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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.council.20100331Special Meetine Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 Mayor Ireland called the special meeting to order at 5:08 p.m. with Councilmembers Romero, Torre, Johnson and Skadron present. APPOINTMENTS TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS AND EXAMINERS Mayor Ireland moved to appoint Chet Feldman, David Guthrie and Jim Iglehart to the Board of Appeals; seconded by Councilman Torre. All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE #2. SERIES OF 2010 -Aspen Club Final SPA/PUD Councilman Torre left the meeting due to a conflict of interest. Jessica Garrow read the names of public comment letters and a-mails that came in after the packet deadline; Gary & Debbie Kreutzer, Anne & Clarence Blackwell; Evan Boening; Gary & Debra Moore; Georgia Hanson; Larry Fredrick; Chris Crowley; Lenny Allen; Junee Kirk; Andrew Todd; Bert Myrin; Jeanette Darnauer; Paul Copaken; Dorothea Farris; BJ Williams; Tim Cooney; Peggy Mason; Karinjo Devore; Bob Hoover; David Millar. Ms. Garrow also entered exhibit Z-5 which is additional proposed changes to the ordinance. Council agreed to hear public comment at the beginning of the meeting and again after staff and applicant presentation. Mayor Ireland noted he has created a binder of all the communication regarding the Aspen Club that has come to him. Mayor Ireland opened the public hearing. Roine St. Andre said she is overjoyed there is a land use code in place to protect areas from further development. This is a residential area and development in this area is ridiculous. Gary Rappaport told Council with 32 units proposed, it is incredulous that zero traffic increase is a reality. Rappaport said he has TDA's October 2008 plan which contains studies of vehicle counts at various times. The study came up with 2170 vehicles passing at Ute and Original and 1499 further up the street. Rappaport said this is entirely a residential area with no restaurants. Rappaport said there about 63 residential units along Ute, which comes to 10 one-way trips/dwelling units. Using that formula, if there are 32 units at the Aspen Club, it would add 320 vehicles trips/day. Rappaport told Council he read David Millar's assessment of the Aspen Club's transportation demand management study, which estimated 280 vehicle trips/day from the development. Rappaport said this is a notable traffic increase and it would detract from the livability of Ute avenue. Rappaport said in looking at how to create a TDM, he found the statement that transportation accounts for more than half of the air pollution and also solid waste and water pollution and TDMs are an important tool for a city to minimize these impacts. Brian Speck told Council he supports this project and feels Michael Fox has been a great steward of the Aspen Club. Speck said he would like to see some give and take on the size of the development. Speck said this is a community project; it is part of modern Aspen. Special Meeting Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 Chris Klug told Council there is a lot of support in the community for this project. Klug said he feels this is a vital part of the community and a community asset and the project brings benefits to the town. Klug said about 1 /3 to '/Z of the community uses the club in some way; the Aspen Club employs abut 200 people, making it one of the larger employers in the community. Klug said the proposal would improve the safety of Ute Avenue; it would provide on-site affordable housing; it would improve the trails in the area. Klug said the proposal will bring additional tourists to Aspen and it will make it more attractive to visitors and residents. The proposal, Aspen Club Living, will add something new to the tourists as part of a destination experience. Klug said he feels this will have a long term benefit to the community Warren Klug urged approval of the Aspen Club expansion. Klug said the club is a valuable asset to both residents and guests. The Aspen Club attracts world class athletes, visitors and guests. Klug said one issue is the perceived public benefit of this expansion, which includes residents and visitors who can take advantage of the enhanced facilities. The condominiums will provide short term rental housing. The enhanced club will attract visitors year round, not just during music or skiing season. The proposed employee housing is a plus for the project. Klug said this project is a better one than the project that first came to the city. Klug said everyone is concerned with the economic health and vitality of Aspen and its appeal to tourists. Klug noted in the land use code, when there are advantages to changing zoning, the SPA process would allow that to happen. Jim DeFrancia told Council he is opposed to this project; this is not about saving a business, which Council is not supposed to address; nor is it about building green or about the employees. This issue is about land use; the underlying zoning is 12R, rural residential, and this is a residential neighborhood. DeFrancia pointed out the AACP calls for lodges to be in the core. The Council has relied on the AACP in the past when it has rejected projects