STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — A proposal for a new housing development, which could add 86 housing units close to the base of Steamboat Ski Area, won a preliminary nod of approval Sept. 28 from the city of Steamboat Springs Planning Commission. Members of the commission voted 5-2 in favor of the diverse mix of housing being proposed by a local development group

The developers of Urban Street at the Mountain plan to build 12 row houses, four duplexes, eight triplexes and two condominium buildings just off Walton Creek Road and across Owl Hoot Trail from Casey’s Pond on a six-acre site zoned for high density.

The project goes next to City Council Oct. 10.

“The project goal for us is to create a dense, livable community to best use the site and zoning, “ Jeremy MacGray of The Accelerant Group told Planning Commission. “We did not want to create a tall condo project that would be built in one mass and require a long absorption time and not meet a need in the community, which would (include) tourists and locals.”

Developers are asking the city for an extended vesting of the development permit to allow them to develop the smaller-scale buildings first and leave the condo buildings for a second phase. The tallest buildings in the project would be 8 feet lower than the 63-foot maximum in the zone district, according to city planners.

MacGray told Planning Commission the gross building square footage in the project will be about 200,000 square feet at buildout, with about 132,000 of that livable space.

He described the three-story row houses as having decks atop their flat roofs, and he said the residences would be fronted by short sidewalks with a small fenced lawn big enough to keep a pet happy. The triplexes would be built along a looped interior road and include two-car garages with the main living area on the second level.

MacGray added that the individual buildings vary significantly with different roof forms in a modern look coupled with traditional western materials – natural wood and timbers, and even some reclaimed wood and concrete surfaces. He also said the development team is determined to keep the design/build team in the valley.

Stauffer told Planning Commission her office had received 16 public comments on the project – 12 positive and four objecting to the project.

The discussion of Urban Street at the Mountain during the planning commission hearing was not without its detractors – most of them residents or advocates for the single-family portion of the Wildhorse Meadows development further north on Owl Hoot Trail.

Frank Russo, who lives in Wildhorse, rejected the notion that most of the residents of Urban Street at the Mountain would exit the development in their vehicles onto Walton Creek Road. Instead, he predicted, traffic generated by 86 new household  would follow Owl Hoot north to Broomtail Way in his neighborhood because it’s the straightest line to Mount Werner Road and either shopping at Central Park Plaza or the base of the ski area.

“Envison yourself a homeowner in this new community,” Russo urged Planning Commission. “If you’re going up to the mountain to enjoy the amenities, or go skiing, you’re going to cut through Wildhorse.”

To reach Tom Ross, call 970-871-4205, email tross@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @ThomasSRoss1.