By Adam Broderick

Editor’s note: There is more to living in a resort town than the difficulty of finding a place to live or the long political discussion over how to provide so-called affordable housing. Reporter Adam Broderick will look at different angles of the issue in this summer series that explores what it’s actually like to live in deed-restricted affordable housing in Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte.

This week we take a glimpse into current residents’ living situations, exploring different deed-restricted neighborhoods and their advantages and disadvantages as residents view them.
A handful of deed-restricted affordable homeowners from the Upper Gunnison Valley explained what they thought about their living situations. From Red Lady Estates to Paradise Park and Poverty Gulch on either side of town to Prospect on the back side of the mountain, this is what people really think of their affordable homes.

Paradise Park
Nicky O’Connor lives with her dog and cat in the Paradise Park community, which is located on the block between Gothic and Teocalli and 8th and 9th streets. She moved into her one-bed, 1.5-bath condo with a garage in June 2007 after building the house through the winter months as part of the Mutual Self-Help Build, a program offered by the Gunnison Valley Regional Housing Authority.

Four units were built simultaneously—two buildings, two townhomes in each—and all homeowners pitched in to help each other build and save money up front.
In lieu of a down payment they were required to work a minimum of 30 hours per week, but many worked more than that. O’Connor says homeowners collectively did about 60 percent of the builds and contracted out the plumbing, drywall, roofing and the initial concrete pour. They did all other flooring aspects themselves, including grouting, staining and sealing.
“We would do one step on someone’s house all the way through, then repeat that step in the other homes. When it came to the inside—personal stuff like paint choices and interior designs [O’Connor was quick to engrave a Celtic knot on the floor]—we would do our own,” she says. “We worked over the span of about nine months for at least 30 hours per week. Some weeks we put more time in. We were allowed to get help from friends or family, but we personally had to put at least 15 of those hours in. I ended up having to quit my second job to allow the time for the build.”
With rental rates as high as they have been lately, O’Connor says she couldn’t even get a room in town for the price she pays for her home. And when she walks out her front door, Mt. Crested Butte is the first thing she sees. In fact, she can see a peak out of each of her 16 windows. She lives next to the rec path, and says her neighbors are awesome. “We all help each other out,” she says. “And I love my little yard. It’s not fenced in but could be if I wanted.
“Another awesome thing about the program was how much I learned building the house from the ground up,” she continued. “I was able to add thoughts to the design of the original floor plan and change it up a bit. And I now have bragging rights because I can say I built my own house.”
As for downsides, O’Connor says there aren’t many other than resale value. “There is a cap on how much you can make on resale. My subsidized loan is through the United States Department of Agriculture. Even with the annual appreciation, if I were to sell I wouldn’t make much off of it.”

Red Lady Estates
Jack Gibbons lives in what he calls the best lot in town. His home is in the Red Lady Estates, the small mobile home community on Red Lady Avenue next to Clark’s Market, and he says he’s made it into something pretty incredible. Once you step inside, all the remodeling he’s done makes you forget you’re even in a mobile home. Even from the outside, it’s still difficult to tell.
Gibbons owns a 1,100-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bathroom home with one roommate, his cat and his roommate’s dog. He was lucky to find his home twenty years ago, when he says the town offered lots to people who were lucky enough to have their names drawn from a hat.
“I was number ten out of 50 people,” Gibbons says. “They gave you the lot and you went and bought a trailer. There were lots of hurdles and it was hard to come up with the down payment, but I don’t think it was atypical of what anyone else goes through. The home was relatively cheap. I’m so lucky to have been here at the perfect time, to have won the lottery that put me here.”
He moved into his new home, part of the first affordable housing project Crested Butte had done, in 1995. “At the beginning there was a lot of controversy, but I think we’ve proved everyone wrong,” he says. “People said they didn’t want a trailer park in town and called it degrading and white trash. I hate the term ‘trailer park.’ We try to keep the place clean and tidy as possible. I think it’s the best lot in town.”
Gibbons says the only downsides to his deed-restricted home are that he will never have a garage, just a porch over his front steps, and since he’s tucked up against The Bench he only gets a few hours of sun per day in the winter. But in summer the whole yard is a lush garden with water features and stone sitting areas, and the yard borders a hillside covered in thick foliage. “It’s a little oasis back there,” he says.

Poverty Gulch
Jake Jones and his family live in a two-bedroom, one-bath, 800+ square foot duplex in the Poverty Gulch community, which is on the north side of Butte Avenue between 7th and 8th streets. He says his wife, Sarah, holds the title as the first and only owner and if he remembers correctly, she won a lottery and was able to purchase their home from the town of Crested Butte in 1999 or 2000. Jones says the property was probably at one point considered unusable land, but was turned into affordable housing.
The Jones family most appreciates the price, convenient in-town location and great views from their home. They feel fortunate to live in town, especially since many of his and Sarah’s friends have moved their families out of town.
“We feel very fortunate to go non-motorized so often, leaving the car parked and riding bikes to work or a free bus to the ski area. Living in town, that’s really something,” Jones says. “Another upside is these units are owner-occupied. If we lived anywhere else in town, we’d probably be surrounded by renters. Living with other people who own their units is a good thing.”
In that corner of town, due to the density of affordable units, there are many long-term residents and families. According to Jones, “There is a strong sense of community, more so than in other parts of town where you find mostly renters or mostly dark neighborhoods. Also, our kid can ride his bike to school easily. His friends are all throughout the neighborhood. A lot of these families would not live in town if it weren’t for these units.”
Jones says about 15 years ago the town built the homes, then sold them. “People had to qualify, then get their name on a list, then have their name drawn. My wife had to meet all the standards of not making too much money, all the money she did make had to be locally earned and she had to have lived in the valley a certain number of years.”
Other than actual quality of life, Jones says there is no benefit to improving the property. Projects that require building permits—decks, windows, etc.—could add equity to the home, but not for many years. “A tiny 50-square foot addition could add $30,000, but you may not see that for 30 years,” he says. “[Improvement projects] may increase your quality of life, but you couldn’t recoup that as an investment.
“At the end of the day, these units do not get people out of affordable housing into the free market,” he continued. “The free market is far surpassed. But it is an affordable way for locals to experience homeownership.”

Prospect
Mark Fontenot says the town of Mt. Crested Butte was very generous and let him rent his one-bed, 1.5-bath in Prospect for a year to see if he liked the location. He bought it a year later. The Prospect development is on the backside of CBMR near the Prospect chairlift. Fontenot says he got into his home at just the right time and he is proud to have his own little slice of heaven for the rest of his life.
As far as restrictions go, Fontenot says he thinks the town hit a home run with the Prospect development. “Our dues are very low compared to other affordable housing communities around here and as far as wanting to do anything I can, as long as I go through the right steps and properly approach the board [of directors], I have had zero problems doing anything I’ve wanted to do. I can plant as much as I want and make my house look as beautiful as I want as long as I ask permission to do it. If I want to put granite countertops in my home, I can, and that adds to the value of my home. Any improvements I put into it I can get back.”
Fontenot explained that he could sell his house for the original cost plus around 3 to 3.5 percent (inflation, he called it) per year plus the cost of improvements he makes to it. “Whatever the house was purchased for, the next year it will increase 3 to 3.5 percent plus any improvements I do. If the granite counter tops cost $1,000 I can sell my house for cost plus 3.5 percent per year plus the $1,000 for the counter tops. You just keep your receipt.”
“I really hope we can build more of these opportunities for other people so they can have the same satisfaction I have,” he continued. “This town needs it. My home is affordable. I’m able to live in this amazing community and pay all my bills and not struggle to live here like some other people who aren’t as fortunate. I look forward to the day that Prospect is further built out so that I have more friends as neighbors.”

As you can see, these real life stories are examples of how affordable housing works. These communities are full of families, the local workforce—real Buttians. Stay tuned for the next installment of Living the Resort Town Life. We’ll take a look inside more affordable housing developments around town and explore what has been done in other resort towns to address local housing issues.

by Adam Broderick

Editor’s Note: There is more to living in a resort town than the difficulty of finding a place or the long political discussion over how to provide so-called affordable housing. Reporter Adam Broderick looks at different angles of the issue in this summer series that explores what it’s actually like to live in deed-restricted affordable housing in Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte.

Last week we discussed the future of affordable housing at this end of the Gunnison Valley and explored some of the deed-restricted options that will be available in coming years. This week we revisit the current housing situation and its effect on local business; get to the bottom of rumors about deed restrictions and why they may have been lifted in the past; discuss loan potentials and requirements with a local banking expert; and wrap up this four-part affordable housing series with open minds, open hearts, half-empty wallets, and hopes for a future in paradise as we know it—er, envision it. And if you haven’t quite picked up what I’ve been laying down this past month, catch up with the series by following the link at the end of this story.

As we have seen in Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte, as well as other mountain resort towns also feeling the housing crunch, deed-restricted affordable housing is enjoyed by some and would be greatly appreciated by many more. As one deed-restricted homeowner said, “I’m able to live in this amazing community and pay all my bills and not struggle to live here like some other people who aren’t as fortunate.”

As for the future of affordable housing at this end of the valley, town planner Michael Yerman says that lies in collaboration with the county. And according to Russ Forrest, assistant county manager for community and economic development, unlike many other mountain resort communities, we still have land opportunities in much of Gunnison County. A needs assessment study is being conducted to determine exactly who in the county needs exactly what, and so far the only real conclusion is that the Rural Transportation Authority connects the county and creates infrastructure to strategically place more housing.

In the meantime, some local businesses are doing what they can to help their staff afford housing, and others are beginning to explore the concept.

Local businesses feel the pain

Crested Butte Lodging has gone a step above to offer affordable housing to their employees. Alex Summerfelt works the front desk and says he and his roommate each pay $500 per month, the same as he paid while going to school in Colorado Springs, only now he’s right at the base area of the ski resort.

“Employees are required to put in at least 32 hours per week, whether that be at the office or doing maintenance or housekeeping,” Summerfelt says. Crested Butte Lodging rents various long-term condos on the mountain, which are held on retainer for employees only. Summerfelt says five employees currently use the service.

Jeff Graceffa, co-owner of The Secret Stash, firmly believes the town of Crested Butte has lost something without having beds for the “local, true community” and that the lack of affordable housing has a direct effect on customer service in town as well as on quality of life. “We’re really diluting the local culture here. The locals are just getting swept aside,” he said. “We need quality of life to get people to stay for more than just one season so we don’t get this turnover every year. It gets expensive.”

