The Steamboat Pilot & Today

Steamboat Springs — The Steamboat Springs Plan-ning Commission approved a zoning change to allow 34 duplex lots to be sold as timeshares.

At Thursday night's meeting, the commission unanimously approved changing the land where the More's Corner subdivision sits at the northeast corner of Rockies Way and Steamboat Boulevard to a denser zone.

The applicant, Mountain Meadow Preserve LLC, asked for the zoning change so the 66 luxury townhomes, which plan to be sold for more than $1 million, could be sold as either wholly owned or fractional units.

The zoning changed from multifamily medium density zoning -- where timeshares are not allowed -- to resort residential, which allows duplexes under conditional use and timeshares.

The More's Corner development is below Rockies Condominiums, which is zoned resort residential. The city planning staff said the More's Corner development acts as a transition area between the mountain base's more dense condominium developments and duplex units below the project.

Planning Commission Chairwoman Kathi Meyer and Planning Commissioner Dick Curtis said they approved of the more dense zoning. Curtis said when the project previously went through the city his concern was that it did not have enough density to mix with the rest of the mountain base.

"I felt like the density could have been increased," Curtis said. "I am very happy to see the applicants use the zoning change. It is certainly more suitable to (the resort residential zone) and what is typical to the base area."

Developers had to ask for a zoning change because in 1999 when the plan was originally approved, timeshares were not a regulated use.

In 2001, the property was rezoned to multifamily medium density as part of the Community Development Code update process. That zone did not allow timeshares, but the more dense resort residential zone does.

"We think it is basically a correction to be what was approved in the first place," the applicant's attorney Bob Weiss said.

After the 1999 approval and before the code update occurred, the property changed hands from Rex Weimer to Mountain Meadows Preserve LLC.

The city entered into an interim development agreement with the current developers to allow them to lay the project's infrastructure and apply for building permits while they went through the zoning change process.

A model duplex unit already has been built.

"Instead of me just saying this is what I am going to do, it is nice to have a product there so you can see what we have done," developer Bruce Shugart said.

-- To reach Christine Metz call 871-4229

or e-mail cmetz@steamboatpilot.com