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HomeMy WebLinkAboutresolution.council.040-86 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 109 Leaves RESOLUTION NO. 40 (Series of 1986) RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF ASPEN, COLORADO GRANTING CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL OF THE ROARING FORE RAILROAD PROPOSAL SPA WHEREAS, pursuant to Ordinance 20, Series of 1985, the Roaring Fork Railroad (hereinafter "Applicant") did submit a proposal for the Development of a portion of the Rio Grande property and Rio Grande right-of-way; and WHEREAS, aspects of the development proposal include re- establishment of rail on the Rio Grande right-of-way from Woody Creek to Aspen (Rio Granae site), terminal building, platform, baggage handling, parking and trackage on the Rio Grande site; and WHEREAS, the Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission (herein- after "Commission") did hold public meetings on September 2 and 9, 1986, to consider the applicant's proposal to develop on the City-owned Rio Grande site and utilize the City-owned Shapery property, each of which have SPA Overlays, as well as the City- owned Creektree open space, and did recommend City Council to grant conceptual approval for the proposal in Planning Commission Resolution 86-10; and WHEREAS, the City Council (hereinafter "Council") is aware of this proposal's potential impact on Pitkin County and has expressed concern about the proposal's impact outside the Council's jurisdiction; and RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves WHEREAS, the Council supports the idea of a joint review between the City and the County for both Precise SPA and 1041 Special Review, which review process wil~ include joint meetings between both City and County Planning and Zoning Commission and between City Council and Board of County Commissioners pursuant to the following meeting format: o Meetings will be held at a mutually agreed upon time and place, o Staff will present separate memorandums which identify City specific and County specific concerns, o The applicant will address both City and County concerns at the joint meetings, o Due to the public hearing needs of Precise SPA and 1041 Special Review, all joint meetings will be public hear i ngs, o Once the information needs of Precise SPA and 1041 Special Review have been addressed at the joint meetings, the City and County bodies will separate and consider the Railroad proposal separately, and o These joint meetings will occur first with the two Planning and Zoning Commission and then with the City Council and Board of County Commissioners. W~EREAS, the Council has stated that final approval of this proposal by this Council will be contingent upon the applicant's ability to successfully mitigate impacts to the satisfaction of Pitkin County (i.e., wildlife, neighborhood impacts, Hallam Lake); and WHEREAS, at the conclusion of its deliberations, the Council concurred with the following conceptual findings made by the 2 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves Commission: 1. The Roaring Fork Railroad is a compatible and appropri- ate transportation use on the Rio Grande site and may provide the community not only with a desireable travel mode between Aspen and Denver, but also may provide an alternative transportation corridor to State Highway 82 in the Valley. The Rio Grande site was purchased with transportation funds and planned to be used for transportation purposes. The Commission realizes that the Roaring Fork Railroad concept is inconsistent with the 1973 Lan4 Use Plan; however, the Commission is in the process of updating the Aspen Area General Plan, 1966 and will resolve inconsistencies with past plans and reports (transportation, land use, etc.). The Commission is therefore prepared to authorize further study of the issues identified below. The Commission recognizes however, that precise plan approval can only be granted if the impacts of the project are mitigated and the concerns of the community can be addressed. 2. The Council makes the following findings with respect - to the application of the Growth Management Quota System to the project: a) The development of the terminal, while it may have a commercial aspect, represents an essential community service which can be best judged through review as an exemption from competition pursuant to Section 24-11.2(e) of the Municipal Code, particularly if the terminal is used not only for the railroad, but also for other essential transportation purposes, as identified in the community's ongoing transportation planning pro g r am. b) Given the language of Section 24-11.2(e), the Council directs the staff to evaluate the criter- ion that to be eligible for an exemption a project must be a "not-for-profit venture" and to explore alternative criteria