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Revised west Steamboat housing proposal going to City Council Tuesday night

Scott Franz
A rendering shows the conceptual layout of a new series of neighborhoods in west Steamboat Springs.
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— Real estate development firm Brynn Grey will return to the Steamboat Springs City Council on Tuesday with a revised annexation concept that would create a new neighborhood for locals on the west end of town, complete with space for a new elementary school, commercial spaces and a grocery store.

The developers have changed their proposal to a smaller phased annexation, a concept city elected officials appear to favor over a larger annexation of the entire former Steamboat 700 parcel.

In Phase 1, the proposed annexation area now includes about 400 housing units in three neighborhoods that would also encompass open space and trails.



The neighborhoods would host a mix of housing types, including duplexes and townhomes.

Eighty percent of the homes in the Gateway Neighborhood are proposed to come with a deed restriction that would prohibit short-term rentals and require that homeowners work at least 30 hours per week in Routt County.



Brynn Grey has a strong track record of creating housing for locals in Summit County.

The developer turned a reclaimed dredge mine site into a popular neighborhood called Wellington near Breckenridge.

And their neighborhood called Peak One in Frisco houses a cross section of local workers, ranging from teachers to photographers to the head of an environmental organization.

Tyler Horne, a resident of the Wellington neighborhood who owns a business in Steamboat, recently raved about the quality of his neighborhood to this city’s elected officials.

“The only real reason I live in Breckenridge is because of the sense of community the Wellington neighborhood creates,” Horne wrote to the Steamboat Springs City Council on Monday. “It’s magic. In fact, we have a closed Facebook group that is literally called Pleasantville.”

Horne said the neighborhood is full of children, adding that he would “want to live nowhere else.”

But, he said he would consider moving to Steamboat if such a neighborhood were created here.

Brynn Grey has already met six times with the City Council to discuss the prospect of creating a series of new neighborhoods on the west end of town.

Since their last meeting, two council members have joined other community members on a tour of Brynn Grey’s other neighborhoods in Summit County.

On Tuesday, Brynn Grey is proposing a revised Memorandum of Understanding with the city which the firm says will require less staff time.

To make new neighborhoods a reality here, there are still a number of hurdles that would have to be overcome.

The City Council last month rejected Brynn Grey’s initial proposal for how to address the additional water infrastructure the developments would need.

The rejection came after community members raised concerns about the proposal and noted that the city’s rules require developers to bring water rights to the table or pay a fee-in-lieu of those rights.

To reach Scott Franz, call 970-871-4210, email scottfranz@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottFranz10


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