The Secret Stash employs more staff than most restaurants in town, if not all of them. Manager Taylor Cone says housing is definitely an issue the restaurant has been dealing with lately and he thinks that problems they’ve had with hiring could be directly related to the housing shortage. As for whether The Stash has considered helping their staff better afford local housing, he said that for now they’re just trying to stick it out through summer. “But maybe that’s something we do need to talk about because it doesn’t seem the hiring situation is getting much better.”

Graceffa sees signs that The Stash isn’t the only one to feel the pinch. The Avalanche restaurant at the ski resort’s base area has offered breakfast, lunch and dinner for as long as he can remember, but is now offering only lunch.

“When I first moved to Crested Butte, my friends lived across the street and my employees lived here. There are fewer and fewer locals in the neighborhood these days and it makes this a less appealing place. I love Crested Butte. My whole life is vested in this place. But it’s really lost something to the short-term rental market, and it’s sad to see,” Graceffa said.

Avalanche owner Todd Barnes says his restaurant has not been open for dinners this summer because not enough staff can be hired. He also thinks the hiring problem is directly related to the lack of affordable housing in the area.

“We’re doing lunch from 11 to 4 and Wednesday night dinners when there’s music on the mountain and people up here,” Barnes said. “I left it up to the employees who would be around and who wanted to work, and the majority had days free. So that’s why we’re doing lunch instead of dinners. That way staff is out by 5:30 or 5:45 and can get to another job or go play outside. Also, there are more people up here during the day than at night. On Wednesdays, we all work doubles.”

Barnes said this summer he didn’t have one person come in saying the old phrase, “I just moved here and I’m looking for a job,” whereas normally 15 to 20 people say that and some people get turned away.

 

He let an employee go this summer because other staff didn’t like working with her. “We’re still offering the same quality of service. And I’m still on par for lunches from last year, even up just a little, but I don’t have the staff to be open any longer. I just hope this doesn’t continue through winter. Then what will we do? I hope all the skunk cabbage and century plants foretell a big snow year and that everybody forgets about this. I want to sell people food and booze and have a good time. It’ll be interesting to see what CBMR does. They employ the most people.”

Do deed restrictions last?

There has been some recent talk around town and in social media threads about the lifting of deed restrictions—why it occurs, how often, and how many more will be lifted in the future. This is what officials from different entities say has happened:

Karl Fulmer, executive director of the Gunnison Valley Regional Housing Authority (GVRHA), explained that in the event of foreclosure the deed restriction goes away, and most lenders require that. “As long as you’re credit-worthy and the deed restriction has a specific component saying the deed restriction goes away in the event of foreclosure, most lenders will go with that. We have a right of first refusal to save it from foreclosure,” he said.

As a home goes into foreclosure the deed restriction goes away, but the housing authority, the county or a municipality in the county gets first dibs to buy it out of foreclosure and not lose the deed-restricted unit.

Yerman says the long-term goal is to keep housing affordable for the future, so if you deviate from that you lose that affordability factor. He said the town of Crested Butte has never lifted a deed restriction.

In Mt. Crested Butte, Clayton says on a few occasions decisions have been made when affordable units went into foreclosure to not buy the units from the lender and save them. On each occasion, he said, the council looked at the unit and determined if it was a good or bad property to try to acquire and then resell.

“In one case, the unit was refinanced for more than the cap on the property. In another case, the unit was deed restricted for local ownership but there was no cap on pricing. A couple more were units where identical free market units were selling at lower prices than the deed-restricted units.”

Clayton says the town of Mt. Crested Butte has had several individuals come before the Town Council asking that they remove the deed restriction from a unit so that the unit would have a wider audience. In each case, he said, the council decided not to remove the restriction since that would set a precedent that they would remove deed restrictions in the future.

Forrest said there are a variety of deed restrictions within Gunnison County and that it’s not uncommon to lift them. “There are a lot of lessons learned with deed restrictions due to price appreciation, value caps, different definitions of locals… Through a foreclosure it can go to a bank and then that deed restriction can get stripped away. Deed restrictions are complicated and there are really good ones, and really bad ones. If they’re too convoluted, you can’t get a loan on them. It’s just too complicated and a lending institution won’t touch it.”

In 2009, county commissioners lifted deed restrictions on approximately 40 lots in the River Neighborhood of Skyland. When the restrictions were written, there was some language that left questions about whether the restrictions went with the property or ended with the first qualified buyer. There was no cap set on income earned by potential buyers, nor was there a cap on the sale price of the home. The only effect of the deed restriction put in place on those homes was that a full year had to go by before the houses could be resold.

“There was nothing about those deed restrictions that maintained affordability in any way or was in line with the county’s affordable housing goals. It was a local’s deed restriction but not an affordable housing restriction,” county manager Matthew Birnie said. “When those homes went to resell with no price control, they were much more valuable than the original price. They were no longer affordable as commissioners saw them.”

Commissioners did not think the covenants could be revived since they were not upheld from the beginning, which the commissioners believed left homeowners unaware of the details of the deed restrictions on their homes, so the board decided to lift the restrictions and allow homeowners in the River Neighborhood to sell their homes on the free market. Several of those homeowners claimed to be in serious financial danger, and although Jim Starr, then a commissioner and currently the chairman of the Gunnison Valley Housing Foundation, said it wouldn’t have been fair to hold the owners to restrictions they were supposedly not informed of, he was not happy with the decision.

“We didn’t have enough deed-restricted housing then and we still don’t. It was tough to get rid of those,” Starr said.

So yes, some deed restrictions have been lifted in both ends of the valley. Not in the town of Crested Butte or in Mt. Crested Butte, but elsewhere and for different reasons that seem to be justified by the decision makers.

Bank loans for deed-restricted homes

I spoke with Craig Bryant, the executive vice president of Gunnison Savings & Loan, to get a better feel for requesting a loan and purchasing a deed-restricted home. He says loan requirements for deed-restricted home purchases are no different from other home purchases. Having a decent credit history plus the income sources to be in a reasonable financial position to support the home and make the payments should do it.

Bryant says Gunnison Savings & Loan doesn’t put any requirements on their loans (such as requiring income to be earned locally) and that they often use co-borrowers to add financial strength and credit history to help get people qualified. That would be similar to a co-signer on a rental agreement, only co-borrowers are more deeply committed. As for the difficulty getting a loan, Bryant says that varies.

“There are more lenders out there in the “big world” that do not include deed restricted homes as being acceptable collateral. Exactly why that is, I’m not sure, but the services don’t want to deal with the deed restrictions, in the foreclosure process specifically,” Bryant said. “If everyone made their payments there wouldn’t be a problem. We at Gunnison Savings & Loan have always supported that process and have made several loans for deed-restricted homes. The loans have performed as expected, and people have an appreciation for the opportunities they’re given in a deed-restricted marketplace.”

There is not a typical interest rate for deed-restricted home loans. Those will vary, and Bryant said borrowers can get both long-term fixed-rate loans and adjustable rate loans, depending on their preference.

 

For potential buyers, Gunnison Savings & Loan gives free consultations. According to Bryant, “Everybody has to cross the line where they’re both mentally and financially in a position to buy a home because it is a long-term commitment, and we help people determine whether or not they’re ready at this time. If they’re not quite ready, we help them analyze their situation and decide what they need to do to get ready to buy a home. We don’t charge for an inquiry.”

That’s what Gunnison Savings & Loan could do for potential buyers. But GVRHA’s Fulmer says Wells Fargo is also good option. “Wells Fargo certainly lends fairly frequently on deed-restricted units throughout the state,” he said.

Anyone considering a deed-restricted home purchase in the town of Crested Butte should contact Michael Yerman at myerman@crestedbutte-co.gov, since he is compiling a master list of interested buyers for potential housing on the town’s blocks 79 and 80. Eligibility requirements will be available in October or November of this year. Yerman says staff is investigating qualifying buyers who earn up to 160 percent AMI (average median income), which for a single person in 2015 would mean $80,320 per year, but will be discussing the income qualifications with the Town Council in October. Applications are estimated to be accepted beginning January 2016.

So there you have it. The county, the municipalities within, and some local organizations are making efforts to create more affordable housing for the local workforce. Affordable housing is a valley-wide issue that rides the economical tides, and is a challenge facing most mountain communities, not just this one. It requires a community working together to address such an issue, and as we’ve learned throughout this series, this valley is beginning to unite and work toward solutions. Other mountain towns are doing the same, often taking notes from one another’s efforts and experiences—from years past, from current projects and from goals for the future. A future that, as we’ve learned, looks quite grim if the effort does not occur community wide. Thanks for caring enough about the community we live in to stick with me through this four-part series. It’s a cold world out there, and it’s been rather wet lately. Let’s help each other stay warm.

To read this feature series in its entirety, visit crestedbuttenews.com/?s=living+the+resort+town+life

by Adam Broderick

Editor’s Note: There is more to living in a resort town than the difficulty of finding a place to live or the long political discussion over how to provide so-called affordable housing. Reporter Adam Broderick looks at different angles of the issue in this summer series that explores what it’s actually like to live in deed-restricted affordable housing in Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte.

Last week we spoke with elected officials and housing authorities in other mountain resort towns—Park City, Telluride, Jackson Hole and Aspen—about their efforts to house their local workforce and how they each plan to offer housing for employees in the future. Well before the most recent economic recession, resort towns faced a housing “crisis,” and it’s on the table again. Finding and providing affordable housing is a challenge, particularly where a high quality of life is the area’s main attraction. This week we discuss opportunities for local organizations in this region and future plans to help house the local workforces.

A little background

Homes that used to be listed under $500,000 on the free market are no longer available in this valley.

“Or, the quality of those homes is a bit more questionable,” said Russ Forrest, assistant county manager for community and economic development. Forrest explained that there is a lot of competition for anything that’s available for rent in both the upper and the lower Gunnison Valley. But he thinks the private market in the lower valley hasn’t yet had a chance to respond. Even though affordability is greater in the lower valley, Forrest said there aren’t a lot of built homes available for purchase.

“A report from 2014 showed 25 percent of people renting in Gunnison County spent 50 percent of their income on rent,” Forrest said. “In April 2015, the median price of a 1,500-square-foot home north of Almont was $683,750. That’s the median price. The average price would be more than $1 million. In terms of income to afford that, that’s approximately $130,000—and 9 percent of the population makes that sort of money.”

