In early July, Harvest Roaring Fork, LLC resubmitted its application to construct a freshly rearranged Harvest Village, a 1,500-unit subdivision along Highway 82 between Carbondale and Glenwood Springs, after its application was denied in March of this year by a vote of 6-1. A hearing for the new application is yet to be announced.
Harvest Village, formerly Harvest Roaring Fork, is a potential town-sized development on the former Sanders Ranch which would include nine neighborhoods, 55,000 square feet of commercial space, a 120-room hotel and enough housing for 3,000 to 5,000 people all on 283 acres. The new application seeks to address concerns surrounding density, traffic and environmental impact voiced by Garfield County staff and the Planning Commission.
Richard Myers of Harvest Roaring Fork, LLC and Texas-based Realty Capital is optimistic that, with these changes, Harvest Village will benefit those looking for affordable housing in the Roaring Fork Valley. Four hundred fifty (30%) of the units in the development will be deed-restricted “resident only” workforce housing in one of the largest single contributions to affordable housing in county history.
However, for community members in the volunteer-led Cattle Creek Confluence Coalition (CCCC), the application is still too big to stomach.
Changes to the application include a reduction of density in the North and South Riverfront neighborhoods by approximately 40% to reduce environmental impact in those areas, a reduction of potential residential density from 1,950 to 1,500 by eliminating the possibility of ADUs on the subdivision and an expansion of transitional and buffer areas between the conservation easement and residential neighborhoods.
The reduction of density in the Riverfront neighborhoods was accomplished by increasing the density in two other areas: North Frontage by an increase from 15 to 18 units per acre and Sopris by an increase from 8 to 9 units per acre. However, the minimum scale of the development remains the same overall.
The resubmitted application was first made publicly available in early July as part of the Colorado Open Records Act. However, a newer version of the application with minor spelling corrections is now available for viewing on Garfield County Planning’s website.
When the Garfield County Planning Commission held a public hearing for the first version of the application on March 11, citizens of Garfield County filled every seat in the hall to voice their concerns about the application. While many acknowledged the need for affordable housing, a majority of the citizens who came to the podium argued that the development was simply too large and dense for the area. Many of the speakers in attendance that night were members of CCCC.
Glenwood resident John Neiley of CCCC was dissatisfied with rearranging rather than reducing the residential density in the newest application. “It’s like moving the deck chairs to the bow of the Titanic,” he said.
With regard to traffic, the applicant estimated a 44% increase of traffic on Highway 82 at peak travel times. Myers said in an interview that his team had been given approved plans by the Colorado Department of Transportation for a new traffic light intersection along Highway 82. According to updated phasing in the newest application, the intersection would be constructed first in order to minimize traffic impact during buildout. Additionally, the intersection would come at no capital cost to Garfield County.
In terms of benefit to Cattle Creek residents, Myers said that the new water system proposed in the application would extend to residents in Iron Bridge and the surrounding area, relieving them of their current need for wells.
On the other hand, Neiley pointed out that while the applicant does have sufficient water rights in hand, it is an unanswered question as to whether over the next several years there will actually be sufficient water supply both for construction to occur without water having to be shipped in and to support the newly increased population once complete.
Neiley also pointed out that the application uses form-based zoning, which is a set of guidelines typically used in urban design to allow for flexible development along specific code provisions. Neiley argued that this allows for too much ambiguity in what will actually be built. Furthermore, Garfield County hasn’t adopted form-based zoning, which means that development is liable to conflict with existing land use codes.
The current zoning density on the site does not allow construction of the development as proposed. However, on May 21, Garfield County approved a revocation on the property for the unused River Edge PUD, which now allows the zoning density to be changed from Residential Suburban to Residential High.
Prior to the hearing in March, CCCC organized a series of public information sessions to clarify the details of development with the community. The leading members of CCCC are still in the process of evaluating the new application, and it may not be until the official public hearing is announced that CCCC will organize more public outreach of its own.
The public hearing has yet to be announced by Garfield County. According to Myers, the hearing will likely occur this fall.