that do not comply with the AACP. If Council focuses on land use, they have to focus on the AACP and land use policies. Les Holst said this project cannot go forward because of the precedent it will be setting. This will be a disaster for the community. Holst noted developers want time share because of the perceived increase in value to the property. Holst said the inventory of time share is greater everyday. Nicole Hammas told Council she is a resident of east Aspen and her opposition to this project is based on the rezoning. Ms. Hammas said there are 191 fractional units for sale in Aspen; there are over 480 residential units on the market for sale. Ms. Hammas said she is concerned about adding more inventory to these unsold units. Ms. Hammas noted she is not opposed to the upgrade of the Aspen Club but she does not see the benefit of adding more units to the community. Patrick Sagal said the Benedict building has been on Ute avenue for 35 years and has about 201ocally serving businesses. Sagal said he would like to see the Aspen Club grow and continue to be locally serving health centered businesses. Tim Murray, east Aspen resident, said without the AACP, Aspen would be a very different place than it is today. Murray requested Council respect the AACP and deny this project. Bob Murray said he is respectful of the city's protection of residential neighborhoods and he would not like to Special Meetine Aspen Citv Council March 31, 2010 see the city make rules to accommodate real estate development. Murray told Council he does not feel this plan should be compared to the Aspen Institute and the ideals of Walter Paepcke. Marsha Goshorn said this time share project is different from others as it is part of a comprehensive plan tying it to a health and wellness concept. Ms. Goshorn noted the health and wellness sector of the economy is up and coming and this would give Aspen the chance to compete in the new economy. Aspen needs not to depend on one or two type of businesses in town. Council is supposed to create a situation where businesses have a chance to flourish. Ms. Goshorn said during the update of the AACP, the idea of year round sustainable economy has been discussed. Ms. Goshorn pointed out the Gant is in this neighborhood and most of the homes were built after the Aspen Club Naoma Gleason said the Aspen Club touches many sectors and members of the community. Ms. Gleason said this is a good fit for the community and for the visitors. Sam Ferguson told Council after he was injured, a local non-profit brought him into their program and gave him confidence and he has grown with Challenge Aspen competition program. Ferguson said these programs bring in many competitors who spend money in Aspen. Ferguson pointed out the Aspen Club is the only facility that is handicap accessible. Susan Welch, Ute Avenue resident, said one thing that is bothersome is the projects in Aspen that have been started and left unfinished. There are many fractional ownerships in the community. Ms. Welch said she would rather see just townhouses and the Aspen Club. Mike Lyons, fireman and paramedic, told Council the Aspen Club allows fireman to work on their cardio at the club; this is a community asset. Lyons said the project will increase businesses year round; this is a destination project. John Olsen said he favors this project for many of the reasons expressed. This is a model business that the applicant has made work and has tried to keep the club affordable. Supporting this is like supporting locally serving businesses with development to keep the business viable. Joan Lebach said the decision on the Aspen Club should not be based on personalities. Ms. Lebach asked why people moved to Aspen, is it for density or urban sprawl or is it For a small town feeling. Ms. Lebach said it is very aspirational to make a world class health center. Alex Forsythe, Snowmass, said the application does not seem to meet the requirements of the land use code or the provisions of the AACP. Ms. Garrow went over the various approvals required and some changes to the proposed ordinance. One change is to financial assurances, in which the applicant proposes a completion bond. The applicant is requesting the removal of a reclamation bond. Another change relates to energy commitments and the section formalizes the commitments made by the applicant, which is after the new development is completed, the energy use will be equal to or less than the current energy use. Mayor Ireland asked if there is a current base line of energy use. Ms. Garrow said it is attached to the ordinance as exhibit C. Accessibility of the club membership is addressed; the applicant has committed to insuring that 50% of the dues paying members at any time will be Special Meeting Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 locals, which is defined as anyone living 6 months of the year in the Roaring Fork Valley. The enforcement mechanism is that if that 50% threshold is not met, city employees will receive free membership. The applicant has committed to reinvesting a minimum of $5 million in the club. Section 25 talks about all the reporting requirements coming at one time during the year. Exhibit Z-5 is changes proposed by staff. Exhibit B has been changed to the 