Neighbors in Whistler area are frustrated with possible changes

August 9, 2024 Shannon Lukens

By Shannon Lukens. Photo courtesy Kelly Bechter.

(Side note: Steamboat Springs Police are investigating an incident of a man having a mental health crisis Friday, Aug. 9, on Stone Lane. That unidentified man was taken to the hospital. No other details are available at this time.)

Potential things are happening in the Whistler Park neighborhood, and it has some neighbors concerned.

The first frustration is a bridge at the end of Stone Lane that would connect to the area that has three hotels, and on to Highway 40. The bridge would go over Walton Creek.

Work would include sidewalks, stormwater, utilities, bike lanes and streetscape features. This is also right where the Core Trail can be accessed.

The concern for neighbors is that the street has to be widened for sidewalks. They’ve marked where those sidewalks would go. Residents would lose driveway space. Trees would come down.

One resident, Eric Rentschler, made a list of what he believes “is wrong with the Stone Lane Bridge.”

Fire evacuation
Safety
Ingress of transients
Traffic
Neighborhood character
Environment wetlands impact
Flooding
Funding priorities
Parking
Possibility of eminent domain
Localized property value reductions
Snow removal
City exposed to lawsuits

Resident Carol Kemp also is asking what the cost would be to build the Stone Lane Bridge and if alternatives are being considered? Information from the city says other locations could possibly be a Park Court extension over Walton Creek and a Meadow Lane Extension over Walton Creek.

Resident Leila Kruelskie says Stone Lane is a “highly used pedestrian/bicycle corridor.” She says she has counted almost 200 walkers and cyclists who go by her house each day.

Neighbors also presented pictures of wildlife (many moose) that have been in the cul-de-sac and the yards on the street.

Steamboat Springs City Manager Gary Suiter says, “It is a multi-year project. Still in early stages. Not a done deal.”

The Engage Steamboat website has more details on the Stone Lane Bridge & Complete Street Connection. (Copied below.)

The website says, “This project is a top priority in the adopted Transportation and Mobility Plan and the Routt County Hazard Mitigation Plan,” because of increased traffic on Walton Creek. It would reduce congestion and improve regional traffic flow and allow for better emergency response service.

The City of Steamboat Springs met with 36 property owners in June. More neighborhood meetings are scheduled for fall. Another public meeting is next spring, and then again in the fall. The website says construction would not start before summer of 2026, pending the funding.

The discussion of the potential connection has been discussed since back in 1979.

Contact information for those involved, from the city:

The consultant project manager for this project is Matt Gilbert at Theorem Design Group and he can be reached via email at matt.gilbert@theoremdesigngroup.com(External link) or by phone at 303.520.6788.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Bjorn Utu, PE at butu@steamboatsprings.net or at 970.871.8273.

Stone Lane is just one of the issues that neighbors in Whistler Park are concerned about. Whistler Park is a 9.2 acre parcel of land owned by the school district. They are concerned that the district is considering building employee housing.

Neighbors don’t want that to happen either. They say the park is heavily used by children, adults, and dogs, and practice for lacrosse, rugby, and soccer. It’s the only park on the mountain side of town.

David Karlin lives at Whistler and Stone Lane.

“The big issue here is not that we’re against housing, especially for teachers and affordable housing. We all know that’s not the biggest one. The biggest issue is in the city. The real question on the table is where do you put this housing. With Whistler Park, instead of putting the teacher housing in a place that is more suitable for development, it doesn’t have another function, you would be replacing what is now one of the only or limited open space and city parks in the mountain where people play soccer in the fields and people can do that. So you’re taking away a very significant need of the community for another need vs putting the housing somewhere where you don’t have to give up on one of these critical needs.”

Neighbors are pushing for residents to attend the Monday, Aug. 12 School Board meeting at Steamboat Springs Middle School. They want the school board to sell the Whistler Park parcel to the City of Steamboat Springs. Neighbors are asking each other to write to Steamboat Springs City Council members.

The Steamboat Springs School District issued a Housing Fact Sheet this month. (Copied below.) It says plans for the development of the land in Whistler Park have not been solidified. The district is exploring options of possible workforce housing.

Another option would be selling the land or exploring a land swap. “We are in ongoing discussions with the City and other stakeholders to find a solution that balances the District’s needs with the interests of the greater community.”

