Telluride and San Miguel County continue plans to redevelop Fruin site as shared town–county facility

Telluride community housing manager James Van Hoosier told the San Miguel County Board of County Commissioners on Aug. 13 that the town and county are continuing work on a joint redevelopment of the county-owned Fruin site at 335 West Colorado Avenue.

The presentation summarized phase‑3 preliminary design work, including floor plans showing roughly 4,000 square feet of ground‑floor retail, multiple floors of town and county office space, shared conference and pantry spaces, and parking configured in a tandem layout to preserve spaces while expanding usable floor area. Van Hoosier said feedback from the Telluride Historic and Architectural Review Commission (HARC) prompted designers to set the third story back and enlarge the second story to preserve massing that fits the streetscape.

The redesign also addressed a proposed outdoor deck and the future of historic sheds on the site. Van Hoosier said HARC is amenable to relocating one shed (Shed 81) but prefers that any relocated shed remain on an alley within the historic district; the town and county had floated potential locations but have not yet identified a final relocation site. Van Hoosier said the shed relocation will be necessary to achieve the project program but that a relocation site remains to be agreed.

Cost estimate shown during the presentation — expressed in "today’s dollars" and described by consultants as un‑escalated — was roughly $10 million for the new build and related work. Van Hoosier and county staff cautioned that the figure does not include escalation or final contractor pricing; the design team completed an initial cost estimate and will pursue detailed pricing and a guaranteed maximum price during phase 4.

Commissioners and county staff discussed several programmatic issues, including: - Department adjacencies and security: the coroner’s office was noted as likely to require ground‑level access with secure, discreet ingress/egress; commissioners asked that office locations be finalised by staff and presented to the boards once programmatic needs are confirmed. - Shared spaces: both jurisdictions said they want shared conference rooms and break areas that can support public meetings, community events and staff use. Commissioners emphasized that any public or private functions in shared spaces must not interfere with government operations during business hours. - Retail and conversion: designers noted the ground‑floor retail component supports financing and Main Street vitality. Converting retail or storage into additional county offices later would require a planned unit development (PUD) and additional land‑use review; town staff said council prefers to keep the retail program intact for now. - Parking: designers proposed tandem parking for eight spaces to preserve parking counts while enlarging second‑floor footprint; the team expects to retain at least 11 spaces and to explore a twelfth.

Van Hoosier outlined the next steps as design development, securing entitlements including HARC review and any required PUD process, procuring a guaranteed maximum price, and assembling a financing package that could include grants. He said the town has directed staff to budget for entitlement work and to proceed to phase 4. County staff said they will continue programming and coordination and will return with a proposed phase‑4 memorandum of understanding for both boards to consider.

No formal vote was required today. Van Hoosier and county staff said their objective is to complete the phase‑4 entitlement work during 2026 so both governing bodies would be positioned to decide whether to begin construction in 2027.