2009 traffic impact study, not the exhibit B, traffic impact study from 2005. Section 11 of the ordinance is changed to fill in the blanks related to the cul-de-sac improvements and includes a schematic plan. The city attorney requests defining what the "club owner" is; the record owner from time to time of lot 1 Aspen Club Living subdivision, PUD/SPA. Section 27 is amended by adding "the affordable housing commitment made by the applicant pursuant to this section represents in part a voluntary negotiated agreement between the applicant and the city which has been proposed by the applicant as a public benefit in connection with the Aspen Club development approved by the ordinance". Councilman Skadron asked what variations are requested from the time share guidelines. Ms. Garrow said the review criteria for time share are more technical and the applicant is meeting all of the requirements. The use of time share is addressed under the SPA criteria. Councilman Romero asked if there has been discussion about the details of the completion bond so it will perform to the benefit of the city, not general or trade contractors. City Attorney, John Worcester, pointed out the city is to be made a beneficiary of the bond; it will be a completion bond to protect the applicant and the city. Worcester noted any bonds will have to be approved by his office. Councilman Romero said he feels like the bonds could be strengthened and improved. Worcester suggested he and Councilman Romero work on this together. Councilman Johnson asked about the growth management reviews. Ms. Garrow said the applicants needs 112 pillows from the 2009 growth management year, which is the full amount and 12 from the 2010 allotments, which Council must grant. Councilman Skadron asked about the different results on the traffic studies. Trish Aragon, city engineer, told Council the traffic study was updated in 2009 and reports an additiona1304 vehicle trips/day generated by this project, which is close to the figure quoted by the other traffic engineer. Councilman Romero brought up mass and scale and the possibility of removing two town house units and has this been pursued. Ms. Garrow said after the last public hearing, Council listed 4 or 5 items to be addressed, and these did not relate to mass and scale. Ms. Garrow said staff feels there is too much mass on site and more open space would be appropriate. Staff needs to see more specific plans in order to make a firmer recommendation. Michael Fox, applicant, said the Aspen Club is a good facility with a good team and unique skills of helping people get healthy and stay healthy. Fox said fitness and wellness are an increasingly important part of people's lives. The Aspen Club Living project builds on a facility that is already in place and puts Aspen on the map for health 4 Special Meetin¢ Aspen Citv Council March 31, 2010 and performance. Fox said this is a year long pursuit independent of weather and would bring a new type of visitor to Aspen. This project would move the community forward consistent with the goals and ideals as expressed in the Aspen Area Community Plan. Fox said having this project in Aspen is a great community benefit. Fox said the applicants have made commitments like insuring the Club is a health facility that remains open to the public, reinvesting in the Club, improving Ute Avenue, adding trail easements, increasing the tax base to the city and adding affording housing. Fox said at the last meeting Council brought up 5 issues; one is how will the applicant insure the Club is affordable and open to local residents. Fox said the applicant has other solutions that would achieve the goal for not hitting the goal of local accessibility, that would not include city employees. Fox said the applicants have a mechanism to reinvest to the club and the issue of doing that into the future. Fox said one way to do that is a percentage of HOA dues going into a capital reserve fund and also the applicants will set aside some funds from sale of the units into capital commitments. Fox said there are simple mechanisms to address the energy commitments. The last issue raised by Council is the financial assurances and one way to address that was a completion bond; another way is show the financials to the city in order to prove the capital is available to build the project. Fox said a completion bond and a reclamation bond are redundant. Fox said the construction financial world is different after the last two years; banks will not lend money unless the project will get completed. Councilman Romero said one unresolved issue is the mass and scale and the appropriateness of additional growth on this property as well as the appropriateness to the neighborhood. Councilman Romero noted there is a fine balance between mass and scale and cutting so much out of the project that it is no longer financially viable. Fox said this question has come up throughout the process and the mass on the site was adjusted at P&Z meetings; buildings were moved around and unit sizes were decreased and the project received conceptual approval. Fox said at conceptual, Council indicated the layout was okay and at final P&Z, they stated they were comfortable with the layout, which had not changed since conceptual. Fox said layout has been vetted in the process and the changes were made early on in the process. Fox agreed there are economic issues and removing one or two units does not change any impacts but would change the economic viability of the project. Councilman Romero stated mass and scale is still a concern for him and there should be some evolution to get to a best solution for the community and the applicant and to get to the yes. Councilman Romero asked where the mechanism as a recourse for not achieving the 50% minimum of local members for city employees. Fox said the applicants were trying to come up with a viable penalty, like if they miss that 50% mark, the non-profit membership costs could be reduced 10% until the 50% mark is reached in order to create a penalty and to get the membership up to 50%. Councilman Romero said he likes the financial incentive penalty for not meeting the energy commitments. Councilman Romero suggested the penalty for not achieving the 50% local membership be similarly Special Meetine Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 structured, that the applicants are fined a financial penalty to use the money for marketing or for other local programs. Fox said he is willing to look at these suggestions. Councilman Romero noted the financial assurances where sharing the capital and total budgeted costs should be shared with staff members like the finance director and capital asset manager. Councilman Romero stated that is a high standard to get one's building permit. Councilman Romero said the performance and payment bond should run to the benefit of the city of Aspen first, not the general contractor. The city may be compelled to complete the project and use the bond as the funding source and make sure the bond has sufficient detail in order to do that. Councilman Romero said if the failure is 60 days or less into the project, the city may want to put the site back to its original state rather than finish a project and the bond should have the latitude to do that. Worcester said he feels a completion bond is a different instrument than a restoration bond. Worcester said a completion bond takes time to put into effect. A surety or letter of credit for restoration could be a lesser amount and limited to an amount and give the city an opportunity to quickly put the site back to its original state. Councilman Romero agreed this could be a lesser instrument. Fox agreed that type of surety with a sunset would work and makes sense. Fox said the challenge is not completing the project but getting a construction lender and getting the project started. Councilman Romero agreed a lender may recoil at additional burden on a project; however, a completion bond would be in the lender's favor and add value to their property. Worcester said the financial commitment the applicant is going to show the city and the completion bonds discuss public improvements. Fox said these are meant to include the entire project. Sunny Vann, representing the applicant, agreed the completion bond is to cover the entire building permit, not just the public improvements. Worcester noted the ordinance states this is only to cover public improvements and that will need to be changed. Councilman Romero said the reclamation provision should also be rewritten to cover a limited percentage of construction. Councilman Romero said he agrees with the method for financing reinvestments to the club. The method to insure a percentage of local members has to be re-examined. Councilman Johnson said he is surprised at the lack of reaction to the elimination of tennis courts as he views tennis as a community benefit. Fox told Council originally 50% of the 2,000 members were tennis members. When he took over the club of the 450 members about 50% were tennis member. Today the Club has 1800 members and only 70 are tennis members. Fox told Council they are discussing with the Gant about sharing their tennis courts for the Club members. Councilman Johnson asked what percentage of existing members are locals. Fox said currently is it about 70% of the members. Fox said the additional of integral owners as members will lower the percentage of local members. Councilman Johnson said $5 million is probably not enough for reinvestment to the Club. Fox agreed that may not be enough and the real figure will be between $10 and 15 million. Fox said he is trying to 6 Special Meeting Aspen Citv Council March 31, 2010 create a floor. Councilman Johnson said in the past the Aspen Club has come to Council for concessions in order to upgrade the club and make it work. Councilman Johnson asked if the funding for reinvestment in order to keep the community benefits is sustainable over the long term. Fox told Council the Aspen Club will be putting on programs 52 weeks/year, which will generate revenues for the Club. Fox said a portion of the HOA fees will go to a capital fund, which is standard practice. This is not a one time funding but will continue into the future and will be added to continually. The one time investment from sales will see the capital program. Councilman Johnson asked if it is appropriate for the ordinance to contain a floor for funding the long term capital reserves. Councilman Johnson asked about the request for 7 yeazs vested rights versus 3 years. Fox told Council this is a marathon process and it will not happen in 6 months and the applicant wants to be thoughtful in choosing partners and financial institutions. Councilman Skadron said he has issues with the size and density of the project and asked why this project is so far in the process and mass and scale are still an issue; this should have been a closed topic. Councilman Skadron said he does not feel that issue has been scrutinized and this case has not been discussed as a land use issue but has been discussed as a quality of life and community benefit issue. Councilman Skadron said size and density are an issue as they relate to the AACP and land use code. Councilman Skadron said this is a land use decision and those standards associated with that rather than the idea of community benefit. Councilman Skadron said 50% local membership does not resonate as a community benefit, which portion of the community would that represent. Councilman Skadron said satisfying a substantial community benefit satisfies a higher societal good and includes something more than concessions and promises than may not be enforceable. Councilman Skadron said a public comment suggested '/4 to '/~ of the community is impacted by the services of the Aspen Club, which means '/z to'/4 of the community is not impacted by the Aspen Club. Councilman Skadron said this proposal devotes itself to the health and wellness of its members and integral owners rather than "all of us". Councilman Skadron said community benefits aze too often accessible to too few. Councilman Skadron said he considered asking the applicant to construct an outdoor swimming pool at the Aspen Rec Center, widening the area of health and wellness to all Aspenites. Councilman Skadron said, however, he feels it is inappropriate to ask for something like that. Councilman Skadron suggested the applicant address the mass and scale and if there is something that can be done. Fox said a challenge of this process is that it seems the goal line is changing. Fox said this plan was worked out over a 6 month period at P&Z and the applicants have relied on that plan. Fox said mass and scale came up at P&Z final and P&Z stated they were comfortable with the mass and scale. Fox said it seems like a community benefit that has to impact Y~ to'/< of the community is a very high standard. Fox said community benefits 7 Special MeetinE Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 like CMC and the library probably do not touch 50% of the community. Fox said there are standazds of cost and standards of value. Fox said he feels the Aspen Club provides value to the community. People participate in the Club programs because they see value in those programs. Councilman Skadron noted government's role is to represent the entire community, not just members of the Aspen Club. Councilman Skadron said the ARC is not billing itself as a 5 staz health and wellness facility. Fox noted that the applicants cannot be saddled with so many burdens that the project fails. Mayor Ireland asked if the applicant stated they were willing to open their pro forma to the city attorney's office. Fox said it was the construction budget. Mayor Ireland said he is concerned about staff having information that is not available to the public. Sunny Vann told Council if the applicants are required to give a completion bond, it seems reasonable the city would question whether it was adequate. The applicants agreed to provide the budget on which the completion bond is based so city staff can determine if the amount of the completion bond is adequate. Mayor Ireland asked how many fractional units there aze. Fox said there will be 20 units. Mayor Ireland said at anytime there could be 20 families on the Aspen Club and how does 1% of the existing membership add significant revenues. Fox said the issue is the programs those guests will be doing; those guests will be participating in higher end programs. Bill Wiener presented a power point about Saving the Brand, including what Aspen is, what Aspen cherishes, that Aspen is the best place to be and the Aspen brand is why guests choose Aspen. The proposed impacts from this development are not good for people and size matters. Jeremy Bernstein said Ute Avenue needs improvements no matter what happens. Bernstein pointed out this is a private club and questioned whether a private club adds to the cachet of Aspen. Junee Kirk presented a petition from members of the community urging Council to deny the expansion of the Aspen Club. Ms. Kirk said Council's mission is not to change the land use code. Ms. Kirk noted when applicants change the use or density, it changes the character of the entire neighborhood and the community ends up with the short end of the stick. Ms. Kirk said developers seems to ask for more and more. Patti Simpson presented a list of fractional units currently for sale in Aspen. Ms. Simpson said another fractional project at this time with the economy in Aspen is objectionable. Ms. Simpson said she is against that much development on Ute Avenue. Pete Louras brought up the issues of what constitutes community benefit and the concern that a private club cannot have a community benefit. Louras disagreed stating the Aspen Club is one of the most important community benefits. Louras pointed out the Aspen Idea, created 60 years ago, stated Aspen is a place where one could create a complete life, recognizing the importance of health, physical recreation, combined with art, music and creativity. Louras said the Aspen Club is an important health and wellness facility and there is no other place that can compete with this facility, with trained staff, Louras said if there was no Aspen Club, someone would be trying to convince Council to help get one 8 Special Meeting Aspeu Citv Council March 31, 2010 built. Louras said for him the issue of community benefit, it is the importance of a facility to the health and well being of members of the community. Louras asked Council to approve the project. Bob Hoover, representing adjacent property owners, submitted a petition circulated with 114 signatures opposed to the project. Hoover brought up the nature of public benefits and stated the Aspen Club is a private club and it cost money to belong to the club. Hoover stated at least half of the community does not pay to belong to the Club. Hoover said Council has to treat this as a land use issue. Hoover said this project is 189,000 square feet and is 2/3 the size of the airport business center and is a 2-1/4 increase over the existing facility. Hoover said approving this will be setting a dangerous precedent. Hoover noted this project is not consistent with the Aspen Area Community Plan and staff notes it meets most of the requirements of the AACP. The SPA standards require a project be consistent with all of the AACP. Hoover reminded Council in 2005, staff recommended against this project because it was not consistent with the AACP goals and keeping lodging in the central district. Hoover asked if what the project is proposing is worth the trade of extending a hotel into a residential neighborhood. There will be impacts on Ute Avenue and people do not believe the trade off is worth those impacts. Hoover brought up the purpose and intent of the time shaze regulations, where it states these will be limited time share development to the lodge and commercial zone districts in order to protect residential neighborhoods. Hoover said this is a long term residential neighborhood. Hoover said this is not just public benefits, the language states "great public benefit" and great does not mean increased tax revenues or sidewalks; great means a hospital, a museum, a new city hall, a community recreation center. A private development for profit is not a great public benefit. Mayor Ireland asked what the adverse consequences of this approval are. Hoover said the traffic issues and their traffic engineer has never seen "no increase in traffic" in over 1000 plans. Hoover said the change to the river view plane and the view from the trail will be changed and one will not be able to have a view of the mountains. This project is moving more action to the neighborhood at all hours of the day and there will be service vehicles at all hours. This is moving a use that the community has said needs to be in the commercial core. Allison Miller, Darnauer Group, told Council they were hired by neighbors to get their concerns to Council and to the public. Ms. Miller said the primary consideration for Council should be whether the requested development complies with the land use code and the AACP. Ms. Miller noted in 2005, staff recommended against the Aspen Club development and stated the Club should not be approved because the proposal is inconsistent with the future land use map in the AACP and is not the location for lodging development and is a departure for existing land uses in the area. The staff recommendation also stated they feel the majority of new accommodations should be located in closer proximity to the ski mountain. Ms. Miller said there is no testimony to counter the prior recommendation. Ms. Miller said a vote in favor will be setting a precedent and they should vote no on this application. 9 Special Meeting Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 Mayor Ireland closed the public hearing Vann said if the ceiling for public benefit is set too high, the city's ability to use it in a unique way to solve community issues will be limited. Vann noted the Silver Lining ranch does not serve the entire community but brings in sick kids to a ranch. Vann said the businesses in the Benedict building are not used by the entire community. The SPA was used to solve the Aspen Institute, which has a hotel in the middle of a residential neighborhood. Vann pointed out both the Institute and the music festival cost money to attend. Councils concluded the application from the Institute was important to the community and the unique provision of the code was needed to solve the problem. Vann pointed out the SPA provisions state it shall comply with the Aspen Area Community Plan, not all provisions of the AACP. Vann said if every aspect of the AACP must be met for every project, nothing would get approved. Council looks at the AACP to see if projects are in the best interest of the community and consistent with sufficient aspects of the plan. Vann brought up mass and scale and in planning, density, mass and scale are used to determine compatibility of a physical product with a neighborhood and a visual impact on the community. Vann said this is a 2.5 acre site that already contains the Aspen Club and there are minor changes proposed to the exterior of the Aspen Club which will make it more attractive. The proposal calls for townhouses on the site in locations that have previously been developed. Vann said the floor area is .5 for the site. The most affected development, the Aspen Club Townhomes across the river, have said they are in favor of this project. Vann pointed out the city has beefed up the stream margin review criteria and this requires one preserve the riparian corridor, setback from the top, and there are height limitations. Vann said on this site, the setback is heavily vegetated. Vann noted from a visual aspect, few parcels are affected. Vann said the removing one or two units would have small effect on the impacts. The applicant has a significant TDM to reduce traffic impacts including a penalty if the TDM is not met. Vann told Council this is not a solely residential neighborhood; many of the vehicle trips are to the Benedict office building. Vann said it is not realistic to expect no increase in traffic due to this development and the code does not state one cannot put additional traffic on city streets. The applicant has worked to produce an extensive TDM Plan to address the traffic. Mayor heland noted he is using the 1993 Aspen Area Community Plan, the 2000 AACP, the 2009 community vision exercise, letters from people, and this ordinance. Mayor Ireland said the public should know what Council has heard, in order to rebut or correct it. Mayor Ireland stated the arguments in favor he has heard are the applicant is a good and generous person, the Aspen Club supports non-profits and charities; the application will provide affordable housing; the club is vital to its 2000 members; the idea that the club will close if this is not approved; the club will provide revenue to the town as a tourist amenity; it will be LEED certified; it will provide a center for healthy living; it provides specialized services not available elsewhere; the club proposes to mitigate traffic; jobs will be lost if there is no approval; the club will be upgraded if this is approved. 10 Special Meetine Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 Mayor Ireland stated the arguments against are that this is contrary to AACP; it is out of character with the residential neighborhood; it will cause traffic problems; past promises have not been kept; there is a fear of being caught in the "bait and switch" where the applicant comes back and states they cannot complete their promises. Mayor Ireland noted there was a common agreement there is already a problem on Ute Avenue. Mayor Ireland said the elected officials are supposed to ask hard questions of applicants and to be skeptical of statements on either side. Mayor Ireland said he feels the city has to be more demanding of assurances than in the past when the city was too trusting. Mayor Ireland said it is difficult to hold corporations accountable. Mayor Ireland said promises have to be structured in a way that is self-executing. Council has a responsibility to make sure when approvals are granted that the applicants live up to the public benefits. Mayor Ireland pointed out the Ski Company is a private organization and there is a benefit to the community in having the ski company in town. The Aspen Institute is a private organization, yet there is benefit to having the in the community. The Institute has hotel rooms outside the downtown core. Mayor Ireland said the last time the Aspen Club came in for approvals in 1996, the city should have said the underlying right to develop single family homes as an alternative to the club goes away so there is not the threat to tear down the club and build single family houses. Mayor Ireland proposed as a condition of this approval, the underlying right to single family houses must go away. Mayor Ireland said change in ownership also happens in past approvals of other projects and suggested the city condition the approval on the idea the land, the membership interest in the LLC, does not get sold until the improvements are complete. Mayor Ireland said he favors this over completion bonds; if the owners complete all the improvements, they then get the right to sell all. Mayor Ireland said the representation about reinvestment of $5 million is meaningless. Mayor Ireland said the approval should specify what the approvals are and the city does not get involved in how much these cost and how were they paid for. The city's concern should be the promise to do certain things, list what they are, they are completed or not. Mayor Ireland said he asked for a summary of the objections to the application from Bob Hoover. Mayor Ireland said he does not see it as an inherent right to be able to cut through private property and still see views. Mayor Ireland noted many people have stated traffic is the problem. Mayor Ireland stated he does not support 41 new parking spaces on the south side of the river. Mayor Ireland said he can support zeroing out the traffic with a defined number oftrips/day and if that is exceeded, there are consequences; the applicant will lose something. Mayor Ireland pointed out that the city has had zero vehicle increase across the Castle Creek bridge since 1993. The city did that with paid parking, with transportation. Mayor Ireland reiterated the city has been promised things in past approvals which did not materialize. Mayor Ireland said if the applicant wants to protect the environment, they have no increase in traffic. Mayor Ireland said city employees should not be the beneficiary for enforcement of the number of resident members. Mayor Ireland said the requirement to be a resident member is being in the valley 6 months/year and some other 11 Special Meeting Aspen Citv Council March 31, 2010 criteria. Mayor Ireland said the other criteria have to be identified. Mayor Ireland suggested a restriction that the applicant cannot come back with the option of tearing down the club and building single family residences. Mayor Ireland said institutions serve different categories of residents; a public benefit does not need to be accessible to everyone Mayor Ireland noted this project is not exactly in character with the residential neighborhood; however, this is not an affordable housing neighborhood with little houses. Vann asked about the once the improvements are in place, the applicant can sell whatever they want. Mayor Ireland said the applicant does not get a certificate of occupancy for the fractionals, the ownership of the LLC is not sold until all improvements are complete. Mayor Ireland said the applicant receives the benefits but they have to make the project work. Fox said he will be bringing partners and finance partners to make the project happen. Mayor Ireland said there are equity instruments by which this can be done while retaining control and responsibility in the hand of the applicant. Vann said the applicant is willing to work on these issues; however, they would like an indication there is closure. Councilman Skadron said he has no other issues. Mayor Ireland said many of his issues are derived from public comments and he is ready to move on if the city can get strong assurances that what is promised will be done and that the impacts on the neighborhood will be minimized through a tough traffic program. Vann said he feels the two most difficult are no increase in parking and the exact mechanism by which the applicants can manage parking. Fox said he agrees with the suggestions about traffic; however, there are other considerations, like seasonality, the weather, but this is in line with the TDM and an issue of execution and tracking. Fox said he wants to make sure the project is adequately parked. Councilman Romero agreed on the amount of reinvestment that it is necessary and that the figure of $5 million is meaningless. Councilman Romero for the traffic, a baseline has to be measured and the methods to achieve that baseline, the applicants will have to commit to actions to zero out traffic. Councilman Romero asked about vacating the underlying single family zoning. Mayor Ireland stated the existing zoning is by right, which needs to be eliminated so that a property owner does not come in and tell the city they have a right to single family residences. Vann agreed with that. Councilman Romero said he can support that. Councilman Romero said the resident members is vague with no objective criteria; this needs further refinement. Councilman Romero said he would like maintenance of general local membership or local participation in programs at the club. Councilman Romero said Council has heard it is not about the applicant and is a land use application, and then to tie ownership seems to undermine the principle about land use. Councilman Romero said if the applicant is willing to commit to that, it will combat the fear about the property being "flipped". Councilman Romero said he still wants to consider the reduction of density on the project. Mayor Ireland stated he shares Councilman Romero about working on mass and 12 Special Meeting Aspen City Council March 31, 2010 scale; however, his primary concern is the tool to maintain what is there and to protect people against adverse impacts like traffic. Councilman Romero agreed mitigating traffic is more important than reducing the density. Councilman Johnson said the long term economic sustainability is most important for him. For the reinvestment in the club, he would like the details of what will be done filled out. Councilman Johnson said the removal of units 5 and 6 are not a high priority. Councilman Johnson said he wants the club to be adequately parked to cover things like physical therapy patients, handicap accessibility issues, the women's clinic. Councilman Johnson said he feels there is a way to get to the correct number of parking spaces and also make sure the neighborhood is not overburdened with traffic. Fox reiterated the key issue is no increase in traffic. Councilman Johnson stated he is more passionate about making sure this maintains local accessibility. Councilman Skadron concurred with the comments. Councilman Romero moved to continue Ordinance #2, Series of 2010, to May 10, 2010; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Romero moved to adjourn at 9:15 p.m.; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. 7 Kat .Koch, City Clerk 13