All Glenwood Springs City Council members were present in person for the regular April 2 meeting.
Two items were pulled from the agenda and will be rescheduled when presentations are ready. One of which was related to a fee waiver request for The Glen development, and the other a continued discussion about creating employee housing at The Residences on Grand motel.
Just one member of the public stood up during the portion of the meeting set aside for comments on items not on the agenda. Lori Chase asked council to direct staff to pass the word on to developers of a housing project at 8th and Midland to pick up trash outside their construction fence.
Under Council Announcements, Mayor
Pro-Tem Erin Zalinski called attention to the Spring River Cleanup on April 25,
and encouraged volunteers to sign up.
Among the environmental-oriented reports from Councilor Steve Smith was an announcement that Colorado Communities for Climate Action (CC4CA) will be meeting in Carbondale on April 17 at 9am in the Third Street Center.
Following unanimous approval of the consent agenda and proclamations on Wild-
fire Awareness and Parkinson’s Awareness months, it was on to a trio of action items.
Charter Commission report
Former City Councilor Charlie Willman and John Banks brought forward suggestions from the Glenwood Springs Charter Commission, which was re-commissioned in spring 2025 to study possible changes to the City charter.
Changes could run the gamut from basic housekeeping items related to the City’s procurement process, to some rather significant changes to the way City elections are conducted.
The commission picked through the charter
“piece by piece,” and came to the consensus that City procedures should be modernized related to seeking bids for administrative needs, especially in the City Clerk’s Office.
Also discussed was whether Glenwood Springs should have an elected mayor’s seat, rather than appointed by the sitting council. Moving the municipal election to November, in conjunction with the general election, rather than in April of every odd-numbered year, and doing away with ward voting, were also discussed.
However, no consensus was reached on those matters, Willman said.
Any change to the City Charter, regardless of how major or minor, must go to an election, City Attorney Karl Hanlon explained.
Council members were less inclined to ask voters to consider any election changes, since there doesn’t seem to be a big push among the electorate to do that. Having the City election in conjunction with state and national elections could also cause City issues and council elections to get “lost in the sauce,” in Zalinski’s words.
Smith did propose asking voters to change the way vacant council seats are appointed, so that an election could come sooner. He did not get a second on that amendment.
After a lengthy discussion, council voted unanimously to deal just with procurement procedures and a few other housekeeping items in a ballot question for the April 2027 election.
Mixed-used building approved
Council heard a proposal from Chip Whipple and daughter Candace Whipple of Whipple Development for a new in-fill building development at 210 8th Street, one block east of City Hall and the Garfield County Courthouse.
The four-story, mixed-use building is to include 24 residential units on the top three floors, and two commercial spaces on the ground floor.
The Whipples also recently developed the remodeled Western Hotel building on Cooper Avenue into residential units.
The new 8th Street building will fill the vacant lot on the south side of the street, which is now used for private parking, including a food truck.
No on-site parking is planned, but the Whipples are leasing spaces from the Maxwell Anderson Hotel for tenants of the new building to sub-let. A similar arrangement is in place for the Western.
Council members hailed the plan as exactly the type of in-fill development that the City has been encouraging. The plan was approved 6-1, with Councilor Ray Schmahl opposed.
“This is a marvelous project that fulfills a lot of our goals,” Smith said. “It’s transit-
oriented … provides housing … is creatively designed … and enhances our downtown as a diverse and livable place.”
Rental assistance
In the final action of the night, council voted 5-2 to renew the City’s Employer-Based Rental Assistance Program, moving it from a one-year pilot program to a five-year trial program, to be reviewed in three years.
The program utilizes the City’s affordable housing funds, working with Glenwood Springs employers to provide rent subsidies to qualified employees.
As a pilot, the program served six employers at various points over the last year, with four employers currently enrolled, City Housing Development Manager Watkins Fulk-Gray said. That amounted to $16,400 in subsidies, he said.
The program is budgeted for $250,000 per year, but it’s unlikely the City will grow participation to that level anytime soon, he said.
Still, it is worthwhile and is having an impact, a majority of council agreed. Voting “no” were councilors Schmahl and David Townsley, who have stood generally opposed to government-subsidized housing.