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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.apz.20070619 ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MEETING- MINUTES- JUNE 19.2007 Dylan Johns opened the regular meeting of the City of Aspen Planning & Zoning Commission at 4:30 pm. Commissioners present were: LJ Erspamer, David Guthrie, Brian Speck, John Rowland and Dylan Johns. Ruth Kruger was excused. Dylan Johns excused himself. Staff present: Jim True, Special Counsel; Joyce Allgaier, Community Development; Jackie Lothian, Deputy City Clerk. Declaration of Conflicts of Interest Ruth Kruger and Dylan Johns were conflicted on the Lift One Conceptual PUD. David Guthrie stated that he worked for David Wilhelm years ago. MINUTES The minutes of May 15, May 1 and April 17 were postponed until the next meeting. PUBLIC HEARlNG: LIFT ONE CONCEPTUAL PUD/TIMESHARE John Rowland opened the public hearing on the Lift One Conceptual PUD/Timeshare. Notice was provided. Joyce Allgaier noted this was a significant development in the City of Aspen. Allgaier provided the conceptual review schedule for the P&Z on the Lift One beginning with tonight through August ih. Bob Daniel stated that he was a member of the Roaring Fork Lodging Team that was putting this project together. Daniel said that this was a master planning process from Dean Street up to the top of the lift. Daniel introduced the team Sunny Vann, land use planner; Bill Poss and Associates and Steven Holly, architects; and the partners were Bob Daniel, David Wilhelm, Jim Light and Jim Chaffin. Daniel spoke about the rich history of this part of Aspen Mountain and the acquisition of the Holland House, the Skies Chalet Lodge and Steakhouse and an integrated master plan approach with Willoughby Park and the Historical Society Ski Museum. Daniel stated the history, accessibility and vitality for this area would be greatly improved for the number one amenity, Aspen Mountain. Daniel said there would be a rubber tire transit system to integrate into this area to increase accessibility to this area plus underground parking. Daniel said that in 1991 the City of Aspen voters approved leasing Willoughby Park to the Historical Society for the creation of a Museum to embrace and celebrate the history of skiing. Steve Holly addressed more neighborhood issues from a design process arrived at the flow of the use of the area. Holly utilized power point to show the project site 1 ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MEETING - MINUTES- JUNE 19.2007 and the views and the flow in and out of the site. Holly said there were historically designated properties such as the Skier Chalet, Lift One, Deep Powder Cabins and the Skier Chalet Lodge, which is not designated. The Skier Chalet Steakhouse will become employee housing and the Skier Chalet Lodge a Ski Museum; Deep Powder Cabins an auxiliary use for the museum or affordable housing. Holly said that they have mitigated 100% of the affordable housing. Holly said that they looked at taking the surface parking off of the park to allow the park to become a true park by putting the parking underground. Bob Daniel stated that currently Willoughby Park reads as a parking lot. Daniel said that a great new restaurant and bar could provide apres ski with a big open deck and the new high speed lift an opportunity for new World Cup facilities. The Holland House will be tom down because the lodge was not adequate for today's visitor. The Skier Chalet and Lodge will be recreated replacing the 38 beds with 97 keys in 32 suites. The buildings will all be 3 stories or less with articulated buildings to respond to some of the neighbor's concerns. There will be a vegetated roof on the building, which will reduce heat build up in the building and improve an oxygenated area. There will not be any roof top cooling units associated with this project because they are able to use the ground source system. Daniel spoke of the ownership structure that would be more detailed at another meeting. Daniel said that they were asking the city for some unused rights-of-way; to rezone the park to public; rezone some of the land below the 8040 green line to lodge and 2 variance from the height requirement because of roof top access for the elevator at 6 feet and the grading at the bottom of lift one for the current terminal lift area building of 3 feet. Daniel said that they were not building for any free-market units because they were building a lodge. LJ Erspamer asked about the historic architecture. Steve Holly responded that on the Skiers Chalet they were taking off the portion that was not historic and adding a staircase to provide access to the employee housing that will tie into the current building but separates itself. Erspamer asked what they meant by pedestrian friendly as opposed to what it was now. Holly replied the way it was now Willoughby was not pedestrian friendly and how you actually get the pedestrians into the park and the scale of the architecture was residential in feel at 3 stories. Erspamer asked about the redevelopment of Dean Street integrating with their project. Allgaier answered the Dean Street concept was to acknowledge this was a lodging corridor and connect both ends of the mountain from the east to the west from Gondola Plaza to almost Koch Park. Allgaier said the goal was to create a 2 ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MEETING _ MINUTES- JUNE 19. 