As for Crested Butte, town planner Michael Yerman said the town is making a huge difference in affordable housing. “We currently have 204 units. We’re going to add 91. If over a quarter of our housing stock in town is deed restricted for affordable housing, we’re doing a pretty good job,” he said. “I see our future is with regional collaboration with the county. This is a countywide issue, not just a Crested Butte issue.”

On the horizon

In Gunnison County, Forrest said there are still opportunities to do something about affordable housing. “Unlike the I-70 corridor or the Roaring Fork corridor, we still have land opportunities. Through the One Valley Prosperity Project [OVPP] we see that as a tool and a forum to deal with regional issues like this. We don’t know all the issues yet, but by connecting mass transportation, like the Rural Transportation Authority connecting Crested Butte South where a lot of employees are, and with the connection it has to Gunnison, you have the infrastructure to be strategic about where to put housing,” he said.

According to Forrest, from a regional standpoint, the idea is to connect transportation to housing opportunities and create the maximum bang for the buck. “A needs assessment study [a near-future project of the GVRHA] could tell us how many employees are out there and need housing,” he said. “There are land opportunities in and around Gunnison. There are approximately one million square feet between Camp 4 Coffee and Tully’s in Crested Butte South that have been approved in the context of mixed-use development. So there are land opportunities, but the next step is figuring out how to do it.

“It’s a tough problem to deal with. I’ve always said I had a full head of hair before I dealt with housing problems in the mountains. You don’t change it overnight,” Forrest said.

Yerman said the new deed-restricted rental development in the town of Crested Butte called Anthracite Place, which will be located at Sixth and Belleview and offer 30 deed-restricted units, is anticipated to be done next July. There is a five-year build out expected for Blocks 79, 80 and 76. The town broke ground on Blocks 79 and 80 on July 8. Roads and utilities are being installed and affordable housing options should be first available for the local workforce in the spring of 2016. Block 76 probably won’t begin for about five years, due to budgeting constraints.

“Right now our biggest goal is to have anything we do with affordable housing be successful for the applicant or the person living in it,” Yerman said. “Too often we overregulate or devise things that look good on paper, but when it comes down to the person actually building and paying off the loan, they could potentially be in a situation that is not successful for them. So we work to create—whether it be through ownership or rentals, we’ll get there.”

The town of Mt. Crested Butte also wants to maximize the availability of affordable housing, but David Clayton, mayor of Mt. Crested Butte, said there is limited vacant land for new affordable housing projects. He also said Mt. Crested Butte does not have a sustainable mechanism to generate funds the town can spend on housing.

“We have quite a few lots available in the Homestead project in Prospect and the town has architectural plans developed for the next building that will be constructed but we do not have sufficient funds in the affordable housing fund to start the next building,” Clayton said. “Income to that fund comes from affordable housing fees charged to new commercial projects, which have not happened lately in Mt. Crested Butte.”

Erica Mueller, director of innovations and relations at Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR), told the News that the Homestead project at Prospect was put together in conjunction with CBMR and the town of Mt. Crested Butte.

“CBMR constructed all of the basic infrastructure, roads and utilities, etc. Also, as per the annexation agreement, we deeded 16 lots to the town and we own/owned 25 lots. We built and sold six units in 2007/2008 and then we all know what happened with the economy, so we haven’t built anything up there since then. Currently both CBMR and the town have lots that can be built on as part of this affordable housing neighborhood,” Mueller said.

Mt. Crested Butte town manager Joe Fitzpatrick provided some facts concerning workforce housing in Mt. Crested Butte:

—There are 63 rental or owner-occupied units with some type of deed restriction.

—A triplex has been designed in the Homestead (Prospect) subdivision and is ready for construction; however, the funds are not available to construct the building.

—The Timbers Apartments (old Marcellina Apartments) are currently going through a major remodel; seven of the units are deed restricted and will once again be available for occupancy when the building remodel is complete.

—There are multiple “free market” multiple family lots in Mt. Crested Butte that could be used for the construction of “workforce housing;” however, considering today’s market and the cost of construction, the economics for rental housing have not been attractive to developers.

—The town owns only one other piece of vacant land, Inn Site II, and it currently serves as a parking lot. [Locals know it as the “Rasta Lot,” at the corner of Gothic and Treasury.]

According to Clayton, “It takes so much money to build a unit, over a million dollars for a triplex to be built. We really lose about 50 percent of construction costs.”

Clayton believes the town of Mt. Crested Butte would be willing to look at creative ways to build new units, but they don’t even have a good statistical handle on what the true need is. “That’s one of the things that the county, the GVRHA and the municipalities are looking at—updating our housing studies,” he said.

Local businesses chipping in

Some of the larger businesses in the area have been providing affordable employee housing for years, and some are just starting to make moves in that direction. CBMR, Irwin/Eleven, and RMBL offered some insight.

At CBMR, Mueller explained that the resort manages units they rent to employees in the Lodge at Mountaineer Square, Crested Mountain Condos and The Plaza. For winter housing, they work with some properties in Almont and Gunnison to house some international employees and other employees. As for the future, Mueller said CBMR is exploring options for more development but nothing is set in stone.

“Anything we would or could do is at least a few years out, as it would require a lot of financing, permitting, planning, constructing, etc.,” Mueller said.

At Irwin, Jake Jones, director of North American operations for Irwin Guides, said Irwin/Eleven has four suites located within the town of Crested Butte. Two of the suites come with employment and two of the suites rent to employees at 50 percent below market rate. All the suites are furnished and include utilities.

“We often use housing as an incentive for our internship program or for traveling staff that may be working in Crested Butte from overseas or out of state,” Jones said.

At the moment there are no future plans for more employee housing at Irwin/Eleven.

Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory isn’t immune to the challenge either. “Housing is a real problem for us. RMBL’s future opportunities are currently limited by the ability of scientists and permanent employees to find offsite housing,” said RMBL executive director Ian Billick.

Approximately 11 full-time employees live on-site for free. Billick said the staff gets meals and RMBL handles utilities. “RMBL will have approximately 70 people on payroll this summer, about half of whom are working full-time or close to full-time. There is also growing demand by scientists to use RMBL’s services. The ability to find housing offsite has been important to accommodating this demand. This summer has been a real wake-up call, however. We’re actively exploring options and looking for other employers who might want to collaborate with us,” Billick said.

So far, the consensus is that life ain’t easy for the majority of residents in mountain resort towns. Tune in next week for Part IV of Living the Resort Town Life. We’ll dive into the history and future of deed restrictions in this region and hear what other local stakeholders and decision makers think of the direction we’re headed with housing for locals.

by Adam Broderick

Editor’s Note: There is more to living in a resort town than the difficulty of finding a place or the long political discussion over how to provide so-called affordable housing. Reporter Adam Broderick looks at different angles of the issue in this summer series that explores deed-restricted affordable housing in resort towns like Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte.

Last week we heard stories from real Buttians about what it’s like to live in affordable housing in Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte. This week we speak with government officials and housing authorities in other resort towns, exploring what has been done to address similar local housing issues.

But first, what does “deed-restricted” mean? Deed restrictions determine who can and cannot purchase a property. The goal of deed restrictions in regard to affordable housing is to keep homes affordable for years to come by restricting the amount of value one can add to a home with improvements or remodels. When deed restrictions are upheld and work as planned, the housing market may change drastically from the time of purchase but the property value remains the same, or very close to it.

Criteria for ownership in deed-restricted homes differs from one affordable housing project to the next, but for the most part, to qualify one must make a minimum income (to guarantee payments will be made on time) but not too much, and usually most income must be earned locally. Also, one must reside locally for a certain number of years. When a deed-restricted homeowner decides to sell, only a small percentage can be made for profit.

Crested Butte town planner Michael Yerman explained that the typical deed restriction is for 3 percent of the purchase price, or the consumer price index, whichever is less. “The long-term goal is to keep housing units affordable for the future, so if you deviate from that you lose that affordability,” Yerman says. “What makes these properties attractive to homeowners is that the land is dealt at a much lower rate, making the build more affordable. In exchange for that, you agree to a three percent increase.”

For example, a home that cost $100,000 will always be worth $100,000, plus 3 percent per year, or $3,000 per year. Thirty years down the line that $100,000 home would be worth no more than $190,000. However, improvements which increase energy efficiency or create additional liveable space could be included in the home’s future price.

Other covenants imposed by homeowner associations often limit developments, like determining which styles of homes can be built and which materials can be used to construct them; proximity to the street or neighboring properties; size of buildings and additional structures; pet allowances; lot storage prohibitions; road maintenance and landscaping guidelines; and even paint colors or fencing materials.

In discussions with other communities about how their efforts to implement affordable housing for locals, it has become clear that Crested Butte is not alone in dealing with the so-called “housing crisis.” I spoke with housing authorities and elected officials in ski towns around the west—Telluride, Aspen, Jackson and Park City—and all face similar housing issues.

Aspen, Colorado

“It’s not just an Aspen problem. It’s a Roaring Fork Valley-wide problem,” says Mike Krosdrosky, executive director of the Aspen Pitkin County Housing Authority (APCHA). He says Aspen has faced a housing crisis as long as he can remember; the difference is that now there is more affordable housing.

Aspen has 2,166 units currently for sale or rent with deed restrictions of some sort, and another 765 affordable homes and rentals in the surrounding Pitkin County. Somewhere around 45 percent of the total workforce in Pitkin County lives in affordable housing built by the city. Twenty-one percent of those residents are at the low-to-moderate income level and 79 percent are at the moderate-to-high income level.

“The goal from the early 1990s was to house about 60 percent [of the local workforce], so we’re below that stated goal, if that’s any indication of the ongoing way of life here,” Krosdrosky says.

In 1990, the city of Aspen passed a real estate transfer tax for employee housing and Krosdrosky says that has brought in a lot of funds to build affordable housing. “It’s a 1 percent transfer tax on the purchase price of any residential real estate over $100,000 that changes hands. A percentage of that goes into a fund for housing development. Last year the city collected $8 million to $8.5 million and we’re on track to exceed that this year.”

Cindy Christensen, head of operations for APCHA, has been with the city of Aspen for 25 years and has worked on local housing issues since 1992. She says the city went to the voters to extend the 1 percent transfer tax. “The last time we asked the voters for an extension of 40 years, it was approved no problem.”