which may accomplish the community's objectives. c) As required by Section 24-11.2(e), in order to obtain an essential community facilities exemp- tion, the applicant will be required to demon- strate that the project has fully mitigated its direct growth impacts, and identify secondary 3 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves effe ct s. d) In addition to the requirements established by Section 24-11.2(e), the Council finds that in order to be eligible for an exemption from the quota system, the Roaring Fork Railroad station components should be scored by sta~ and P&Z under the provisions of the Commercial Development Quota System to determine wheuher or not it meets the competition thresholds contained therein. Should the project not meet said thresholds, it shall not be eligible for an exemption. WHEREAS, a duly noticed public hearing was held by City Council on October 14, which was continued to October 27 and November 10, December 3 and December 8, 1986 to review the Roaring Fork Railroad Proposal and Council did pass a motion granting conceptual SPA approval subject to conditions stated bel ow. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of Aspen, Colorado, grant conceptual SPA approval to the Roaring Fork Railroad proposal, suDject to the following conoitions: 1. A stuay shall be submitued analyzing the RFR proposal's potential for reducing vehicular traffic on State Highway 82 including Main Street if train service terminates at the Rio Grande. 2. The applicant shall submit as part of the Precise SPA plan a minimum-maximum commuter rail service operating plan including capital and operating costs, sta- tion/park and ride locations, time schedules, fare schedule, projected ridership, proposed operating entity needed RFTA subsidy, availability of commuter rail vehicles and other pertinent information which will assist the City, County and RFTA in determining the value of commuter rail service. 3. The applicant shall submit as part of the Precise SPA plan a transportation study of the combined impacts of 4 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves the RFR proposal and proposed City uses for the Rio Grande Site. This study shall include impacts on streets and intersections surrounding the site and traffic impacts on Cemetery Lane. Impacts on the Trueman property parking lot and Puppy Smith Street shall be specifically addressed. How circulation and baggage will be handled on the Rio Grande site shall al so be de tail ed. 4. The applicant and staff will identify what land use options will be displaced by the Roaring Fork Railroad proposal on the Rio Grande site, including the Shapery Property, Creek Tree Subdivision, and Rio Grande right- of-way. 5. The Precise SPA plan shall include an economic feasibi- lity study including disclosure of the current and proposed RFR capital, operating costs and other pertinent information for the purpose of evaluating the applicant's ability to construct and operate this proposal. Included in this study will be an economic analysis justifying the need for an 18 car train and an update of the status of agreements with entities outside of Pitkin County (D.& R. G., Union Pacific, Stapleton Airport, proposed Denver International Airport, Commercial Airlines, Amtrack and any other entities involved in the Roaring Fork Railroad propo- sal ) . 6. The applicant shall relocate the Rio Grande trail to Council's approval. 7. The applicant shall, with the assistance of appropriate public entities, estimate costs and propose pri- vate/public cost sharing, which includes compensation for use of public land, for all of the public improve- ments, relocations and alterations associated with the proposal including, but not limited to the sewer trunk line, Rio Grande Trail, Snowdump, Impound Lot, Rio Grande Playing Field and all other impacted utilities to assist the City, County, RFTA and appropriate special districts in evaluating public expenses of the project. 8. The applicant shall prepare an engineering study as part of the Precise SPA plan of the effects of the rail system on the sewer trunk line and methods of mitigat- ing problems, if any, as acceptable to the Aspen 5 RECORD OF PR0(~EDINGS 100 Leaves Consolidated Sanitation District. 9. The applicant shall work with all public and private utility companies to develop an acceptable utilities pl an. 10. A drainage plan addressing all the improvements of this proposal on the Rio Grande site, as acceptable to the City Engineer, shall be submitted as part of the Precise SPA Plan. 11. The following environmental studies and mitigation plans shall be prepared to the satisfaction of the Environmental Health Department as part of the Precise SPA Plan: a. A noise contour map along the right-of-way that will illustrate the noise impacts on property throughout the City for evaluation by the City. b. Air pollution resulting from the combined effects of trains (per operating plan), transportation uses associated with the railroad (taxi, limos, buses), and uses on the Rio Grande site (parking). c. Water pollution hazards both operational and during the construction stage as discussed in Tom Dunlop's August 18, 1986 memorandum. d. Disruption of mine tailings and dumps. e. Solid waste generation and management. f. Impacts of vibrating (detailed information needs to be determined by Tom Dunlop). 