New housing project, Falcon Ridge debuts

Falcon Ridge Apartments are near the Talons Pointe Apartments." alt="Located on Soaring Circle, Falcon Ridge Apartments are near the Talons Pointe Apartments." style="border: 0px;" /> Located on Soaring Circle, Falcon Ridge Apartments are near the Talons Pointe Apartments. (Scott A. Rowan / Estes Park Trail-Gazette)

Correction

Falcon Ridge Apartments provide one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments for local families." alt="The Falcon Ridge Apartments provide one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments for local families." style="border: 0px;" />

The Falcon Ridge Apartments provide one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments for local families. (Scott A. Rowan / Estes Park Trail-Gazette)

            In a story that was published in the Trail-Gazette on Wednesday, July 20, it was incorrectly reported that the Estes Park Town Board will discuss the proposed purchase of land near the Salud Family Health Center, 1950 Redtail Hawk Drive, for the construction of 14 affordable housing units.Advertisement

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The Estes Park Housing Authority will not go before the town board on July 20. It will, however, support Habitat for Humanity’s request to do a two-unit subdivision near the Salud Clinic.

The Estes Park Housing Authority had the grand opening for the Falcon Ridge housing complex last Thursday afternoon marking the debut of the first new large-scale housing complex since Talons Pointe was built in 2003.

Trustee Cody Walker (hat) watches as Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Koenig cuts the ceremonial ribbon opening the Falcon Ridge apartments." alt="Trustee Cody Walker (hat) watches as Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Koenig cuts the ceremonial ribbon opening the Falcon Ridge apartments." style="border: 0px;" />

Trustee Cody Walker (hat) watches as Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Koenig cuts the ceremonial ribbon opening the Falcon Ridge apartments. (Scott A. Rowan / Estes Park Trail-Gazette)

The 48 units in the Falcon Ridge are one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments built specifically to ease the workforce housing shortfall in Estes Park. The $14.6 million price of Falcon Ridge was partially offset by $1.8 million in grants from Colorado's disaster recovery program, consequently rental preference was given to victims of the 2013 flood.

All residents of Falcon Ridge must have a household income that is less than 60 percent of the average median income (AMI) for Estes Park. According to the latest U.S. Census report, the median income for Estes Park was $56,236.

Rita Kurelja, executive director of the Estes Park Housing Authority, said that her office received approximately 250 applications for the 48 units.

The 200-plus families that were not able to move into Falcon Ridge represent only a fraction of the families who still need housing, according to the 2016 Housing Needs Assessment that reported Estes Park needs between 1,480 and 1,690 housing units to adequately handle the current workforce housing shortage.

"This is also twice the estimate presented in the 2008 Housing Needs Assessment, primarily because unfilled jobs, in-commuters wanting to move to the area, overcrowding, and the number of retiring employees have increased," the report said.

Though 48 units is far from the 1,690 units the HNA suggests, the mood at Thursday's opening was positive despite no other housing projects currently under construction.

"We're always looking," Kurelja said. "The Housing Authority is looking to serve a little higher income level. The 30-60 (percent of AMI) level, we can receive a lot of grants and tax credits for this type of level, but we can't get grants and tax credits for over the 60. But there's a huge need."

The town's "huge need" for housing has been evident for decades, according to Eric Blackhurst, chairperson for the Estes Park Housing Authority, who was in attendance at the opening and pointed out that part of the problem was the 2008 housing crisis that had a ripple effect on the entire nation, not just Estes Park.

"The housing studies go back to 1989 and we've done one every eight to 10 years and the needs have been consistent," Blackhurst said. "And the demand has been consistent. The supply has exceeded demand for decades. When 2007 came along and the market went down the tubes, construction stopped. Land sales stopped. So there was probably a four- to five-year period where there was no construction to speak of. Maybe there was some, but they were typically your high-end homes."

Though the Housing Authority doesn't have any current construction projects underway, there is still work to do, Kurelja said.

"Our next step is to investigate some changes into the development code that will help us and encourage other developers to come in and develop housing," Kurelja said.

In the town board study session last week, trustees began discussing ways to use the estimated 70 acres the town owns at the Fish Hatchery property for housing. While some of the land there is in a floodplain and not suitable for housing, that remaining land could go a long way to easing the housing shortage if construction was allowed to begin there.

The town's construction code that limits new construction heights to 30 feet or less is one code that, if adjusted, could stimulate more housing projects.

"It is not the job of the Town of Estes Park to build housing," said Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Koenig, one of the local dignitaries on hand for the opening. "It's our job to support that with zoning changes, code changes."

While the town contributed $420,000 in water tap fees to the Falcon Ridge project, the town board's next housing assist will likely be in addressing the Fish Hatchery property, where new construction taller than 30 feet height would allow for larger complexes that help erase the housing dearth.

"The Fish Hatchery (land) sits down in a bowl so maybe there's a site in the Fish Hatchery where you could raise the height variance and still not affect anybody's view corridor but allow for more flexibility so we can build more units," Koenig said. "So, my feeling is we have a lot of work to do as a town board, but it isn't to say, "Here's a million dollars in sales tax, go build a unit.""

It will take time and patience until the next step to easing the housing crunch in Estes Park begins since no construction is currently happening. Several people at the Falcon Ridge opening said that restructuring current codes and regulations will likely be necessary.

"It'll take 10 years, that would be my guess," Blackhurst said, estimating how long it will take the town to have approximately 1,500 units built. "(We will) chip away at it. I think there's a lot more emphasis from political buddies, governmental entities of the severity of housing in our community. I think it's also making the general public more aware. I think the county commissioners and the town board would probably look favorably on some code changes that help us with density."

Private sector

Both Koenig and Blackhurst cited the need to have the private sector get involved at some point to help "chip away" at the housing problem. Some of the ideas mentioned were converting current hotels or other spaces that are currently not housing, such as second-floor storage areas and other buildings, into workforce housing for employees that are only in Estes Park for months, not years.

"I'd love to see the business people with short-term workforce housing needs get together and form an LLC [Limited Liability Corporation] and build a short-term housing project for the workforce that comes in here and works for three or four months and are gone," Koenig said. She added that she would hope to soon see "partners for commerce getting together and saying, "Wow we really have a shortage of short-term housing here, let's put our heads together and see what we can do." And be creative because the Housing Authority cannot build everything. We need more than one group working on it."

Blackhurst echoed Koenig's sentiment.

"There is no one solution; there's a little bit here, and a little bit there (needed)," Blackhurst said. "We need private funding. We need the private sector involved whether that's through a combination of public-private partnership, whether that's through a commercial lender whose willing to step up and be a partner. You've got to keep working at it all the time."

On July 26, the Estes Park town board is expected to discuss the proposed purchase of land near the Salud Family Health Centers (1950 Redtail Hawk Drive) that the Housing Authority could use to build an estimated 14 units.

Scott A. Rowan: 970-646-5862, srowan@eptrail.com