The following was shared with the Gypsum Town Council earlier today. Please have your voice heard if you support workforce housing in the Vail Valley by contacting the Gypsum Council in support. Contact information available here.
January 31, 2017
Dear Mayor Carver and Gypsum Town Council members,
Vail Valley Partnership is the regional chamber of commerce, with over 850 members throughout Eagle County who collectively represent over 80% of the local workforce. We are dedicated to the economic vitality of the valley, and as such our board of governors – which includes residents & business operators from Gypsum – has identified workforce housing as our number one priority.
As you are aware, the Eagle County Housing Needs Assessment shows a shortfall of both current and future housing needs. Additionally, as noted in the recent 1A efforts, County and Town governments and most of the community collective, including Eagle County schools personnel, have agreed that housing needs are significant and should be an issue receiving priority action. Comparisons of income and housing costs and availability of housing stock have been independently tabulated and confirmed to be inadequate.
1A, of course, did not pass as the ballot box. We heard time and again that community members were seeking public/private partnerships. We enthusiastically endorse the continued efforts for the Stratton Flats project to be developed in such a manner. The current project will provide 283 rental apartments, 114 of which will be restricted to renters at 60% AMI; 68 for rent townhomes and 32 of the new townhome pads units will be made available to Habitat. This will make a meaningful dent in our housing needs and is the exact type of project we heard was needed time and again while running the 1A campaign.
As is often the case when housing developments are proposed, you are likely to hear from NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard), BANANA (Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anybody), and CAVE (Citizens Against Virtually Everything) people. We encourage you to carefully review the proposed project and mirror it with the much-needed community needs that it helps to address.
Sincerely,
Chris Romer
President & CEO
Vail Valley Partnership