12. Identify legal, noise and air pollution impacts associated with extending the Roaring Fork Railroad trac~ network onto the Creektree parcel. 13. The applicant shall submit, as part of the Precise SPA Plan, a site plan, landscaping plan and building design techniques to mitigate visual impacts of the develop- ment. 14. The applicant shall submit a Stream Margin Review application as part of the Precise SPA Plan for the 6 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 ~eaves construction of roadbed, rails, trails and any other improvements within 100 feet from the high water line or within a flood hazard area in the City of Aspen. 15. The applicant shall investigate reducing the number and length of tracks on the Rio Grande site. 16. The Applicant shall indicate how many employees will be generated by this proposal and how employee housing requirements will be addressed. 17. The applicant shall explore the 9otential for shared use of the terminal structure facility, especially uses which are 9art of the Rio Grande Plan. 18. The applicant shall su~mit an Emergency Response Plan to the satisfaction of the Public Safety Board. 19. The applicant shall estimate what portion of the train's passengers will stay in Snowmass and determine how the Snowmass passengers and baggage will be brought to Snowmass -- will they travel to the Rio Grande and then utilize State Highway 82 through town to their destination or will Snowmass passengers de-train at Woo~y Creek and avoid travel through Aspen. 20. The applicant shall identify how the Roaring Fork Railroad would deal with an airport shut-down due to snow, showing ways to alleviate the problems caused by temporary loss of airplane service to and from Aspen. 21. The applicant shall identify construction impacts and develop a construction impacts mitigation plan which shows timing/phasing of construction. 22. The applicant shall not represent the City of Aspen as a partner in the RFR proposal. 23. The applicant shall su~it to the satisfaction of the City Council, a detailed plan which addresses safety of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles along the railroad right-of-way. The applicant shall identify applicable federal and state safety requirements affecting the train operation within the City. 24. The applicant shall detail the fire hazard potential to the landscape along the right-of-way and measures to mitigate it. The applicant shall identify federal and 7 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves state requirements related to fire safety along the rail road right-of-way. 25. The applicant shall submit as part of the Precise Plan package an improvements agreement providing commitments to and financial guarantees for completion of the project, completion of trail realignment and any other improvements which are part of plan approval. 26. Should the RFR discontinues service between Aspen and Denver or discontinues as a business, an agreement may provide for: a) Commitments to and financial guarantees for restoration of the project area to its pre-project condition, or b) Transfer the fixed assets (tracks and stations) of the RFR to the City at the option of the City Co un ci 1. 27. City electorate authorization for City Council to grant Rio Grande right-of-way, Shapery property and Rio Grande property for use by the Roaring Fork Railroad shall expire if construction of the Railroad is not commenced on or before January 1, 1992. 28. The applicant shall submit as part of Precise SPA a study of impacts and mitigation of impacts for both Hallam Lake and the Art Museum. 29. The applicant shall submit a complete Precise Plan package addressing all conditions imposed and commit- ments made in the conceptual review, and address any other information deemed necessary by the Planning and Development Director as identified in a pre-application conference to be held prior to submission of Precise P1 an. Dated: ~~ // . 1986 William L. Stifling, Mayor 8 RE~OP/) OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves I, Kathryn S. Koch, duly appointed and acting City Clerk of the City of Aspen, Colorado, hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and accurate copy of that resolution adopted by the City Council of the City of Aspen, Colorado, at a meeting to be held 1986. Kathryn S~Koch~,-¢i~Y Clerk TB.111