2007 space that was fun to be with and the history of skiing. Vann stated that the pedestrian ways were over-scaled with 8 or 9 foot sidewalks to accommodate street furniture or benches; the sidewalks were snow-melted in connection with the street itself. Daniel said it was their goal to take the Dean Street improvements from the South Aspen Street intersection east to the end of Willoughby Park and the Chart House has an obligation within their entitlement with a succession of linkages to complete. Erspamer asked where the traffic figures came from. Vann replied that TDA was used as the traffic consultant and worked extensively with the City Engineering Department. Vann said that one of the objectives was to get the traffic down to the drop off point at Willoughby Park. Erspamer asked what the reciprocity with other properties was. Daniel replied there was none because they were not part of a chain. John Rowland asked how this project would be impacted by the project across the street or was there a symbiotic relationship with the two projects. Daniel replied that both projects were designed to stand on their own and the commitments in the application stand on their own. Rowland asked about vacating Gilbert Street. Vann responded that they were not planning on vacating it and it was an access point for the lodge itself to the garage; they proposed to enhance the street with curb and gutter and fix the drainage. Rowland asked what was exceeding for an exceptional project. Vann replied the lodge incentive program provided the setbacks, heights, FAR, employee housing mitigation and parking, which were all exceeded by this project with the exception of the elevator shaft height with a 3 to 6 foot variance. Daniel said that there were no code criteria for improving the carbon footprint of building; the ground source system created a great opportunity to cool and heat the building, which addresses the noise issues and the environment. Daniel said the commitment to the energy credits that was in the application was the same commitment as the Lodge at Aspen Mountain's in finding a way to operate a facility in a more efficient way and utilize less natural resources. Rowland inquired how they accomplished this project without free-market. Daniel responded that they felt that accommodating more people was the key to this project. David Guthrie asked about the geotechnical issues with the ground source wells. Daniel answered test wells have been done for the conductivity and how it relates to the ground source system and in August of 2005 they drilled holes to monitor ground water and slope creep. 3 ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MEETlNG- MINUTES- JUNE 19. 2007 Guthrie asked where deliveries to the lodge would take place. Daniel replied that they proposed to come up South Aspen Street turn left at Gilbert and tuck under the garage there, which would be able to accommodate delivery trucks. Public Comments: 1. Carol Farino, South Point owner, stated concern for Dean Street as a pedestrian way and the 3 story building will make the street look cavernous next to the South Point and this project. 2. Galen Bright said the he was also a South Point owner and the vice president of the HOA and liked the project and master plan of the project. Guthrie asked why the garage entrance to the west. Holly responded that there was a feasibility issue of getting under the lift. Erspamer asked what the concerns were for the parking garage. Daniel responded that they would commit to replacing what parking was lost on South Aspen Street from the lift down to Durant and replace what was lost in surface at Willoughby Park today to the extent when the community comes back and requests more parking. Vann said that assuming that both this project and the Lodge at Aspen Mountain go forward there would be parking available at the Lodge at Aspen Mountain. MOTION: LJ Erspamer moved to continue Lift One Conceptual to July IrJ\' seconded by David Guthrie. All in favor, approved. Adjourned at 6:45 p.m. ackie Lothian, Deputy City Clerk 4