Grants Pass council asks staff to study yurt lodging proposal for Riverside Park caretaker’s cottage

Council members on Jan. 6 heard a staff briefing and an applicant presentation about plans to renovate the century-old Riverside Park Caretaker’s Cottage and site six yurts nearby, then voted unanimously to direct staff to gather more information before changing city rules to permit overnight lodging in city parks.

Bradley Clark, with the city’s Community Development Department, told the council the cottage dates to about 1920 and that Riverside Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which means work on the structure must follow preservation standards. Clark said the city used an RFEI (request for expressions of interest) rather than a formal RFP to seek private partners and that the only viable response proposes revitalizing the cottage with an adjacent yurt lodging concept. Clark cautioned that “this would be a first” for the city’s park system and that the municipal code (Title VI, 6.46.040) currently prohibits overnight camping in parks except at council-authorized resting sites.

Bernie Woodard, the applicant’s representative for Elk Island Trading, described a revenue model that would start with short-term rentals and shift to a lease, saying in his presentation that “the money stream would be from Airbnb rentals” in an initial phase and that the operator would assume most of the site-development costs while the city would contribute to exterior structural work. Woodard estimated nightly yurt rates in the roughly $100–$250 range and proposed adding restrooms attached to the cottage for yurt guests.

Parks staff and the park superintendent raised operational concerns. Josh Hopkins, park superintendent, told the council staff feared conflicts between camping-type lodging and Riverside Park’s existing recreational uses, early-morning maintenance operations and permit parking rules; he summarized the department’s view that “the negative impacts outweigh the positives.” Council members pressed on neighborhood notification, parking logistics, potential police calls and whether the lodging would be subject to the city’s lodging tax.

Staff also identified limited city expenditures to date: about $4,500 for a historic consultant evaluation, roughly $1,400 for asbestos/lead testing and a $15,000 architectural-services grant aimed at reuse design. Clark told the council there is urban-renewal funding earmarked for Riverside Park improvements that could be considered during further budgeting discussions.

Rather than approve a zoning or code change, the council approved a motion to direct staff to return with targeted neighborhood outreach and a general community survey, a parking plan, police and parks impact analyses, clearer estimates of revenue and city costs, and specifics about how preservation standards would be met. The motion was made by Councilor Indra, seconded, then clarified and refiled as a request for further information; council voted unanimously to proceed with that fact-finding stage.

Next steps: staff will draft outreach materials and proposed survey language, prepare preliminary parking and operations options, clarify lodging-tax and lease-revenue implications, and return to council with those findings before any action to amend the municipal code.