On June 3, proposed improvements to access, parking and drainage at Penny Hot Springs were approved by the Pitkin County Planning and Zoning Commission. Access work at the non-commercial springs off Highway 133 has been under discussion for about six years. In 2022, Pitkin County Open Space and Trails (OST) opened a public survey to source community input on desired adjustments. Close to 70% of respondents supported improvements to the free, public hot springs.
Since that survey closed in September 2022, the office has been working to fine-tune options that meet the public need. Pitkin County OST also consulted with the Crystal Caucus and the Pitkin County Healthy Rivers and Streams Board in 2022 while considering design alternatives. Top changes under consideration were trail access, stabilizing the streambank and improvements to the parking area. Public support allowed the OST Penny Hot Springs Steering Committee to move forward with integrating input into an actionable plan.
Steps identified during the design process include addressing runoff issues and streambank erosion, revegetating the nearby slope, improving footpaths down to the hot springs and redesigning and repaving the parking lot. By January 2024, OST staff and a consulting team were able to start preparing construction documents for an identified preferred alternative (top choice) of improvements.
The Planning and Zoning approval earlier this month clears another step in the process to implement those improvements. The preferred alternative’s next hurdle is securing permits for construction. Carly O’Connell, an OST senior planner and landscape architect, spoke with The Sopris Sun to provide additional insight on the project and an approximate timeline.
O’Connell emphasized that no OST construction work is being done at Penny Hot Springs in 2025. The final planning and design phase involves acquiring several permits and completing one or two more studies. “We’ll be required to do a floodplain permit through Pitkin County,” explained O’Connell. “Modeling has been completed to show that construction won’t lead to a rise in the river,” but OST still needs to run a slope stability study to finalize strategies.
The department is also balancing the Penny Hot Springs project with recent high-urgency land acquisition projects. OST has a number of considerations ahead of setting a time for construction, but O’Connell confirms that the public will be notified well in advance of work around the hot springs. “We would definitely provide advance notice starting six months before the project at the hot springs and provide other public communications,” she said. “We want to let the community know when construction would occur given the love for the place.”
O’Connell elaborated that OST has many environmental considerations when scheduling improvements to open space resources. “We would need to avoid any times of year when fish are spawning, and high water is not a safe time to construct.” Even so, the closure time is not expected to be very long once it does get scheduled.
“Construction time would be limited to short periods during the summer with a condensed schedule. Users could expect up to a two-month closure of the springs when it gets underway,” O’Connell said. “The hardscape improvements could be completed in one season, once construction begins.”
During the interview, O’Connell noted the Pitkin County OST will be opening a survey this summer on watershed and land use, and invites all interested parties in the region to participate, even residents of Eagle and Garfield counties. Once live, that survey will be accessible on the OST website: www.pitkincounty.com/443
You can read more about the Penny Hot Springs project on that same website. The page includes links to the June 3 presentation deck and other reference sources. For more about the history of Penny Hot Springs, The Sopris Sun covered those details in 2022 during the survey process.