A new Springhill Suites by Marriott development at the site of the old Olympus Lodge has stalled because Town staff is recommending the developer put in a roundabout at the intersection of Mall Road and U.S. Highway 34 to manage the additional traffic forecasted when the project is complete.
The developer, Chris Combs of Combs 2 Enterprises, Inc., says if a roundabout is required, he will not move forward with the 115-room hotel and employee dormatory.
Trustees entertained an annexation proposal Tuesday night to incorporate 3.2 acres of county land into the Town boundaries which has been home to the Olympus Lodge since 1924, but a decision was not reached.
The property was originally developed in the 1920s as the summertime campus of the Colorado State Teachers College before being converted to a summer camp with the addition of cabins in the 1940s and a motel in the 1950s.
The current owner, Todd Wright, has been in a purchase contract with Combs since 2022.
Greg Muhonen, director of public works for the Town of Estes Park, told Trustees that a traffic study provided by Combs confirmed the intersection “will not meet the operational requirements necessary to meet the test of adequacy.”
The intersection needs either a traffic signal or a roundabout, according to Muhonen who recommended a roundabout because a signal light would back up traffic on a blind curve on Highway 34 that comes into Estes Park.
“If the roundabout is mandated, the project goes away,” Comb told the Trustees, adding that he received an estimate of $4.5 million for its construction and no commitment from the Town to share the cost.
The board went around in circles about possible cost-sharing options for the proposed improvement and about other remedies to the traffic problem but did not make any decisions.
Annexation of this property is estimated to bring in more than $300,000 a year in town sales tax in addition to property tax revenues.
Dealing with the intersection of Mall Road, which is owned by the county, and U.S. Highway 34, which is owned by the state, must be addressed, said Muhonen, because of increased traffic from the driveway on the property that would line up with Mall Road.
Combs said that he hopes the process would move more quickly, given he has 30-day deadlines on unspecified decisions and/or commitments.
The board was also asked for direction in developing a formal annexation policy, which the Town currently does not have.
Salud asks Trustees for advocacy support as it seeks funding
In a presentation to the Trustees, Salud Family Health CEO John Santisteven asked not for money, but for the board’s support despite explaining the local clinic may close May 31 if $1 million is not found to meet its operational needs.
The funding issue is due in part to the post-Covid Medicaid disenrollment that started in 2023, Santisteven said. The Salud Family Health clinics were established as a nonprofit in 1970 to serve low-income families throughout Colorado. There are 13 clinics in 11 counties, six in rural locations, including Estes Park, and five in urban areas.
In the past, the urban clinics have made up the shortfalls of the rural clinics, said Santisteven, and the Estes Park clinic has “always had a shortfall.” With the funding shortages across all of the clinics, which can no longer happen, he said.
The Estes Park Salud Clinic was opened in 1994 and provides health and dental care for more than 2,100 people, Santisteven said, and is lucky to have a local fundraising arm, The Salud Foundation. Board member Doug Frisbie was on hand to say, “we are the only clinic being asked to raise money. We’re at a point where we either raise the money or we shut down.”
About $250,000 has been raised, “but we have a way to go,” said Frisbie.
The town staff was directed to prepare a resolution in support of the local clinic’s efforts to raise the necessary funds.
Development Code Update Approved
A contract with Design Workshop, Inc., a Denver-based firm, was approved for $300,000 to make improvements to the Town development code. Specifically, the updates are intended to make the code more user-friendly and remove or update antiquated requirements and standards. The existing development code will be updated to reflect “best-use practices” and to be in alignment with the Estes Forward Comprehensive Plan. Development Code revisions are predicted to be complete in December of 2026.
Boys and Girls Club and Estes Park Elementary receive 6E funding for after-school and summer care
The Town’s workforce housing and childcare manager, Carlie Bangs, presented two proposals to allocate funding from 6E funds that were rolled over from last year. The Boys and Girls Club of Larimer County asked for $80,000 in funding for the 2024-2025 school year to provide after school care, in partnership with the Estes Park School District which provides the space for this programming.
The Estes Park Elementary School requested $55,000 for 2025 summer programming for Project Launch, an all-day free summer learning camp in the month of June. Erin Miller, principal of Estes Park Elementary said that the district has been offering Project Launch for four years, with grant money from the state, but that money was discontinued last year. Both asks were approved by the board.
Physical copies of Town Board meeting agendas to be posted
At the beginning of the meeting, Trustee Mark Igel asked that an item be pulled from the consent agenda for discussion. Resolution 1.25 states that public notices are to be posted online on the Town’s website. Trustee Igel requested that there also be a physical copy of the Town Board agenda posted on the main entrance doors to Town Hall. This measure failed in a 5-2 vote.
The next Town Board meeting will be held on January 28 in the Town Hall Board Room at 7 p.m.