Part of the desire is to keep workers in the community. “We have workers commuting from as far as Rifle and Eagle,” Krosdrosky says. “It’s cheaper to live in those towns than in Aspen. Rifle is probably an hour and a half from Aspen. Our bus service goes that far, but during the winter you’re adding probably an hour on that.”

This summer, the APCHA is collecting data to inform an update of its affordable housing guidelines. On July 1, the organization sent a survey to all residents and is working to distribute it to 750 businesses. “The study will help us update our affordable housing guidelines by allowing us to analyze affordability, qualifications for renting or purchasing, and other best practices for the mountain community,” Krosdrosky says. “We feel we’re overdue for getting our guidelines updated so we’re collecting new data to analyze. Once we start aggregating data we can start having conversations around these issues and make decisions based on facts instead of speculations.”

Park City, Utah

According to Outside Magazine’s “Best Towns Ever” (September 2013), “The trick to being a Park City local is finding a way to stay. There’s a tricky balance between attracting wealthy tourists and second home owners without expelling the middle class.”

There are more than 325 units of deed-restricted, low-income rental housing in Park City, one of only two communities in Utah that have an affordable housing resolution. Park City’s communications and public affairs manager Phyllis Robinson says the ratio of primary to secondary homes today is 31 percent primary residents and 69 percent second homes/part-time residents. That number has fluctuated over time but it generally hovers around 35 percent primary and 65 percent second homes/part-time residents.

Robinson says the city’s population is getting older and the community is at risk of losing economic and age diversity in the community. In a presentation to the Park City Board of Realtors last June, Robinson said the city saw a decrease in younger households and an increase in older households between 2000 and 2010. The surrounding county has become more attractive to younger households as well because of the diversity and greater affordability of housing.

To fund affordable housing, Park City has a property tax code that incentivizes renting long term versus nightly rentals or leaving a home empty. Robinson says that primary residents (long-term rentals) are taxed at 55 percent of their assessed value versus 100 percent for second homes. In 2013, Park City received the Robert Larson Public Policy Award for its ongoing commitment to affordable housing.

The city has a goal of 10 percent of its housing stock being some form of deed-restricted affordable housing. By 2020, it aims to reach or exceed 7 percent, and as of this year is at 5.5 percent. The city is looking at older condo properties to see if there is a level of redevelopment they can bring to the units, and has the funding available if such opportunities become available.

Past projects included the preservation of the Holiday Village Apartments in 2001 under the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) where each of the 80 units was awarded rental assistance, so no household pays more than 30 percent of its annual income for rent. A similar project was done a few years later, but in 2005 the City Council shifted its focus to homeownership projects, including a 13-unit project in 2008 and a seasonal housing project for homeowners.

“We are currently developing another small affordable homeownership project on city-owned land, and evaluating city parking lots for further housing development opportunities,” says Robinson.

The real challenge for Park City, as worded in last month’s Board of Realtors presentation, is this: “Keeping and attracting moderate and middle-income residents is crucial if we want to remain a real life town and have a light carbon footprint.”

 

Telluride, Colorado

“The term Draconian has been used to describe us. We are supplying housing for workers. Once you make that decision, you know what you are building and who you are building for,” says Telluride mayor Stu Fraser. “People cry when they sign the contract, and it’s from joy. We have a really overjoyed group of people that have housing, and a frustrated group that want it. They’re not cookie-cutter places. They win architectural awards. It’s the most gratifying part of my job, building housing and building it the best that we can.”

A recent survey reported that 60 percent of workers in San Miguel County want to live in Telluride, and 30 percent of the local workforce lives in Ridgway or neighboring towns and commutes to work in Telluride.

Approximately 56 percent of all homes in the town of Telluride are owner-occupied. Fraser says the goal is 60 percent, so they’re close, but it still takes time. In all, 310 homes in Telluride are deed-restricted. The town spent $25 million on 100 deed-restricted affordable homes between 2004 and 2012.

“We’re not in a rush to solve the problem in three years,” Fraser says. “And we cannot solve the problem by ourselves. Myself and the mayor of Mountain Village met with all the HR directors from all the large businesses. We said, ‘You’re telling us you don’t have places for your employees? You have a responsibility, too. Government is not set up to be a sole provider of deed-restricted housing. Everybody needs to participate.’”

Fraser and his colleagues even talked to Telluride Ski and Golf Club and they’re now looking at purchasing properties for employee housing. Lance McDonald, program director for the town of Telluride, compares the idea to the old mining model. “When the mines came in, they built housing for their employees. Then if you lost your job, you lost your place to live.”

Telluride has a half-cent asset sales tax that generates the affordable housing fund. There’s also a sliding scale fee that contributes to the fund, which is based on square footage of new houses being built in town. McDonald says larger homes pay a larger fee percentage-wise than smaller homes. But the half-cent asset sales tax is where the real money comes from and generates roughly $600,000 per year.

Of the 310 deed-restricted units in Telluride, 31 are employee dwelling units, which they call their accessory dwellings, and Fraser says the town had to do a lot to make sure homeowners were compliant with town regulations.

“We sent letters out, then followed up with phone calls to property owners to find out if they were renting. It took a while, but we got responses from virtually everybody. We had to stay on their tails to get the information back to us, but now they report annually,” says Fraser.

According McDonald, “We definitely have affordability issues, and they get hotter and colder with the economy. As our region continues to build out, it becomes exponentially harder to create meaningful, affordable housing in these resort communities. A lot of the low-hanging fruit has already been picked.”

Jackson, Wyoming

The housing crisis has really never gone away in Jackson. “It continually gets worse; however, it does take on different characteristics,” says Stacy Stoker, executive director of the Teton County Housing Authority. “During the economic crisis, we didn’t have as many people living out of cars, and the vacancy rate in rentals was higher. Now it’s almost zero.”

Of the 13,273 housing units in Jackson in 2013, 9,295 (70 percent) remained occupied; 4,139 were occupied by renters, 5,516 by owners. Roughly 36 percent of households have an income less than $50,000 and approximately 38 to 40 percent of the local workforce lives in Driggs, Idaho or another neighboring town and commutes to work in Jackson.

Elected officials in the town of Jackson have a goal of housing 65 percent of the local workforce. Stoker says Jackson was at the 65 percent mark a couple of years ago, but has slipped to about 62 percent and is losing ground pretty quickly right now. There is a Housing Action Plan in the works that should be complete within the next couple of months.

Stoker says there is no dedicated funding source for housing in the community besides developer-in-lieu fees, nor are prospective developers lined up for such endeavors, but this may come through the Housing Action Plan. There are fees that new development pays when they don’t provide housing units in the development, and those fees go toward affordable housing.

Last summer the town of Jackson passed an ordinance allowing people to sleep overnight in public parks and parking lots.

“The idea was for someone who had an RV or vehicle to be able to pull over and sleep overnight,” Stoker says. “This had not been allowed in the past. There was consideration of setting up some kind of man camp for this summer, but I believe that idea was squashed due to issues that could arise from the density of campers all in one place.”

Stoker says the biggest problem in Jackson is the shortage of rentals. “Many people have turned to using their single-family homes and condos as short-term rentals, even when they are not allowed, and this reduces the number of units available for the workforce. Last summer, we had 12 percent of the workforce living out of their cars,” she says. “A decade ago, it was difficult to find rentals, but not like it is currently.”

Stay tuned for Part III of Living the Resort Town Life, in which we’ll speak with local officials and discuss the area’s future plans to develop more deed-restricted affordable
housing.

House under contract in Gunnison

[  By Kendra Walker  ]

The Mt. Crested Butte town council made it very clear last week that it wants the town manager to live inside the town boundaries.

During their February 1 meeting, the Mt. Crested Butte town council denied town manager Isa Reeb’s request that they waive the requirement that the town manager must reside in the town of Mt. Crested Butte. She said she was unable to secure housing in the north end of the valley and had put a house in Gunnison under contract.

The Mt. Crested Butte town charter states that, “during his/her tenure of office, he/she shall reside within the town, except at the discretion of the council.”

In a staff memo to the council, Reeb stated, “I have been unable to find affordable for-sale or long-term for-rent housing in Mt. CB for my family since our search began in February 2021. My employment contract stipulated that a Homestead unit would be available, however, that housing project has not come to fruition and the timeline on completion is unknown.

“We’ve been working with several realtors and property managers for nearly a year and the instability has been detrimental to my home life and mental health,” she continued. “A permanent housing solution has presented itself outside of the Town of Mt. CB and is currently the only viable option to ensure stable, long-term housing for my family. It’s important that we find stability, and this affords us that opportunity. After moving three times in six months and being on a constant search for our next place to live, we are eager for our search to be over.”

She noted, “The decision to search outside of Mt. CB for housing was extremely difficult because I would rather live in Mt. CB. However, this decision will not affect my availability or ability to perform my duties effectively and efficiently.”

She also provided a list of other mountain communities that do not require the town manager to live within the town boundaries, unless a housing unit is already offered and provided, including Winter Park, Breckenridge, Steamboat and Avon. “All of the town managers talk to each other and from what I’ve heard is the residency requirement is outdated for resort towns,” she said during the meeting. 

“I think that this waiver is a very serious question,” said council member Nicholas Kempin. “Upfront Isa, I think this was the wrong approach for a whole host of reasons. To be very direct I think you should have brought this subject up before you went under contract on a property. You’ve shrunken the timeframe for us to decide this and I don’t think that was the way to go.”

Kempin listed the various reasons why he felt the requirement was important to be included in the town charter. “We live out here at the end of the road, a single road with no way out in the winter time,” he said, noting natural disasters, wildfires, utility outages, etc. “All of those things are important for the town manager to be present for. The town manager should also be subject to the rules and fees and costs that come with a community where you’re working on the rules and costs…If you’re putting a burden on the citizens in Mt. Crested Butte, then that same burden is on you as well.”

Kempin also noted that the previous Mt. CB town manager often made himself available to chat with council members after business hours. “You made a comment at our last meeting about what a long day it was and that we were 14 hours in and so I wonder how that will play if you have to drive home to Gunnison.” 

He continued, “I have not heard from you that the Elevation [Hotel] was unacceptable to you, and I would have expected an interim step where you came to us and said living in Elevation is not acceptable to me, I have not found other housing and so I would like to expand my search.”

Reeb explained her reasoning, “As you guys know, any type of property that’s available you have to jump on immediately, so it was not an ideal situation, nor has this entire year been an ideal situation.”

