Carbondale

from 20221110

Calendar

By Raleigh Burleigh Sopris Sun Editor

In January 2021, Carbondale’s Board of Town Trustees voted to update the town’s 2013 Comprehensive Plan. On Nov. 15, after nearly two years, the outcome will be voted on for adoption at a public hearing hosted at Town Hall at 6 p.m.

The process involved robust public participation including an initial survey which yielded more than 500 responses, several stakeholder meetings and other in-person, bilingual engagement events, as well as many Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) meetings to drill down on the finer details.

Jay Engstrom, P&Z chair for over a year, told The Sopris Sun that the process began largely as a “patch” to provide guidance for future development and particularly in “Downtown North,” a 12-acre industrial park north of Town Hall which once housed maintenance facilities for the Mid-Continent coal-mining operations.

Downtown North, also referred to as the “Opportunity Area” throughout this process, was the focus of plans for residential development in the past and, according to Engstrom, was left unaddressed by the 2013 Comprehensive Plan. “Before they didn’t have any direction… now at least they have some direction from the community.”

This direction allows for mixed-use development, with two and three-story residential apartments that maintain light industrial spaces on the ground floor, similar to Dolores Way.

“Through all the outreach provided, we found concerns regarding other zoning that wasn’t part of this update,” said Engstrom. With so much change seen and felt in Carbondale, especially along Highway 133, the update grew larger than anticipated, what Engstrom referred to as “scope creep.”

State law requires that municipalities have a comprehensive plan to provide a policy framework for regulatory tools like zoning changes, subdivisions and annexations; the document is not, however, regulatory in of itself. The Comprehensive Plan informs the Unified Development Code which guides approval for new developments.

From the beginning, P&Z has acted as the project’s steering committee, which also hired an interdisciplinary firm called Cushing Terrell for $75,000 to do much of the work in 2021. Once Cushing Terrell’s contract expired, however, P&Z was left with double-duty: performing their ordinary responsibilities as volunteers on an important town commission that meets twice per month, in addition to overseeing final changes for the update.

Public engagement launched with a survey in July 2021, and continued through February 2022 with comments solicited through an online platform (chartcarbondale.com) during different stages of the document’s creation.

According to Engstrom, the content of the draft has not changed substantially since it was premiered in February, online and in hardcopy at “reading rooms” scattered throughout town. It has, though, been merged with the 2013 Comprehensive Plan for easier readability.

Here are some highlights: • Updated Future Land Use Map (FLUM), an advisory document for future land use zoning changes

The draft update recommends mixed-use redevelopment for Downtown North, with a focus on light industrial job sites and housing, community gathering spaces and strengthened connections to open space; Cushing Terrell estimated that up to 340 units could go here (at 24 units per acre). Aerial shot from Google Earth • Climate Action: stay on course while expanding the definition of “sustainable development” to intersect with social equity • Recommendation to conduct a long-range transportation master planning effort, expand transit services, improve pedestrian/bicycle safety, have a sidewalk maintenance program • Suggestion to expand historic design guidelines to residential areas downtown in keeping with historic neighborhood character and ensuring compatibility when new developments occur

You can review the 100-page draft (+90-page appendix) in English and Spanish ahead of the public hearing on Nov. 15 at: carbondaleconnect. org/chart-carbondale

Engstrom noted that P&Z will also recommend trustees plan ahead for more revisions or an entirely revamped plan within the next few years. “2014, that was a different time,” he said. “We need to make sure what we're requesting of developers is aligned with what the town wants to see [now]...”

I'm just waiting until you say the magic word… Treats!

THE FUTURE IS ELECTRIC

El Jebel, Colorado 970-963-1700 RJPaddywacks.com

Your next furnace/ boiler, water heater and range will be electric. Start planning now.

