Breckenridge is in the preliminary stages of a planning process for what could be one of the first town-owned workforce housing projects in Colorado where every unit relies on geothermal energy for heating, cooling and hot water.
Town staff say the development could cause one of its most-used skier parking lots to be relocated, and some members of Town Council said they don’t hate the idea.
The project, which has been dubbed as the “Runway Neighborhood,” is slated to have around 100 units, although an exact number, layout or site plan has not been determined yet. The proposal calls for building a roughly 17-acre neighborhood on top of the current free skier parking at Airport Road lot and the sledding hill all the way up to the Ullr Neighborhood, which is just to the east of Coa Cantina, according to renderings from the town. The rendering shows a space for 500 spots of free skier parking in an undeveloped area between Upper Blue Elementary School and an access road at the top of Breckenridge Terrace Apartments.
Construction and possible relocation of skier parking is years away, according to town staff, with completion not expected until somewhere between fall 2026 to fall 2028.
The town is taking a different approach to the planning process for this development in comparison to what it usually does. Generally, the town will put out a request for proposals in which it lays out the general parameters of the project so that different developers can make pitches for how to best complete it. In this case, the town is starting with a cleaner slate than usual and hasn’t decided the exact parameters. Instead, it is seeking experts in fields like workforce housing and geothermal energy to help determine how exactly the concept will play out.
“We are working on putting together a team that has expertise to work with town staff and come up with our plan,” housing manager Laurie Best said.
Some aspects of the concept have already been nailed down. Best said the town knows for sure that there will be some sort of deed restriction placed on the units that will be for sale. She said the town is taking a similar approach to what it did with the Stables Village Neighborhood and aims to target longtime locals and first-time home owners.
There are a few aspects of the Runway project the town is still looking to solidify, including the layout and makeup of the 100 or so proposed units.
Best explained the town doesn’t know whether these will be single-family homes, townhomes or a mix of both. This is largely due to the town’s desire to make the units geothermal. She said the town needs geothermal experts to help figure out how to best deliver around 100 units that are all reliant on geothermal energy in a manner that is conducive to the town’s housing goals.
While walking the council through the concept at a May 28 special meeting, housing project manager Melanie Leas said some feasibility studies have already been done that have confirmed the site will work to house geothermal energy. She said the next steps include a financial feasibility study.
Since the project is in its preliminary phases and is lacking certain parameters, such as a solidified site plan, it is currently unknown what type of impacts the development will bring to the Airport Road skier parking lot.
If the town opts to vacate skier parking on Airport Road, the lot will have to be relocated since the town must fulfill the requirement to provide at least 500 skier parking spots, according to documents presented to Town Council.
Best said, as of now, the town plans to keep parking there. If the lot is moved, however, the town is eying the McCain property along Colorado Highway 9 and Coyne Valley Road.
While presenting council with the potential relocation at the May 28 meeting, staff said it wouldn’t be worth council discussing the matter now.
“I think we have realized we need to do some more work on that,” Best said. “So we’d prefer to bump that conversation to later and bring it back after we’ve had a chance to get some more details about how that could look.”
Council member Dick Carleton raised a concern about preserving open space on the McCain property, which is shared by many who live in the surrounding areas. He expressed he would be hesitant to support a concept that could infringe on the area’s open space.
Council member Todd Rankin said it might be useful to move skier parking on Airport Road since that area of town continues to see new housing projects come online, making the area busier.
“I think that if we can find a better spot for skiers on Saturdays and Sundays, when that area is getting loaded up, that the folks in those homes are going to be much happier,” Rankin said.
Council member Jay Beckerman agreed.
“The spots, in their current locations, are probably not ideal sandwiched between Upper Blue Elementary and a resident housing project,” Beckerman said.