“We should have been given the opportunity to find you a place to rent or give you additional money,” said Kempin. “Buying a place in the valley was never part of our bargain with you.”

“It’s been a year,” said Reeb. “It’s been extremely hard and you guys know how hard it’s been. We talk about housing difficulties all the time.”

“I’m definitely very sympathetic to the housing struggle,” said council member Lauren Koelliker. “The difficult thing is town did purchase for about half a million dollars a condo for employee housing for our town of Mt. CB employees and none of them chose to move into it,” she said, referencing the Elk Ridge II condo the town purchased in November which is now being leased to a community member.

According to the Gunnison County Assessor’s Office, the unit is an 876-square-foot two-bed, two bath condo.

“It’s hard for me to understand how there wasn’t anything available,” said Koelliker. “I understand that it wasn’t maybe to your liking or what you were hoping for. But I think it was a solid effort by town to put a lot of money into trying to find at least a temporary solution.”

“I personally value living in the community that you’re attempting to be a part of,” said council member Roman Kolodziej.

Kempin made a motion to deny waiving the residency requirement in the town’s charter. The council voted 6-1, with Koelliker voting against, to not waive the residency requirement. 

When the Crested Butte News followed up with Reeb this week, she responded, “The outcome of the town council meeting on Tuesday, February 1, 2022, was disheartening for me and my family.

“I, like many others in this community have struggled to find housing in the valley for the past year and have been living in small, close quarters that are inadequate. The delay of Homestead affected many families in this community, and I am in the same situation they are with struggling to find an alternative option.”

She continued, “These housing challenges are not unique to the town of Mt. Crested Butte. Within the staff memo, I outlined the many resort towns within the state that either offer a single-family house or allow their town manager to live outside of town limits. One I did not include is the town of Crested Butte—which also provides a single-family home for their town manager. While I understand this is not the most ideal situation, I am at a loss of what to do if I want to remain working and living in the valley and serving the town of Mt. Crested Butte. My situation is not unique to my family, it will continue to be an issue for future town managers as well.

“I sincerely hope we will be able to come to an agreement that works for the town of Mt. Crested Butte and my family so I can continue serving the community I care so deeply about,” she concluded.

The recent cold nights provided hope that the manmade snow would guarantee an on-time opening for the 60th year of Crested Butte Mountain Resort. And it has. Whew. We won’t be making turns on Big Chute, but we’ll be making turns. Where we won’t be making turns is at the Crested Butte Nordic Thanksgiving Camp that, for the first time in three decades, was cancelled for lack of snow. Snow at Lily Lake is pretty thin, so the skinny skiing is not exactly off the hook at the moment.

I did pop up to the bottom of Warming House Hill at CBMR and was frankly impressed with what appeared to be the skiability of the hill. An old school ski instructor was showing around some new people and described it as the “Ribbon of Death.” That’s a bit of an exaggeration, at least the death part anyway. It is indeed a ribbon and it will probably be crowded at times. You definitely don’t want to fly off the edge. Ribbon of Mayhem might be more appropriate. I got my first turns in before the lifts were spinning — sort of like Titans soccer coach Than Acuff who I saw on my FB app had hiked up and skied Mt. Owen with his heavy state championship trophy on his birthday. Sort of — I hiked up to Red Lady and skied down for coffee with a participation ribbon instead of a state trophy.

But the point is there is skiing to be had. And we are a ski town. Not that I’ve put away my bike shoes yet since I see on a phone app it will be in the 50s in Gunni next weekend and there is nothing wrong with making turns in Graceland when it’s sunny and 55 except it’ll be December.

I am reading Powder Days by Heather Hansman at the moment and while she extolls the ideal of being a ‘ski bum’ she rightfully worries those days are waning. She reasons that ski town issues like housing, wages and the corporatization of the ski industry — not to mention Climate Change that may or may not be impacting the quality of the opening day ribbon — is decimating the old ski town culture. But we’re in Thanksgiving mode so we’ll save the hot button topics and the apparently not so cold reality of climate change impact on ski bums and ski towns for another time…

Walking the dogs before bed the other night I huddled up in the crisp air knowing the snow guns were blowing. I saw Jupiter shining bright and my phone’s sky view app told me we were walking beneath exotic points of light with names like Rastaban, Enit, Dipda and of course Polaris. It was beautiful.

It reminded me of the postcards I read earlier in the day that local first graders wrote to their parents. You can see them on page 21. The little kids thanked their parents for their life in the valley, for just being able to live here, for the fresh air, their siblings and pets, for the fun and the oxygen. They are not wrong. They are incredibly lucky as are most of us who have the opportunity to live and work or just visit here. It’s rarely easy but it sure is worth it. It is a different life and while the kids growing up here may not know it now, they’ll understand as they move to the ‘real world,’ whatever that is. It may be getting harder but that is why we all must keep working together to figure out how to keep that fortune viable for more than just the extremely wealthy. More topics for future editorials.

And frankly, that’s one reason some people struggle here. It’s not perfect and can at times be really, really hard. It’s a real place with real people with real problems and mental health issues are not rare in mountain towns like ours. The common mantra is that for anyone struggling with those issues, they should know we are all in it together. We are better together. There are places and people who can help get you through a rough time. We have all lost too many of our friends to depression. On Tuesday, November 30 at the CB Center for the Arts, CB State of Mind and Gunnison Valley Health are holding a community meeting to have a conversation on why “mental health matters.” Do not be afraid to show up and share. That too is part of our reality. If you feel the need to talk, call the confidential crisis hotline at 844-493-8255.

So for now, be as thankful as you can and help those in the community that need it. Spread the love. Cultivate gratitude. Also remember places like this have always been based in hope. The miners relied on hope to come here and look for silver and gold. Ranchers hope the price of beef makes raising cattle in the high country worthwhile. We all hope for a big winter to provide sustenance and the soul that comes from skiing powder – or groomers – or steeps. Workers and business owners hope for a season where they can bank the tips and season’s earnings to get through the off-seasons that allow them to live a unique life out of a cubicle and far away from a mall. Hope is a constant in this high mountain valley and there are few better places to hope.

This week the ski area opened with a strip of snow and four inches of fresh. But have some optimism — real winter will come. Lily Lake will turn white again. I anticipate the costumes to come out, the snow dances to commence, the sacrifices to Ullr to begin any minute. In the meantime, find the turns where they are —be it on Peanut, the Mt. CB Rec Path, or the Sea of Sage. Celebrate living in a place where you can do all of them in the same day and where when the sun goes down, the stars and planets guide your night walk as brightly as anywhere with a zip code. Be thankful for being in a weird but special place that some people can’t even dream of.

We’ll get to the hard issues soon enough but today, be thankful. Be grateful. Have hope. Make some turns with your trophy or participation ribbon and be proud. Here’s to the start of another season!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

—Mark Reaman

The more things change, the more they stay the same, or, I’m not from here, I just live here

By Dawne Belloise

Crested Butte was founded in 1880 as a coal mining town, having been a supply point for prospectors in the 1870s. In the mid 1950s, as the mines closed and the railroad tracks were pulled up, the town began losing its long-time families and the face of Crested Butte began to change.

When Dick Eflin and Fred Rice saw the opportunity to create a ski resort on the mountain in 1960, ski bums and hippies began arriving with new lifestyles and free-thinking concepts. They weren’t always accepted or appreciated by some of the old-time mining families, who liked their close-knit community and way of life that had been going on for almost a century.

Hippies were a strange, undisciplined wild breed, but some of them had a vision. Life without a mine was just fine for them and they organized and rallied the posse of new residents and won big in the local elections, essentially taking over the town. Then they proceeded to change everything, from the dusty streets to the ramshackle buildings and homes, eventually making Crested Butte the artsy and desirable resort town that seemingly everyone now wants to live in.

This is essentially what is once again causing the issues surrounding the rising costs and the changing times and demographics of Crested Butte.

There are potential and partial solutions to these issues, some of which have been discussed at some level of local government, and some that have been acted upon, such as the push for affordable local housing and the taxation and special fees to short-term rental owners.

But can more be done for locals who are being displaced by the rising costs of living?

The reason so many neighborhoods are dark due to empty houses that were once homes to full-time locals is that now those houses accommodate the occasional part-timers who bought their properties to enjoy a week or two, or maybe a month or two, during the glorious summer, perhaps returning for a week to ski during the holiday season. Some short-term-rent their properties. Their houses are immaculate, the owners employing management companies to manicure the yard, remove the snow, greet rental vacationers—but the houses seem soulless most of the year. As real estate prices rise, with many out-of-towners willing to pay the price to own a house in paradise, so do the property taxes.

Ideas…

There is a Colorado property tax break for seniors 65 and older who own their home and have claimed it as their primary residence for at least 10 years. The problem with this is that many seniors downsize at that age, which resets that mandatory 10-year primary residency. Seniors can wind up paying even more if they downsize than if they had stayed in their larger home. The other issue with the senior property tax break is that it’s for seniors only and not the entire population of primary residents.

The state of Florida has its so-called Save Our Homes or Homestead Tax break, which is exclusively for primary homeowners who, to apply, must live in the state for at least six months of the year, have a valid state driver’s license, pay utilities and receive mail at their address. The Homestead Tax caps the property’s valuation increase at 3 percent every reassessment. It’s a slow increase and it doesn’t necessarily increase 3 percent, or at all, during reassessment but it ensures that full-time and long-term residents can afford to stay in their neighborhoods and homes.

This tax break for primary residents puts the escalating tax burden on luxury and second-home owners who have flocked to the touristed state, paying exorbitant prices to live in tropical climates part-time and then retreat to their northern homes. A primary residence tax break such as the Florida Homestead law could be a large part of a solution to help keep the local residents from selling and moving to an affordable location elsewhere.

Unfortunately for Colorado residents, a combination of the TABOR and Gallagher amendments, along with Amendment 23, prohibits similar action unless things change at the state level. These regulations are exceedingly complex. Crested Butte town manager Dara MacDonald explained that currently, Colorado State law requires that all taxpayers be treated equally, as far as property taxation goes.

Some good change has to come from the state. MacDonald explains that the Gallagher Amendment sets the commercial property tax rate at a certain amount and then residential adjusts accordingly but the total amount of tax is set by TABOR (the Taxpayer Bill of Rights) at the state level. TABOR also restricts the growth of the state’s budget, and there can be no new taxes without voter approval. While this seemed like a good plan to lawmakers initially, many didn’t foresee its complicated future repercussions.

