San Miguel County updates affordable housing projects, sets outreach schedule for code update

San Miguel County commissioners received an update Sept. 24 on ongoing affordable-housing projects, the county's housing needs assessment and the local planning capacity grant that funds a land-use code update and community outreach.

The monthly briefing, presented by Drea Arraiza, the county’s housing specialist, and Jared Viggs, deputy county manager, covered schematic designs and cost-estimate timelines for a small-unit housing project, partnership and feasibility work on the Pathfinder site, coordination with the San Bernardo homeowners association on water testing, and a pending draft agreement with Colorado Department of Transportation on the Deep Creek parcel.

Arraiza said KEO Studio Works provided schematic drawings and that the firm would deliver a cost estimate by the end of the month. She said Buckhorn Engineering and a consultant identified as “Gulf” were working on debris-flow and fence-cost estimates and on retaining-wall options that would affect whether units are built on slab-on-grade or with crawl spaces. Arraiza said the county is working to coordinate with Lance Erskine, the property owner above the parcel, “based off the reports from Buckhorn Engineering” to clarify drainage and debris-flow management.

Commissioners and staff discussed unit size and configuration for a small on-call housing project intended in part to serve sheriff’s office employees. Commissioners noted a land-use limitation: the parcel is subject to a PUD limit of 2,500 square feet total, which has constrained how many units can be included. Arraiza said earlier design sketches that contemplated roughly six units were pared back after architects concluded it was infeasible to create six viable efficiency apartments within the square-foot cap. Commissioners recommended engaging current sheriff’s office staff and some existing users of county housing to advise whether studio units or larger shared layouts would better meet needs.

On Deep Creek, Arraiza reported a call with David Fox of CDOT; Fox told the county he expected to finish one more internal review and deliver a draft agreement for county signatures within about a week. For the Pathfinder site, the county and the San Bernardo Homeowners Association finalized a memorandum of understanding on Sept. 11 covering water capacity and a development feasibility study. Arraiza said county staff met Sept. 19 with Wright Water Engineers, who sent an updated proposal for hydrogeologic testing; staff told the consultants they want drilling completed this fall if drillers’ schedules permit, to test wells under current low-water conditions rather than waiting until spring.

Arraiza said the San Miguel Regional Housing Authority is compiling community input for the county’s housing needs assessment and that the state Office of Economic Development and International Trade/Department of Local Affairs (referred to in the meeting as DOLA) requires completion of a supplemental survey tied to the assessment before the report is accepted. Arraiza described the DOLA requirement as more involved than staff had anticipated and said the county would follow up with their consultant, EPS (Economic & Planning Systems), for clarification on some data fields.

The update included the local planning capacity grant deliverables: the county’s grant-funded housing position will provide monthly reports and oversight for the housing-code update; the county appointed 12 members to a stakeholder review group (SSR) on Aug. 27; Logan Simpson (the county’s code consultant) has prepared draft materials and a listening-session schedule; and staff published session dates and sign-up links on the county website.

Commissioners and staff emphasized outreach before the October listening sessions and asked that the county distribute invites to stakeholders, SSR applicants who were not appointed, hospitality and restaurant owners, utility providers and local governments. Commissioners urged flexible scheduling — including at least one evening session in Placerville to accommodate Down Valley commuters — and suggested targeted meetings (including virtual Zoom sessions) for hospitality and employer groups if the three on-site days prove too compact.

Arraiza said the October outreach will include multiple format options: open listening sessions, recorded SSR meetings that the public may view later on the county’s YouTube channel, 30-minute one-on-one sessions and one-hour group meetings scheduled with Logan Simpson. The county will maintain a "what was said / what was heard" document to record feedback and will provide SSR prereads ahead of the group’s first meeting in October. Staff also plans newspaper advertising and email notices to the stakeholder list.