Home

Steamboat Springs — Steamboat 700 Project Manager Danny Mulcahy continues to assuage concerns that his proposed master-planned community west of city limits is threatened by the global economic downturn.

"It's not about pulling the plug," Mulcahy said. "It's about constant evaluation. Right now, it's still looking pretty good. : Fortunately, we're at a good place with the economy."

Mulcahy said that decreasing commodity and labor costs bode well for his planned development, which he said will be in good shape to begin going vertical in coming years as long as credit markets thaw. At the same time, Mulcahy and his team are expressing growing frustration with the city review process and told the Steamboat Springs City Council on Tuesday that there may be a breaking point.

Heated debate was expected in the latter part of Tuesday night's meeting, when council was scheduled to discuss a proposed water dedication policy that would require water rights - or resources, namely money, to develop existing water rights - be brought to the table as a condition of annexation.

But sparks flew much earlier in the meeting when council members and Planning Services Manager John Eastman expressed doubt that Steamboat 700's annexation application could be reviewed and ruled on by a July date agreed to in principle in a pre-annexation agreement between the city and developer.

"July is very important to us. I just don't want that to go unsaid," said Steamboat attorney Bob Weiss, who is representing Steamboat 700 and later revealed that the development's partners are spending $200,000 a month during the review process.

"I think it's a little disingenuous to have an application that's six weeks late and then insist on the same completion date," Eastman replied, claiming the developer missed its Oct. 31, 2008, deadline to submit a complete application.

Steamboat 700 design and land-use consultant Peter Patten argued that Steamboat 700 submitted all but one out of 30 required items by the deadline and then was asked by the city to submit 17 additional items not previously requested. City Council President Loui Antonucci cut off the back and forth before it escalated further.

"I think we agreed in principle (to complete the annexation by July) if we could do the proper diligence," Antonucci said. "It's going to take however long it takes to go through the process."

During a break later in the meeting, Mulcahy was not satisfied.

"A deadline doesn't prevent you from doing things right," he said. "Unless you put a timeline on things, things don't get done."

'There's a limit'

The Steamboat 700 development team has been similarly frustrated by the discussion of a water dedication policy, which it called unexpected. Steve Aigner, community organizer for the Community Alliance of the Yampa Valley, disagreed and cited half a dozen instances when the issue has been raised at public meetings.

"Past and current residents have acquired water rights since 1892," Aigner said. "We have invested in assets like infiltration bays, water delivery and treatment facilities. The city cannot reasonably give these assets away. : Then annexation would not be revenue neutral."

Among council members, the debate essentially came down to an argument of whether the city was contemplating "fundamentally changing the rules in the fourth quarter," as Councilman Jon Quinn said, or if water supply is so critical that the city should be willing to relent on concessions such as affordable housing and transportation improvements.

However the issue is resolved, Mulcahy said the city can't expect everything. If it does, Weiss said it risks losing the most "forward-thinking" and "progressive" developer he's ever worked with.

"There's a limit," Weiss said, "and that's all I can say."

Eastman took issue with the suggestion that the city was being adversarial. He said the West Steamboat Springs Area Plan went out of its way to encourage development to help deal with community needs, primarily affordable housing.

"We don't have a neutral stance. We want to see this happen," Eastman said. "I think we all want to get it done but do good work."