One of the possible solutions that the Crested Butte Town Council is considering is an Empty House tax, a flat tax on unoccupied houses, which will be discussed at the December 2 regular meeting. The basic concept of this proposed tax is to incentivize—or penalize, depending on your perspective—homeowners who leave their houses empty for a large portion of the year. The idea is that with a considerable fee, they might give thought to renting their houses out to locals; and if not, the funds collected could then be used to secure additional affordable housing for working locals.

The Empty House tax would have to be voter-approved and prior to a vote, subject to a multitude of public hearings that would address details such as how many months in a year qualifies as unoccupied, how much of a fee should be charged and where the collected monies will be spent.

Should an Empty House tax pass a town vote, the monies could be designated specifically for additional affordable housing for locals. There’s also talk of designating some of the funds for local climate issues. The measure could go on the ballot as early as next November.

It’s a progressive and viable solution to fund local housing but not without issues. There are many primary resident locals, especially seniors, who leave during the winter, no longer able to navigate Crested Butte’s icy season. There are also those who, during the five months of off-season (April, May, part of June and October, November and most of December) take the opportunity to travel. Some must travel for work, but still, Crested Butte is their primary home.

As of last year, 2018, MacDonald noted that there were approximately 430 units of housing in town that were either second homes or short-term rentals that were not occupied as a primary residence. Out of the town’s 1,500 housing units, 65 percent are long-term occupied. If the unoccupied units were charged a tax of $5,000 a year, that could generate more than $2.1 million, which could then put a real dent in providing new affordable housing.

Council also wants to consider a program similar to Vail’s InDeed program, which would pay owners of free market units in Crested Butte to put a loose deed restriction on their home. The owner would receive upfront money in exchange for ensuring the house or condo will be lived in by a local.

Looking at the housing projects, camping and STRs

As town is wrapping up the construction on the Paradise Park affordable local housing, they look toward the two acres bordered by Gothic Road and Butte Avenue as the next place for a major workforce housing push.

Part of that property that is being considered for annexation was the old town dump and has already been cleaned up. Conceptually, 40 to 70 affordable units could be built there, with a mix of single family and some apartment/condo style units like Poverty Gulch, with ownership mixed in with rentals. MacDonald feels that both the Mt. Crested Butte and Crested Butte town councils are working really hard. “Both towns have gained permanent tax revenue sources now to tackle affordable housing, in Crested Butte through our short-term rental tax, which contributes $300,000 yearly, and in Mt. Crested Butte with their new lodging tax that will contribute about $900,000 yearly.

“By collaboration and working together, MacDonald continued, “There’s a better outlook in terms of public funding and input into housing. For us to have over $1 million a year in funding for affordable housing in the north valley is a big game changer.”

Hard numbers can’t be verified but word on the street is that there were scores of locals living in the woods, mountains and campgrounds this summer who said it would be a plus having a designated place to park their vans and RVs without the worry of having to move every two weeks, as required by the U.S. Forest Service.

Most of these campers are employees of various town businesses. Having electricity for heat, clean water and a place to shower is a basic necessity of life, let alone a requirement for being presentable at work. One immediate solution to the housing issue might be to create a camping space with basic necessities, or a public bath house (Sunshine’s Bath House was a popular establishment in its day) for the locals willing to live out of their campers and vans to work in town, at least until a sufficient amount of permanent affordable housing is a reality.

There is also a flip side to the short-term rental debate. For a local trying to stay financially afloat in a rising tide of living expenses, short-terming a room or house can be the difference between staying or selling and leaving. Some primary resident locals essentially short-term-rent their home in order to cover the escalating taxes, maintenance and general cost of living in town. While there are two separate licenses for short-term rentals, the more affordable one of $200 caps the rental time at 60 days, which barely covers taxes for some.

Many working locals lucky enough to have bought their homes years ago when houses were cheaper, can’t afford the initial $1,500 outlay for an unlimited STR license and annual $750 cost. Additionally, a local who short-terms a room in their shared home can’t charge as much as they might for a whole house.

Perhaps a small step in helping to keep some locals in their homes would be to revisit the concept of further varying the structure of rental time limits, fees and taxes to differentiate between primary resident locals who short-term and those who are merely capitalizing on our community’s unique character and saleability.

As for commercial property taxation, Gunnison County officials understand the burden commercial property owners and landlords face when it comes to the quickly rising commercial valuations and thus commercial property taxes and are currently looking into possible alternatives in valuation methods (see sidebar). But their hands are tied by the state.

Need to solve our own problems

“We have to come up with a restaurant and retail organization. We can’t just wait. We have to solve our own problems, before we lose our mom and pop businesses,” says Kyleena Falzone, one of the owners of the Secret Stash and Bonez. She feels that a representative could then address the needs of the business community to the Town Council and on a county level, with a list of necessities for business survival. “We also need to bring back Western’s [Western Colorado University in Gunnison] hospitality program. They have the students, we have the jobs. Real-life experience for their students. We all could benefit.”

Rob Zillioux, Crested Butte’s finance and human resources director feels that the local business decline is also linked to the advent of online stores where you can get anything delivered to your door. Local shops may not have the availability of product and variety of goods that can be found online at mega stores like Amazon, whose quantity enables cheaper prices so mom and pop shops can’t compete.

But a dollar spent with Zappos or Amazon is a dollar not spent at Paradox or Townie Books. Much like Walmart decimated Main Streets across America in the 1990s, Zillioux says, “Amazon will now be the final nail in the coffin for many area retailers, unless they are somehow truly unique. High rent rates are problematic, but it is not the only issue hurting local retail. Amazon is cheaper of course, but at what cost to the local retailers and the environment?”

He points out that while town’s total sales tax collections (all categories) grew 5 percent last year, out-of-state sales grew 33 percent. “Out-of-state is a good proxy for mail order. Out-of-state includes businesses such as Amazon, Zappos, Apple, etc. It also includes companies such as Atmos, though. Nevertheless, out-of-state sales are increasing much more rapidly than town sales.”

Zillioux also points out that implied out-of-state sales have grown to nearly $6 million in 2018, up from about $3 million in 2014.

With rumors flying as to what will happen to Donita’s now-empty space, one way to make it affordable is to compartmentalize the space into retail shops and offices, splitting the rent between several separate businesses under one roof. The property owner has already applied to BOZAR for this permit. It’s a major outlay of capital expense for the owner but is also a potential solution to affordability while creating more shop space.

Meanwhile, another group of local business owners is coming together to buy their building, condominiumizing individual spaces so each will have their own unit. It’s a fortunate situation where the landlord is basically stepping up and helping locals stay in business. There can be solutions.

Crested Buttians have always been innovative in their approach to making their lifestyle work. It’s the lifestyle and character that we’ve created in this town that keeps us here and is worth the struggle to resolve these issues, because Crested Butte is a community that you’ll not find anywhere else on the planet. But too many of us are too often feeling like a poor little rich town.

So now the Crested Butte mid-timers who came here in the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s for the small-town mountain village and ski-town vibe know what the Crested Butte old-timers felt like when they moved here. Was that a big change or a normal evolution?

To say last week’s “Poor Little Rich Town” story (great title, by the way) struck a deep chord with some people would be an understatement, as the online views climb toward the 10,000 mark. Locals who’ve been here a bit are sad to see more expensive gentrification in Crested Butte while some of their friends are leaving. Some second homeowners feel like their financial security is being used against them when all they want is to be able to participate and contribute to a cool mountain community. The local landlords feel targeted when businesspeople who are struggling generally used the term “rent” to collectively describe the increasing costs and difficulty of making a living in the valley. While I wish I could directly relate to the wealth conundrum, I empathize with all of the feelings expressed. That is the purpose of Dawne’s series—to put in words some of the angst people are feeling as the place they know changes.

Let’s start with the landlord anxiety. In my 30-plus years here I have been a tenant of both commercial and residential property and, on a relatively small scale, a landlord of both commercial and residential property. It is far easier being the one paying rent as opposed to a mortgage, but the landlord always feels like a target is on his or her back. 

Frankly, being a landlord means you’ve taken a risk with the hope of making money during and at the end of the deal. Given property value direction these days, it might be hard to remember that prices don’t always go up. That’s where the risk comes in. Maybe I’m the only one in Crested Butte to have ever taken a bath and lost my ass on commercial property in town, but I doubt it. When people insinuate that landlords are simply being greedy for charging more rent today than 10 years ago, they are wrong. Landlords deal with the clogged toilet, the snow on the sidewalk and the light that won’t work at midnight. Landlords have to pay the mortgage and the property taxes even if their tenant is late with their rent or sends an email saying they do not intend to pay the rent at all because they don’t have the money. Every landlord wants a buffer in the bank for such cases because those cases are not that rare. On the residential side, there are good renters and bad renters. So when a landlord asks for or writes in the lease the need to cover expenses like insurance, maintenance and taxes, I get it. It is simplistic to point the finger at the landlords, who are struggling like the business owners who rent space. 

Which ties into the next element. The mid-timers got here in a time when life was more mellow and it was a lot cheaper to set up shop or just live here. Residential rents in mining shacks with little insulation were maybe $200 per month instead of the current $1,600 per month for renovated, warm condos and homes. Because there are so few old mining shacks that can be turned into ski bum rentals these days, they are being replaced by deed-restricted affordable housing. The problem now is that for those ski bums who ultimately choose to make this their home, there are fewer options to move up on the housing ladder. Relatively cheap fixer-uppers, old condos at the ski area, cheap land in Crested Butte South or an affordable free-market house in Gunnison used to be plentiful. Now, those lower rungs of the ladder are disappearing or already missing.

Business rents in the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s were easy and cheap. You could start a business in town on hope and a line of credit that the local banker would outline on a bar napkin over a beer. And while starting any business depends more on a dream and the ability to work hard, the costs for everyone these days in Crested Butte make it more difficult. Local owners remark all the time about the high fees charged by town for building and running a business, on top of the increasing property taxes and a limited tourist period to make bank. This is no longer the place you can zip in and set up an inexpensive mushroom smoothie shop and make a buck. 

The positive thing is that some existing businesses are adapting to the situation and finding new outlets to help their businesses stay viable and young people are still exploring ways to work for themselves here. That is exciting and keeps the place dynamic.

