SAVE THE DATE: BUSINESS OUTREACH MEETINGS
MAY 9 & 10, 2017
Avon Mayor Jennie Fancher and Councilwoman Sarah Smith Hymes will host two Business Outreach meetings in May for Avon business owners. The purpose of these meetings is to update local businesses on town investments and to hear from business owners about town matters such as special events, parking, and infrastructure investments. The meetings will be held in conjunction with the Vail Valley Partnership, and will take place on May 9th from 12-1:30 p.m. and May 10th from 8:00-9:30 a.m., with a location to be announced.
Jan 2017 Business Outreach NewsletterFINAL
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
o New Town Hall: Design for the New Town Hall is currently underway. The first floor, in addition to providing space for public meetings and Court hearings, is being designed to accommodate an array of community uses on a daily basis. The second floor has staff offices
and initial areas for public meetings and potentially nonprofit shared work spaces. The third floor is entirely staff offices. Council will review the building’s layout on February 14th. The interior finish is expected to be complete in late 2017.
o Beaver Creek Boulevard Redesign: Information has been collected from the public and stakeholders regarding the Beaver Creek Boulevard street design. The final recommended design will be presented to Council at the February 28th Town Council meeting. All information regarding the design can be found at www.avon.org/bcblvd.
o Nottingham Park Restroom Remodel: The remodel project will update the restrooms that were constructed in 1983. The project includes replacing the exterior siding and roof, updating the fixtures, and making the stalls ADA complaint. Bids will be solicited in February. It is expected to be complete in the fall of 2017.
o New Public Safety Facility: The new facility, which will house the Town’s Police Department and serve as a regional fire station, broke ground in August 2016 and is slated for completion in August, 2017.
o Avon Section of Eagle Valley Trail Complete: The last phase of the Eagle Valley Trail through Avon was completed in November, 2016. The new section of the multi-use trail connects Avon Road to Stonebridge Drive and improves safety for pedestrians and cyclists by providing a route removed from Hwy 6, improved path lighting, and a new bus shelter at Eaglebend Apartments.
AVON WEBSITE BEST PLACE FOR TOWN INFORMATION www.avon.org Sign up for e-blasts at www.avon.org/notifyme Watch for the new app in 2017.
Avon Police Department Appointments
In September, 2016, Greg Daly was sworn in as Avon’s Chief of Police after eight years of service with the Avon Police Department, and twenty years in law enforcement. Deputy Chief Coby Cosper and Sergeants Jeremy Holmstrom and Matt Jamison were sworn in during a January ceremony. All positions were selected through a rigorous, multi-step process, with citizens and other ski town peers joining the interview panels.
Avon Hotel Approved
In December, 2016, the Avon Town Council unanimously approved a Major Development Plan from Treadstone Development LLC for a 142-room hotel on Lot B, which is near the Lodge at Avon between West Beaver Creek Boulevard and the Main Street Mall. The hotel will include four small retail spaces and six condominium units.
Avon Adopts 2017 Budget
On October 25, 2016, the Avon Town Council approved a $17.3 million budget for 2017 operating expenditures.
Climate Action Plan Adopted by Avon Town Council
In December, 2016, the Avon Town Council unanimously voted to adopt the Climate Action Plan for the Eagle County Community. The plan is the culmination of a year-long effort that included more than 30 Eagle County stakeholders who were tasked with reducing GHG emissions for the entire County.
Town Council to Review Worker Housing Philosophy
On February 14th, Council has scheduled a work session to discuss the Town of Avon’s Affordable Housing Vision and Philosophy. The Town Council has listed providing affordable housing for workers as a top priority, and articulating specific goals and actions will be included in the new statement.
DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR TOWN-OWNED LANDS The Town of Avon will soon commence an effort to complete development plans for key parcels owned by the Town, including Lot 5, property at Swift Gulch, the Wildridge Fire Station and Tract G. Tract G encompasses the current site of the Town Hall, Fire Station, Harry A. Nottingham Park, Recreation Center, and surrounding street parking and public parking lots. A comprehensive civic engagement process will be launched for citizen involvement to identify the best public uses on these Town-owned lands.
AVON OFFERS FREE SPACES TO EXPLORE
WALK. RIDE. PARK
The Town of Avon has free public parking supported by free bus service, which combined provide residents and guests with access to Avon’s vibrant retail and restaurant commercial core, Recreation Center, Library, Nottingham Park and skiing at Beaver Creek Resort. In Avon, you can park once and walk, bike or ride the bus or gondola to your destination.
GETTING AROUND AVON’S COMMERCIAL CORE
PARKING: Avon’s commercial core has free parking spaces in the following locations:
Lake Street On-Street Parking: 41 Spaces
Mikaela Way Public Lot: 38 Spaces
Town Hall Parking Lot: 82 Spaces
(Evenings and weekends only)
Parking is not allowed from midnight until 6:00 a.m.
BUS SERVICE:
The Red Line runs every 30 minutes between 6:44 a.m. and 6:05 p.m. and services the residential areas in east Avon along Hurd Lane and Hwy 6, including Traer Creek Plaza and Buffalo Ridge Housing Complex.
The Blue Line runs every 30 minutes between 6:29 a.m. and 6:06 p.m. and services the residential areas in west Avon along West Beaver Creek Boulevard and Hwy 6, including the Town core businesses and Traer Creek Plaza.
The Restaurant Shuttle provides an evening connection between Avon and Beaver Creek for those wishing to dine at any of the popular restaurants within the Town of Avon and Beaver Creek Resort. All Avon lodges and restaurants are serviced by this shuttle–just ask the driver!
GETTING TO BEAVER CREEK SKI RESORT
The Skier Express Shuttle runs every 15 minutes from 8:00 a.m. to 11:21 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m., and every 30 minutes from 11:21 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. All Avon lodges are served by the Skier Express Shuttle, which drops skiers and riders directly at Beaver Creek Village.
The free Riverfront Express Gondola offers easy access to Beaver Creek and is a two minute walk from Avon Station.
GETTING TO TRAER CREEK PLAZA
Located just east of Avon’s commercial core, Traer Creek Plaza offers dining and large retail store shopping. Free public parking is available in a 170 space underground parking lot from 6:00 a.m. to midnight.
2017 – 2018 STRATEGIC PLAN The Strategic Plan is developed and adopted annually to guide decision-making and provide the structure for ensuring investments and programs reflect Council priorities in achieving the vision and adopted plans of the Town of Avon. To check out the Town of Avon 2017-2018 Strategic Plan, visit www.avon.org/strategicplan.
2017 FESTIVALS & SPECIAL EVENTS
In 2014, the Town Council launched a focused effort to bring more vibrancy and cultural offerings to Avon. The number of programmed events since then has grown from seven days to 30 event days this year. The events have been varied, including paid ticket and free music festivals and concerts, dance, symphony, yoga and nonprofit fundraisers. Council approved for 2017, $8,000 in funding for an Easter Egg Hunt on April 15th, and $25,000 for the Vail International Dance performance, Dancing in the Park, on July 31st. The Avon Live! Summer Concert series and seeding for an inaugural bike festival in May were also approved. To date, several other events have received approval for 2017, including the Skylight Writer’s Conference, Missoula Children’s Theatre, Cover Rock Music Festival and the Mavic Haute Route Rockies bike race.
2017 Festivals & Events:
April
15: Easter Egg Hunt
June
9-11: Skylight Writer’s Conference
12-17: Missoula Children’s Theatre
18: Tutu 2k
23-24: Cover Rock: British Invasion
26-28: Mavic Haute Route Rockies Bicycle Race
July
3: Salute to the USA!
14-15: XTERRA Triathlon
AD HOC SPECIAL EVENTS COMMITTEE
The Town Council recently appointed an Ad Hoc Special Events Committee, comprised of 15 people, who responded to a solicitation by Mayor Jennie Fancher. Two members of Council, Jake Wolf and Megan Burch, will serve as observers. The Committee is charged with the development, review and recommendation of special events to the Town Council.
TOWN OF AVON WEBSITE REDESIGN
WWW.AVON.ORG
The Town of Avon is rebuilding its website with plans to launch the new site in March, 2017. While the website has been redesigned in recent years, this is the first complete website rebuild since 2006. Project goals include less clicking and scrolling to find information, enhanced translation features for greater outreach to the Hispanic community, a greater showcase of the Avon brand on the homepage, and simplified menu structure. Additionally, the new website will include a “Things to Do” section, which was strongly recommended by Avon businesses. Later in 2017, the Town is expecting to launch a Town of Avon app, which will provide residents and guests with easy mobile access to Town information.