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DRC continues Virginia Lodge apartment project after members flag connectivity and placemaking concerns
Summary
The committee continued final review of a 32‑unit employee housing proposal at 750 West Broadway, citing concerns about pedestrian connectivity, entry sequencing and lack of common outdoor space. The motion to continue passed unanimously, 6–0.
The Design Review Committee on Jan. 14 continued final review of P25‑232, a 32‑unit apartment proposal sited in the southeast corner of the Virginia Lodge property, after members expressed concerns about connectivity to the broader site and the proposal’s approach to entries and placemaking.
Hal Hutchinson, speaking for Virginia Lodge LLC, described four modular buildings totaling about 15,000 square feet with 32 units (24 one‑bedroom units on the first floor and eight two‑bedroom units on the second floor) intended primarily for employee housing. Hutchinson said the project provides 16 new parking spaces on the parcel and that the stand‑alone requirement for the four‑building project would be 36 spaces. “The parking that we fit in front of these units is 16 parking spaces. The project requires 36,” Hutchinson said, noting the larger site has substantial existing parking that the applicant expects will support operations.
Committee members pressed on circulation and how residents would access units, whether any first‑floor units would be accessible (Hutchinson said ADA‑compliant ramps could be added if required), and whether the modular approach undermined placemaking. Several members argued the scheme feels inward‑facing and “tucked” into a corner of the larger site and recommended more attention to defining entries, adding landscape gestures, and providing common outdoor space: “These are people's homes,” one member said, urging the applicant to plan for long‑term livability rather than a hotel‑like arrangement.
After deliberation about whether to condition approval or continue, Dale Seaton moved to continue the item to allow the applicant to address comments; the committee voted unanimously to continue (recorded as 6–0). The continuance gives the applicant an opportunity to revise entries, connectivity and site planning before a return to the committee.
The applicant and staff also discussed the possibility of amending an existing pathway easement with the adjacent Jackson Teton County Housing Authority property (the RV park) to improve pedestrian connections, but noted federal grant constraints for other nearby infrastructure that complicate an immediate extension of the path.