As for the wealthy second homeowners and newcomers to town, most were attracted by the ambiance that comes from Crested Butte. They may have never tried a mushroom smoothie or gotten a loan from the banker on a bar napkin but they enjoy the sort of outlaw feel that remains under the radar in Crested Butte. Those mid-timers who arrived in the ‘70s and ‘80s loved that the roads weren’t paved, lift tickets were $30, dogs roamed free and there was no high school, movie theater or, frankly, many rules. The newbies these days instead went into the “real world” and made their money and can now afford to live in the place they dreamed about. 

Or they have jobs that allow them to live here but work online. They don’t need to wait tables. But they want this small-town lifestyle with resort amenities. They appreciate the outdoors and the small town. They like riding their bikes to the post office and appreciate the education their kids receive. 

For me, the reasons one comes to this place are the most important, not the bottom line of a bank statement. Now of course, like all of us, the new arrivals might want to understand that it’s not always what they expected, so trying to change the place to be like the place they left will always cause friction. It can snow a lot here and it’s sometimes hard being in a small mountain town. It’s difficult to get places and having a cow poop on the trail is not bad but worth its weight in gold because it means the ranching industry is alive and well in the valley. Maybe people should live here a few years before getting too enthusiastic about how it can be better.

Which ties into another rough element: Watching friends and long-time businesspeople who make up the fabric of the community leave. When Lian or Rich or Chris close up shop and leave the valley, that means we don’t see familiar faces on the softball diamond, at the coffee shop or on an Elk Avenue bench. That leaves an empty feeling in the overall community and it exemplifies the change we all feel when Lian from Rendezvous is replaced by Stacy from Boulder. 

This series is intended to lay out there what is happening, as opposed to simply ignoring it or just complaining about the angst some are feeling. Looking at social media this week the story is certainly an avenue to talk about ways people are dealing. The changes are not always easy and for some the line has long been crossed. But almost without exception when people move away from here, so many wish they hadn’t because the relationships formed and the connections made in this small town do not come easily in other places, even other small resort communities. 

Everyone has their version of the good ol’ days and there are, I’m sure, other good places hidden out there. But I can think of no better place to live and raise a family. It’s a place where the pissed off landlords can easily find me to raise their issues, where you can go into an establishment and share a drink and stories with friends and acquaintances 12 months a year. New faces on Elk mean new ideas and new opportunities to meet new people. Crested Butte is still a place where you can walk out the door to incredible beauty and be in the midst of it within minutes. It is still a place where neighbors care about one another and a walk to get your mail can take an hour as you catch up with friends. Yeah, it is more expensive now than it was then, it is bigger than yesterday and there is too much Crestitude by the newer “locals,” but it is a pretty wonderful place. 

The early mid-timers changed CB but have tried to honor the mining and ranching culture of the community as they pushed for resort amenities. Now many of them are feeling pushed out. Change is always inevitable and we are in a big wave—but how we evolve is ultimately up to us. 

—Mark Reaman

It Ain’t Easy (being rich and pretty)

By Dawne Belloise

Throughout Crested Butte’s long history and metamorphosis from a mining town to a ski resort, businesses have always come and gone. But recently there seems to be a rash of closings and a migration of residents to more affordable towns where home ownership is realistically attainable. Many feel it’s not the locals who are going to have a say in this town’s future and development—it’s the big money. 

Crested Butte cannot be a town of tourism-based economics if the shops, galleries and restaurants that contribute to its attractive character—and are major players in bringing in tourists and return visitors—cannot financially survive. 

The two main reasons for local business closings, cited by affected businesses, are the escalating cost of space and lack of a consistent workforce. It boils down to the town’s declining residential housing for lower-income workers and commercial building stock being driven up in value by buyers willing to pay the high sales price. Investors and wanna-be-Buttians who buy property at escalating market prices have driven up the accompanying property taxes while depleting the housing stock for locals who make a living in the tourist industry. This not only increases taxes; it affects costs across the board, from new construction to roof shovelers to the price of a meal at your favorite local eatery and, more notably, raises the total cost of a lease. 

Landlords say they are in a tough spot and find they must increase rates, both commercially and residentially, to keep up with the ever-increasing property taxes and other expenses associated with owning property in a resort town. 

The difficulties of being a landlord are straightforward and most say they try to work with their tenants. Every landlord dreads empty spaces. But they’re often caught in the riptide of higher expenses, treading the rising property taxes, dealing with expensive maintenance and repairs, and sometimes handling tenants who can’t keep up with their rent on time or at all, leaving the landlord to fully cover all their overhead.

Jos Rijks, who with his wife, Teresa, has owned Rijks Family Gallery since 1993, feels landlords are stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place, especially with rising taxes. “People feel that art framing is already expensive—are you going to keep increasing your prices because the taxes are escalating?,” Rijks wonders. 

The Rijks have rented out a section of their store to Valerie Jaquith, who has a thriving soap and body product business, Colorado Real Soap Company, but couldn’t find an affordable commercial retail space in town. The Rijks stepped up in a win-win situation for both businesses, but Jos also warns, “If it comes to the point where we feel our business is not financially worthwhile, why keep working? We’ll simply close the business.”

Because of state laws, commercial property is hit with a sledgehammer when it comes to property taxes. The Gallagher amendment essentially dictates that any tax increase will hit commercial property roughly four times higher than residential. 

On the residential side of things, the county bases property valuations for taxes on property sales; in other words, market value, and as most people understand, market value is high right now. 

In Crested Butte, the average single-family home to date this year sold for well over a million dollars, compared to the 2013 average price of $913,000, and the 2014 price of $1 million. In 2015, prices of single-family houses in town dropped to an average $803,400, while they rose from $1.2 million in 2016, to $1.35 million in 2017, and to $1.3 million in 2018. Two months ago, a single-family residence on Ninth Street sold for $4.46 million, the highest price ever paid in town for a single-family residence. The next county property reassessment, which happens every two years, will reflect these current sales and taxes will most likely continue to rise. 

It is obvious that a middle class working family will not easily be able to afford a free-market house in town. Even deed-restricted affordable units being sold in Crested Butte that might be appropriate for a young growing family can be expensive, costing between about $200,000 to more than $400,000, depending on size and incomes. 

The world, weather and parking all play a role

Businesses now have had to reinvent themselves, expand product or share space to stay afloat. “There’s constant competition from the internet,” says Kim Raines, owner of Mountain Colors, a paint, lighting, supplies, sundries and hardware fixture store. “If I just sold paint I probably wouldn’t be in business. I need multiple things.” 

Raines’ advice to other businesses: “Make sure that 100 percent of your sales aren’t in the valley. I make sure that whatever I’m selling can be sold to other places as well.” Ninety percent of her product is sold out of her store but she also ships her products to second homeowners’ primary homes in other states, notably Texas. Instead of ordering off Amazon, Raines’ clientele have a good business relationship with her, trust her consultation and prefer working with a human who will personalize their experience. 

“It’s not easy to own a business anywhere, but everything seems to be harder in Crested Butte,” Raines says. “Just the day-to-day things, like going to work, are exacerbated by the harshness of winter—tunneling out of your house through deep snow, shoveling your car, blizzard conditions—but these are the circumstances that also keep the hardy in the community and drive out the fair-weather Buttians.”

Businesswoman Kyleena Falzone doesn’t plan on relocating anytime soon. She and her partners own two successful restaurants, the Secret Stash and Bonez, which are doing well but she talks of the challenging costs put on businesses and property owners by the town and county. 

Falzone feels that the town’s parking fees are a barrier to any new entrepreneur who wants to start a business in town. The town charges $13,000 per 100 square feet of commercial space, a one-time charge for businesses that are not grandfathered in, or change the use of the building, which impacts downtown parking. Restaurants and bars impact parking more than a retail shop or office space so, for example, if a retail or office space converts into a restaurant or bar, they would be assessed a fee in lieu of providing parking spaces on their own property, as many of the downtown buildings don’t have the lot space for a parking area. 

Falzone feels those fees are exorbitant and adds, “The town is collecting sales tax on our customers, our business and then they’re charging us parking fees? It’s the most ludicrous thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” 

According to town records, when the Secret Stash (the Company Store building) was converted from several small retail shops and Paradise Café, some of the square footage was already grandfathered for a restaurant but most of the space was assessed the in-lieu-of-parking fee, which totaled $143,000. Bonez was also required to pay the in-lieu-of-parking fee for their outside patio. “Do you know how much money you have to generate to have a profit? It’s a crazy expense for us,” Falzone points out. 

When the Public House converted from retail and office space and expanded their square footage into their basement for a restaurant-bar, they also were assessed the parking fees to the tune of $156,000. They also created three hotel rooms upstairs but had those parking spaces in the back of their lot. 

Falzone says she wouldn’t mind paying those parking fees if the town used them solely to create more affordable housing. The town designates those fees to purchase more parking areas, which come at a premium price for the town with real estate prices soaring. 

Falzone feels strongly that the number one issue for local businesses is employee housing but agrees there also have to be tax breaks on both property and sales taxes, “or we’re going to have a massive problem where nobody lives here and more businesses close.” 

Bonez and Secret Stash employ 165 workers, some of whom have been living out of their cars, vans and, if lucky, an RV. Falzone and her partners bought into the affordable employee housing recently offered to business owners by the town this year because, Falzone says, “I’m compassionate about our workers. We have employees who are living out of vans. What kind of a life is that for them?” 

Falzone also worries, “What happens if we go into another recession? Investors buy up the buildings and hold on to them, depriving locals of business opportunities and property ownership in their own town. I don’t want to see our employees leave or businesses close anymore. I’ve thought about moving my business somewhere else, but I don’t want to leave. This is my community.” 

Franchise protection

Currently, Crested Butte needn’t worry about franchises arriving and opening shop in retail spaces that are available or unaffordable to local businesses on Elk Avenue. The Town Council progressively took the initiative in approving an ordinance last year that limited where formula businesses, or franchises, could be located in town. They cited the threat to Crested Butte’s distinctive character and aesthetics, historical relevance and economic vitality by the “homogenizing effect.” It was forward-thinking and a step in the right direction.

The best plans we can develop will focus on keeping our community intact. More changes are going to come—it’s already happening at a rapid pace but we can find viable and creative solutions to enable affordability for primary residents and businesses when townspeople, workers, business owners, landlords and government officials collaborate and try to create feasible solutions together as a community. More on that next week.

It is election season in Crested Butte and we have a race for Town Council. Between now and the end of October, the Crested Butte News will be asking council candidates to answer questions related to issues in the community. We are asking that they keep their answers to no more than 600 words total. If you have a question you want us to ask them, send it to editorial@crestedbuttenews.com.

The News will also be sponsoring a Candidates Forum on Sunday, October 20 at the Crested Butte Center for the Arts. We will begin the questioning at 6 p.m. and expect the event to last between 90 minutes and two hours.

Ballots will be mailed out by October 18 and must be returned by November 5.

—Mark Reaman

 

Jim Schmidt

Mayoral candidate

Occupation: Driver for Alpine Express.

Years in the valley: 43.

Why are you running for Crested Butte mayor? I bring experience and institutional knowledge to the office of mayor at a time when there will be many fresh faces on council. I look forward to the blending of new ideas with the parameters the town has set over the years.

What do you see as the number one issue facing the Town Council right now? The number one issue is affordable/workforce housing. The town has 27 units under construction plus the three units the Fire District is building. We will have more than 24 percent of the living units in town with a deed restriction for workforce housing. We need to continue to work with our partners in the valley, especially Mt. Crested Butte to produce more opportunities for workers to find housing.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: My favorite month in Crested Butte is June. It’s usually not too busy and the weather is spectacular (though this September has been great).

Favorite candidate running for president right now: My favorite candidate running for president is Pete Buttigieg. He is very articulate. He is not one for hyperbole. He has an incredible background and, what can I say, he is a mayor.

Favorite musician or group: I’m an old guy. I grew up on the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. But give me some Eric Clapton anytime!

 

 

Will Dujardin

Council candidate

Occupation: Crested Butte Town Council 2017–Present, Head Freeride Coach CBMST, Mountain Bike Coach CBMST, fill-in server/painter/events, Badog Alley volunteer coordinator.

Years in the valley: 11.

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council? Two years ago I ran for Town Council on a topical level because I was frustrated with slow action taken by council on STRs and I was encouraged by friends and family to get involved in community I care about in a way that I was capable of affecting change. On a deeper level, I think I ran because it didn’t take long for me to care enough about this community through various work, adventures and volunteering to believe we are capable of truly shaping the future of Crested Butte in a way that connects to ourselves and why we live here to political action.

I am looking to continue my work on Town Council because it has felt like we have been going full send across so many important issues that matter to our community; we are still trying to get a grip on affordable housing, climate action, community health, public lands, tourism and even the reckless commodification of our town character so I hope this community trusts I can keep working for its constituents in these areas preserving our community values and way of life.

What do you see as the number one issue facing the council right now? Two years later I still see creating affordable housing solutions as the number one issue facing the Town Council right now. I do not take our progress in the last two years for granted, developing Block 76 is putting people in housing and the business partnerships in Phase 2 are pioneering an affordable housing tool, but we still need to take more action creating rental housing and affordable ownership opportunities while continuing to protect existing housing by increasing the percentage of deed-restricted homes in town.

I believe we are still playing catch-up since losing a bunch of housing to short-term rentals and we can’t be afraid to look at density in our future projects as a way to accomplish our affordable housing goals and push for more resource efficiency in regards to our Climate Action Plan efforts.

Affordable housing ties so many parts of community together from our mental health to our businesses and our community values. It feels a little funny when we as a community can figure out how to market this valley to the rest of the world and offer amazing experiences in the Rocky Mountains, but can’t figure out how to take decisive action to protect the community members that help run this town and make Crested Butte what it is. It is going to take thoughtful development of our scarce resources and implementing creative solutions through public and private enterprise to make more than a dent in the affordable housing crisis.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: Mayuary, I love letting seasonal confusion dictate which recreational activity is called upon for the day, whether skiing, mountain biking, river stuff, screenholes, books, or bench-sitting.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: A Warren/Sanders combo would align the most with my political beliefs. I was a Bernie Sanders delegate at the Colorado Democratic State Convention in 2016 representing our Gunnison County Democrats. I think the issues and ideals he has been fighting for throughout his career are mainstream Democratic priorities at the present. Elizabeth Warren is one of the smartest presidential candidates I have ever seen and her record in the Senate fighting against big business is something to be proud of. For me it’s either of these two and then any Democrat before Trump.

Favorite musician or group: Been on a Lizzo / Slayer / Tool / A Tribe Called Quest / Hall and Oates / Logic kick for a bit.

 

 

Candice Bradley

Council candidate

Occupation: Business owner, tattoo artist.

Years in the valley: Five years and 5 months.

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council? I am running for Crested Butte Town Council because I think it’s important to maintain an open and accepting community. I have made it my goal while serving on Town Council to seek out those who may have differing views or ideas and hear their side of the issues.

What do you see as the number one issue facing Town Council right now? When I have asked people what they think the biggest issue is in Crested Butte right now, they often say housing. I agree that the lack of rental housing is a major issue, but I also see a larger darkness on the edge of town. The housing crisis has made severe impacts on all aspects of the community, businesses possibly being the most visible. Combining housing needs with increasing property taxes, short-term rentals, the purchase of the ski area and healthcare needs. I think that developing a plan to financially prepare for a change in our economy, the diverse needs of the people in our community and environmental sustainability are key to the success of the community. In short, I believe the number one issue facing Town Council is strategic planning for the future needs of this community.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: June.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: I don’t currently have a favorite candidate running for president of The United States. I am interested in a couple Democratic candidates and need more time to decide.

Favorite musician or group: Currently, my favorite band is Lightning Dust.

 

 

Mallika Magner

Council candidate

Occupation: Attorney with a local practice specializing in land use, municipal representation, commercial transactions, estate planning and homeowners associations.

Years in the valley: I moved to Crested Butte in 1995, left in 2006 to spend time in India and returned full-time in 2017 (with a name change from Laura to Mallika).

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council? To continue to put my skills, experience, deep ties and love for our community in service to the Town. I want to listen and hear the concerns and issues facing those who live here, and represent the entire community.

What do you see as the number one issue facing Town Council right now?  Helping maintain our core values in this rapidly changing community, including providing housing for our workforce, making decisions that support local businesses and residents, encouraging our bike and pedestrian lifestyle, addressing climate change and making responsible fiscal decisions.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: September.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: Elizabeth Warren.

Favorite musician or group: The Clash.

 

 

Monique “Mona” Merrill

Council candidate

Occupation: Owner of Amazing Grace, an old-school natural foods café in Breckenridge. Mother of a 6-year-old at CBCS. Board member at the Children’s Trailhead Museum.

Years in the valley: Our family purchased our home by the Nordic Center 10 years ago and our daughter started at Stepping Stones five years ago. I have been coming to Crested Butte since 1993, racing the Alley Loop, the Grand Traverse, the NORBA bike races and numerous other grassroots events.

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council? I love Crested Butte and want to keep it community based. I decided to raise my daughter here, and our family plans to be part of Crested Butte forever. I am a small town gal and what made me fall in love with Crested Butte is the true face-to-face community of locals that live and thrive here. Like many of us, I am troubled by the rapid changes happening to our town—many of which threaten the very things we love most about Crested Butte.

I lived in Breckenridge for 20 years and witnessed its transformation from a small ski town to a mini city. I watched as the town gentrified and the locals cleared out. I feel a sense of urgency and duty to stop these losses from happening here in every way that we can.

I think the grassroots non-profits, local businesses on Elk and local families living in town are imperative to the health of the community. What Crested Butte has is special: CBMBA, CBCC, Mountain Roots, Children’s Trailhead Museum, School of Dance, the Nordic Center… just to name a few. I hear a lot changed before I got here but there is still so much community and core left that can be preserved, especially compared to other ski towns. I believe my experience running a small business and serving on Open Space in a ski town purchased and developed by Vail Resorts will provide useful insight to town Council.

What do you see as the number one issue facing Town Council right now? How do we manage growth in such a way that it doesn’t displace locals or our grassroots vibe and leave us with empty town syndrome? How do we manage growth as it affects our backcountry crowding and local trails? My preference would be to see zero growth, but I realize more visitors and growth are inevitable and help support local families, bring in tax dollars and create jobs. Where we must accept it, how can we minimize the impact and maximize the benefits? I commend town on their five-year affordable housing plan, taxation on STRs and long-term deed restrictions. On council, I want to make sure we follow through with implementation of the five-year plan, add to our open space, improve collaboration with the county and increase funding where possible—finding ways to have visitors and second homeowners pay what it takes to preserve the town we all love.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: September… No—every month! I go on trails and in the backcountry almost every day so I know where to hide.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: Elizabeth Warren.

Favorite musician or group: Xavier Rudd. He sings about saving the earth and keeping it real. He turned down the Belly Up and rocked the house at the Center for the Arts last month and I ran into him at Mountain Earth. Love it.

 

 

Laura Mitchell

Council candidate

Occupation: Ortho-Bionomy practitioner, property manager, Frank’s Deli star sandwich maker, Crested Butte Town Council member.

Years in the valley: This will be my 33rd ski season in the valley.

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council? There are a few projects that I have helped get started that I would like to see to completion. I have some history as a “mid-timer” that adds some depth to the council.

What do you see as the number one issue facing the Town Council right now? Brush Creek development.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: October.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: Marianne Williamson.

Favorite musician or group: Leftover Salmon.

 

 

Anne Moore

Council candidate

Occupation: Self-employed professional cleaner.

Years in the valley: My parents picked this place to raise me—I chose it of my own volition as an adult. As result, I have spent the vast majority of my 36 years on this planet living in the most beautiful valley on Earth.

Why are you running for Crested Butte Town Council?

Through many years of volunteering in order to further positively progress our community, I feel it is time for a more direct, hands-on approach. Aligned with my mentality for positively impacting the Crested Butte community, the Great Muhammad Ali encouraged, “Service to others is your rent for your space on this planet,” and I am here to serve the people.

What do you see as the number one issue facing Town Council right now? Affordable rental housing.

Favorite month in Crested Butte: I thrive in November and May. I love and value the breathing room and the space for everyone to be themselves.

Favorite candidate running for president right now: Bernie Sanders has my full support. Furthermore, I admire Marianne Williamson for helping to expand the conversation. To have a presidential candidate discussing the deeper matters of our souls and responsibilities to Earth is exactly what we need. The bigger the conversation, the more informed and conscious the results are.

Favorite musician or group: The Gorillaz.