Pitkin County planning panel approves Penny Hot Springs parking, drainage and access plan with conditions

The Pitkin County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 5-0 on June 3 to approve a location-and-extent review for parking, drainage and access improvements at Penny Hot Springs, subject to conditions including a flood‑plain permit and documentation of Colorado Department of Transportation approvals.

Rebecca Dunlap, Pitkin County planning staff, presented the project and recommended approval. “Staff recommends the Planning and Zoning Commission find that location and extent review for Penny Hot Springs parking, drainage, and access improvements is in conformance with the objectives of the 2016 Crystal River Valley Master Plan subject to the draft resolution,” Dunlap said during the hearing.

The project, led by Pitkin County Open Space and Trails, would realign and resurface the existing roadside parking platform within a Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) right of way managed by Pitkin County under a lease agreement. The design would retain most existing spaces (19 of 21), pull the parking edge back roughly 2–3 feet from the top of slope, install a split‑rail fence and native vegetation at the edge, formalize two primary public access trails with low‑impact stone steps, and add a curb/vegetated swale system to concentrate and filter runoff before it reaches the…