Chelsea Self / Post Independent
Request for small housing subdivision for part of site for year-round camp to serve children with autism, denied by Garfield County Commissioner in 2021, faces opposition from neighborhoods .
Garfield County Community Development Director Sheryl Bower last month approved a plan to divide the larger 41.3-acre lot into two lots, one of 36.2 acres and the other of 5.1 acres.
According to the Fussner Minor Subdivision proposal filed by the current property owner under the name SkyFooze1, LLC, the lot will house up to four residential units, including two primary residences and two ancillary or secondary units. can.
County land use laws allow certain types of small parcels and small development applications to be administratively reviewed and approved instead of going before the County Planning Commission and County Commission (BOCC). Allowed.
However, the convocation provision allows either the applicant or the affected adjacent landlord to appeal the decision to the BOCC.
In this case, neighborhood resident Tommy Ballas, through his attorney Richard Neely, filed a complaint before the county commission to consider concerns that domestic water availability might not be sufficient to supply the new home. requested a public hearing.
It also included potential wildfires, increased traffic, light pollution, and more for neighbors on the 126-acre pasture leveled to the Ascendigo Autism Services camp facility in early 2021. .
The Ascendigo plan was ultimately rejected by a county commissioner by a 2-to-1 vote, with Commissioner Tom Jankowski supporting the plan, citing property rights and the facility’s prospects of boosting the local economy.
Jankovsky was again the sole commissioner when the BOCC voted 2-1 to hear Fussner’s subdivision plan at the Feb. 21 hearing.
“This is a plan with adequate water, good access and wastewater treatment in an area that is more or less a sage brush ecosystem,” Jankovsky said at a meeting on Monday.
“I feel strongly that I should support the director’s decision,” he said, alluding to “NIMBYism,” which he also accused of killing Asendigo’s proposal.
However, commissioners Mike Samson and John Martin said they wanted to give the neighbors “a day in court” to consider their concerns before making a final decision.
“I tend to give someone a say in this and have the opportunity to make their point,” Samson said.
Land use consultant Matt Farrar said at a BOCC meeting on Monday that he believed neighbors’ concerns were being adequately addressed and called for Bower’s decision to be upheld.
The Post Independent’s Interim Editor and Senior Reporter John Stroud can be reached at jstroud@postindependent.com or 970-384-9160.
