480 Donegan, mall redevelopment go hand-in-hand

As a nearby resident of the 480 Donegan project area, I am not necessarily against the development being proposed. But I believe that further emphasis needs to be given to integrate the planning for the 480 project with planning for the eventual redevelopment of the adjoining old shopping center property.

A significant benefit of joint planning would be that it would enable the primary access for future development on these two properties to be to the south onto Sixth Avenue (i.e., U.S. Highway 6). The primary benefit of such combined access is that it would take the routine day-to-day traffic pressure off of Donegan and other local streets. A secondary benefit, I believe, is that it would provide better opportunities for evacuation of the current residents and future growth in response to any future emergency events.

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We must proceed thoughtfully and not be rushed into development that would not be in the best interest of the neighborhood. The city could help play a more constructive role by helping to facilitate this joint effort.

Commitments by the property owners to agree to more diligently work together in advance of the upcoming annexation vote would be most helpful.

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Gary Broetzman

Glenwood Springs

Weigh in on Fields development

The Fields Development is back, and they are now proposing increasing the project size to 152 housing units on historically established agricultural land and a wildlife corridor that is currently zoned Rural Residential along Valley Road just west of Crown Mountain Park. The development would add, according to CDOT estimates, over 1,000 more vehicle trips per day along Valley Road and at the El Jebel / Highway 82 intersection.

The Fields Development owners are asking to build the highest density allowable under Eagle County residential zoning classifications. They want to leapfrog three zoning density designations in order to maximize their yield and profits with no compelling public benefit.

It’s important to act now and let your voice be heard! They are holding a combined sketch plan and preliminary subdivision plan meeting on Thursday, April 7 at 2:30 at the El Jebel/Eagle Valley Community Center. This means that they are trying to push this through without public input at a one-and-done meeting.

Please make your comments known to the Eagle County Planning Department and the three Eagle County Commissioners before it’s too late by emailing all four.

planningcomments@eaglecounty.us

Matt.scherr@eaglecounty.us

Kathy.chandlerhenry@eaglecounty.us

jeanne.mcqueeney@eaglecounty.us

Jen Mueller

Carbondale

Thanks, Tony

Once again Tony Hershey was spot on with regards to the Donegan property (April 1 guest opinion). Glenwood is full — and yet there are tons of new apartments and condos popping up like popcorn. Enough! The city can’t even keep street maintenance manageable — such as the bombed-out ’hood of Glenwood Park, or the wavy bumpy intersection on the northeast side of Sayre Park. The list is long.

And the current construction is not affordable by any stretch for the worker bees of Glenwood. The unfortunate part is that most of the so-called Glenwood worker bees commute to Aspen, yet at the same time, bog down our town with infrastructure, fire, police and educational burdens.

Garfield County should propose a law targeting Pitkin County such that anyone who lives in Garfield, yet commutes to the (bogus) “green paradise” called Aspen, must pay 50% of worker-bee rent or mortgage — and fuel costs.

Maybe that would light a fire under the green paradise to start supporting their own worker bees instead of reaping the benefits of zero growth impact and passing the buck downstream to Glenwood and beyond.

Once again, thanks Tony — appreciated!

Dave Heyliger

Glenwood Springs