The District flyer says: Here are three possible scenarios:

Scenario 1: The District develops the land to provide affordable housing for teachers while preserving a portion of the existing green space.
Scenario 2: The District conducts a “land swap” with the City, building affordable housing in a different location.
Scenario 3: The District sells the land and uses the proceeds to acquire affordable housing in a different location.

The district has applied for a Department of Local Affairs grant. The flyer also says the district has been collaborating with the City of Steamboat Springs, Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation, and Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club as possible partners.

The District also says if the land was developed, it would not be the entire parcel of land.

Announcement from the Steamboat Springs School District — Supporting Our Teachers: Affordable Housing Initiatives/Apoyando a Nuestros Maestros: Iniciativas de Vivienda Asequible

Upcoming meetings:

August 12 – The Steamboat Springs Board of Education will discuss housing

Sept. 10 – City Council Work Session on the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP)

One person living a mile away from Whistler Park is Sonja Macys, who is also a Routt County Commissioner. She has written to Steamboat Springs City Council as a citizen about her “deep concern” for the future of Whistler Park. Her letter says she was also reaching out to school board members. (Copied below.)

Dear Steamboat Springs City Council:

Thank you for your service to our community. Having been in your shoes, I know how difficult it can be.

I am writing today to reiterate the points I made during public comment at your 6/25/24 meeting. I am writing on behalf of myself as a citizen, not as a member of the Routt County Board of County Commissioners. I live on the mountain just one mile away from Whistler Park. I have lived within one mile of the park for 18 years, paying taxes and voting. I also represented the mountain area as a City Council Member for two terms between 2011-2021.

I am writing to express my deep concern for the future of Whistler Park. Because there is a City Park sign there that has been there for multiple decades, people think all land within Whistler Park is a city park, as the sign would indicate. However, the majority of the land that comprises what we consider to be “Whistler Park” is actually owned by the Steamboat Springs School District. And the adjacent riparian area is owned by Mount Werner Water.

For decades the city has allowed the public to believe that Whistler Park is one city park by encouraging the use of the entire park. People walk dogs, play sports and generally benefit from the public space the park provides. The city uses the school district land as a parking lot when there are developed recreational games and lacrosse tournaments that we don’t have the parking for. This use may or may not meet the city’s own stormwater requirements for parking areas.

I have heard through the grapevine that there are discussions with the school district about developing that “park” for housing. I respectfully request that, if those discussions are happening, and if Council has signed on to these discussions, you please make that known to the public. Please shine the light of day on the plans for the well-loved neighborhood park that is Whistler Park.

A big thanks go out to you, and the voters, for repurposing the accommodations tax so that we can finally see some open space acquisitions. The last one was in 2010. Please acquire the school district parcel with these funds and adjoin it to Whistler Park.

This Council has placed a clear emphasis on developed recreation, as evidenced by your commitment to a 46-acre regional park, to be located within Routt County, and the investment in Bear River Park. Taken together these two projects represent 73 acres of developed recreation. It is hard to understand why we choose to pave, light, and otherwise develop new parkland areas while simultaneously sacrificing existing “parks” to actual development.

I believe that there is a case to be made that by tacitly, if not overtly, approving the public’s use of “Whistler Park” over the decades, the City may have created the type of adverse possession that resulted in a well-known court case in Boulder County. For clarity, I am not suggesting that the City adversely posses the School District’s land, but rather acquire the land as a City Park, just as most Steamboat Springs residents believe it to be.

In addition to being a well-loved public park, Whistler Park provides much needed urban refuge for wildlife with whom we co-exist here in the City of Steamboat Springs. I have observed deer, moose, elk, bear, birds and small mammals using the park. It is also used by our neighborhood mountain lion. We need these urban refuges for wildlife. They provide habitat and help prevent costly human-wildlife encounters that frequently result in unhappy endings.

Lastly, it is my understanding that school districts do not have to comply with local government codes when developing projects. As good partners, they frequently do go through local planning processes. However, as I understand it, this is not a requirement. This calls into question whether assurances about public benefit, waterbody setbacks, and wildlife mitigation strategies, not to mention traffic calming, would be applicable in the case of a housing development at Whistler Park.

In conclusion, I respectfully request that the City of Steamboat Springs acquire the school district parcel that the vast majority of Steamboat Springs residents and voters believe to be already protected.

Thanks,
Sonja Macys
PS- I have calls in to School District Board Members to express these concerns but have not been able to speak with them.

Housing Sheet from the Steamboat Springs School District: