The project, a joint venture between resort owner Powdr Corp and real estate developer Continuum Partners, would feature a 50-room hotel with restaurant, bar and spa, a 10,000-sq. ft. conference center, nearby housing, a three-level underground parking area, and small snack station for skiers and golfers.
The look and variety of offerings at Copper Mountain (Colo.) Resort could be changing in the next five years, and the development of a new neighborhood near the Alpine Lift on the ski area’s east side may be at the forefront of its transformation, the Aspen (Colo.) Times reported.
During a Tuesday afternoon work session with Summit’s Board of County Commissioners, the resort and county staff each laid out the early stages of a forthcoming application with a 50-room hotel featuring a restaurant, bar and spa, and approximately 10,000-sq. ft. conference center as its key fixtures, the Times reported.
The proposed $30 million project at the site of the Powdr Corp-owned resort’s existing Triple Treat parking lot would also include a blend of nearby for-sale housing, in addition to a three-level underground parking area and small snack station for skiers and golfers depending on the season, the Times reported.
“This has been an exciting project for us to work on,” said Gary Rodgers, president and COO. “We think this is an important part of the overall economic model for the resort, but by no means the only thing we’re planning to do.”
While still in its conceptual phase, the development has an ambitious goal of breaking ground as early as next spring. Should the A-Lift Neighborhood receive the necessary county rezoning approvals in the next six-to-eight months, it could hypothetically hit that mark en route to an estimated two-year project completion once shovels are in the ground, the Times reported.
The undertaking is a joint business venture between Utah-based Powdr, which has owned Copper since 2009, and real estate developer Continuum Partners, the Times reported.
The A-Lift Neighborhood is presently zoned for 12 single-family homes, each up to 2,500 sq. ft., or 30 duplex equivalents spanning 3 acres of land. Aside from the boutique hotel and attached conference center, the new design would comprise 15 condos, eight duplexes and three single-family homes across an additional 5 acres, and require alteration to the Copper Creek Golf Course—specifically shortening and realigning the 15th hole, the Times reported.
As presented, the application would request nearly doubling the area’s height restriction, from 35 feet to 65 feet for the hotel. The condos, which would also act as part of the hotel stock when not occupied by their owners, would stand at 55 feet, and the duplexes and single-family dwellings would remain at 35 feet, the Times reported.
Beyond those potential visual impacts, the commissioners and county staff both raised concerns over the effects to wetlands on what is considered private open space land and the purpose of the three high-priced homes situated on steep slopes, the Times reported.
Connectivity issues for pedestrians, bicyclists and shuttle services within the property had yet to be hashed out in the preliminary proposal. Questions about commuter safety and access points to the area are still unsettled for now as well, the Times reported.
The meeting functioned as the project’s official public unveiling, too, and the reception was mixed among the Copper Mountain residents in attendance who commented. Critics of the project underscored the possible environmental worries and uncertainty for how it might impact the adjacent Colorado Trail, the Times reported.
Others, meanwhile, were optimistic the development could enrich the Copper community as a whole and be part of a longer-term stimulus to draw more people and opportunities to the resort in the ever-competitive ski industry market. Rodgers agreed, stating the A-Lift Neighborhood was never envisioned as a main portal to the resort, but rather a unique offshoot, and is the first of several new collaborative commercial and residential developments just down the road, the Times reported.
“It’s easy to have ideas,” said Rodgers. “To get them to contract—especially the financing in the mountain communities is a challenge—but we think we’ve got the right development partners, not only here but elsewhere in the resort.”
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