some point we’ll go to the town and say we want to build small houses.”

While Stock and Wasinger said that might be a ways down the road, they both agree there is more then enough work ahead.

“During the first build, the town was the client,” said Wasinger. “A lot of the decisions were made by the town, and the students had to design to meet their needs. This time the students are also the client. A lot of those decisions are going to fall to them.”

While SOAR is acting as a fiscal manager for the build, and investors have worked to purchase the land for the duplex, Stock said it is the hope of SOAR’s five-person board that eventually students and the school will manage the finances and land purchases.

“The goal is that down the road there will be a land bank with lots owned by the school that can then be used in the class,” said Stock. “I’d also like to see funds from the sale of the homes going back into the industrial arts, where they could be used to grow the program and its resources.”

For more information about SOAR, which is currently working to achieve its non-profit status, or to find out how to help with the project, contact John Stock at High Mountain Concepts.