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Steamboat Springs — Plans for Graystone Park, a 75.3-acre residential subdivision around the Sheraton Golf Course, have been delayed but the developers remain excited about the possibilities for the project.

Developer Ski Time Square Enterprises, which also owns the Sheraton Golf Course, decided there were issues with the proximity of the houses to the driving range, the first holes and the ninth hole, said Project General Manager Chuck Porter. The subdivision is planned to be on Clubhouse Drive, near the south side of Steamboat Boulevard.

At Porter's request, Ski Time Square Enterprises was granted a one-year extension of its major development permit by the Steamboat Springs City Council to explore options for revising the plan. The extension requires construction to be under way by Sept. 16, 2005.

Porter said the driving range or parts of the golf course would not be changed for the sake of the new homes.

"We don't want to compromise the golf experience at all," Porter said. "That's why we requested the extension, which makes me feel a whole lot better."

Some of the subdivision revisions will go hand-in-hand with improvements to the golf course, Porter said.

One of the goals is to extend the golf course from its current 6,900 yards to 7,000 yards in order to host higher-level tournaments. Other goals are to improve greens and tee boxes.

A new clubhouse also has been planned for the golf course to replace the current one, which was built in 1972, Porter said.

When Graystone construction begins, new road accesses will have to be built, and a new entrance to the clubhouse will be built along with them.

Chip Weincek, an architect with Eric Smith Associates P.C., made several recommendations to redo some of the building envelopes, bringing them farther away from the driving range. Troon Golf Planning Consultants, which manages the golf course, made other recommendations.

Troon Golf is one of the largest golf course planning companies in the world. The Ridge at Castle Pines in Denver is an example of Troon's work.

Troon Golf is working with Weincek to ensure plans for the course and for Graystone will work in harmony.

Porter said the main issue will be the positioning of the building envelopes. "We have a list of recommendations that will make (the subdivision) compatible with the driving range."

The homes in the subdivision will be smaller than most homes in the area of Steamboat Boulevard, Porter said. The minimum size for the homes is planned to be 2,500 square feet.

"We think the market is more for the high-quality smaller homes," Porter said. "We're seeing a lot of interest from people who don't want a large home anymore.

This development is accommodating that size, along with spectacular views of the Flat Tops, Emerald Mountain and Sleeping Giant. The area also gets a lot of sun.

"People are telling us, 'we want a smaller home. We want something with a master bedroom on the same level as the living space. We just don't want to take care of a large home anymore. We want a nice, well done home ... with great access to the golf course.'"

The project will be built in phases, with the first phase being the construction of four homes on the southeast side of the golf course property.

These four homes will be built first, because no new roads will have to be built, Porter said. Also four homes will be easier to introduce to the market than the 15 in the second phase.

The second phase will entail the construction of a circular road to access several of the homes.

-- To reach Nick Foster call 871-4204 or

e-mail nfoster@steamboatpilot.com