CLEER o ers free energy coaching:  Heat pumps, solar, EVs & charging  Energy-e cient technologies  Rebates & fi nancial aid (some end Dec. 31, so don’t wait!) Sign up now:

By Raleigh Burleigh Sopris Sun Editor

While Town Hall served as a polling place, receiving in-person votes on Election Day, the Board of Town Trustees gathered for their regular meeting at the Third Street Center. Trustees Marty Silverstein and Luis Yllanes were absent, as were microphones and a virtual viewing option. Nonetheless, the atypical meeting featured another full agenda.

Among the items approved in the consent agenda, more than $21,000 was dedicated to restore a bathroom at North Face Park which was lit on fi re in late August of this year. The town will receive reimbursement through insurance, but Mayor Ben Bohmfalk expressed his disappointment with vandals defacing and destroying tax-funded, public properties.

During the public comments portion of the meeting, Lynn Kirchner briefed trustees on the Carbondale Homeless Assistance initiative. Since 2020, the town has supported its shower program with $1,500 annually, which is essentially passed back to the Parks and Recreation Department for vouchers. This will remain in next year’s budget.

Next, trustees gave updates. Lani Kitching spoke about the Wild Rivers Film Tour hosted by Wilderness Workshop in October. The board will return to the topic of Wild and Scenic designation for the Crystal River later in November, she said.

Moving along, the board approved a series of rate hikes for waste hauling (6.2% on average, eff ective Dec. 1), water (7.5% increase for base fees and 5% for rates), sewer (5% increase for base fees and rates) and recreation fees and charges (5% on average). Additionally, tap fees increased by 5% since last updated in 2018, based on a long-term plan approved in 2017.

The meeting proceeded with a series of check-ins, fi rst from YouthZone, then from the town’s Historic Preservation Commission and Public Arts Commission. The Historic Preservation Commission spoke about their new program installing plaques for owner’s of historic homes; they suggested creating a local landmark register program beginning with the Dinkel Building and Thompson House; and they fl oated the idea of expanding courtesy reviews (currently off ered to commercial properties looking to redevelop) to include old town residential units.

“Carbondale has a very humble history, but it’s authentic,” said chair Nick Miscione. “Ordinary structures are worth saving and have intrinsic value in our story. Nostalgia is a value, and the story we have to tell is important.”

The Public Arts Commission, “CPAC, not to be confused with the Conservative Political Action Committee,” joked chair Michael Stout, mainly spoke about the need for a budget and schedule to maintain the 25 pieces in the town’s permanent collection, plus any future additions. Stout reported that Art Around Town has remained competitive for submissions among similar programs in the country, and the sculptures are selling.

The meeting continued with Carbondale Marketplace Subdivision, south of City Market, requesting a change to the development agreement that stipulated the futsal court, now a public amenity, be complete by the time 50 housing units are built. Briston Peterson, representing the project on behalf of MSP Development Group and Brikor Associates, stated that by December, the third building will be complete and 54 units will be ready to occupy. Rather than hold four units arbitrarily until the futsal court is built, the agreement was extended through a unanimous vote until completion of a 55th unit or July 31, 2023, whichever comes fi rst.

The second to last item on the agenda was an early discussion for developing a request for proposals for consultant services to prepare a Multi Modal Mobility and Access Plan, as advised in the draft Comprehensive Plan Update. Representatives of the Bike Pedestrian and Trails Commission, the Carbondale Age-Friendly Community Initiative and the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority were present.

There was consensus that the plan should focus on bike and pedestrian infrastructure, utilizing past studies to develop an actionable, capital improvementstyle plan with priorities.

“Plans drive action and decisions around funding,” stated trustee Colin Laird, “not having an access or mobility plan leaves us without a way to analyze what we’re trying to do on the transportation front.”

Finally, the meeting concluded with an overview of community grant requests. The only changes made were to zero out YouthZone’s funding, because YouthZone received $10,000 from the tobacco tax in 2022, and to reallocate those funds toward meeting the Carbondale Historical Society’s full ask for paying the utilities at the town-owned Thompson House Museum.

Otherwise, the amounts granted remained the same and can be viewed in the packet at www.carbondalegov.org