It’s been 25 years since the Estes Valley Development Code was last revised.
Since then, Estes Park has gone through the pandemic, experienced a devastating flood, and was threatened by the largest and second-largest wildfires in the state’s history. It has also benefited from lodging taxes raised by the Workforce Housing Linkage Fee and the proceeds of the 6E lodging tax ballot initiative, which is dedicated to the community’s workforce housing and childcare needs.
Early this year, consultants began work on a new development code, which is predicted to go into effect by the end of next year.
Residents of the Estes Valley are invited to an open house on June 25 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Estes Park Museum, where consultants will discuss their progress to date. The meeting will also allow community members to provide feedback on what they want to see in their community and how the news code can support that.
Following the June 25 meeting, focus groups will be held through August.
The Estes Park Comprehensive Plan, Estes Forward, was adopted three years ago. Information from that document will be incorporated into the new development code, said project manager Eric Krohngold, a senior associate with Design Workshop, the consultancy working on the code rewrite.
The team includes co-primary consultant Headwater Community Planning, based in Aspen, and additional consultants for rewriting the land use, transportation, and lighting codes. The Town is also working closely with the Estes Valley Fire Protection District, the Estes Park Housing Authority, and other organizations tasked with providing housing, services, and public safety in the Estes Valley.
“We’re in the middle of an 18-month process,” said Krohngold in a May 27 presentation to the Town Board. The consultants kicked off the project in February and March of this year, working with town staff to identify goals and expectations for the process, said Krohngold.
Since then, the consultants have been reviewing the existing development code, and they “see opportunities for integration and updates within the code, but then also specific section updates, opportunities for consolidation, for adding clarity to certain things, and updates to definitions,” Krohngold reported.
After the official community engagement period, the bulk of the work, which includes the actual code writing, will be completed in the fall and winter, with the adoption process beginning next summer. The goal is to adopt the new development code by the end of next year.
A second public open house will be scheduled for early next year, when the consultants predict formal recommendations and draft code language will be available.
“We’re very fortunate in our engagement efforts to have the support of the community conversations group,” said Krohngold, referring to the local chapter of Restorative Justice.
That organization’s goal is to support the consultants in this process throughout the summer and fall, around specific topics “that we know may have differing opinions within the community, and to be an extension of our work and help us try to find where some consensus may lie for changes and updates.”
Members of the public do not need to wait to start the engagement process. There is a dedicated project website where information is published. Click here to email comments on the process.