Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Candidates debate Highway 133 development and Old City Market vacancy; call for code tweaks and adaptive reuse
Summary
At a Sopra Sun forum candidates discussed recent Highway 133 projects, pedestrian access and parking, the Old City Market vacancy and adaptive reuse ideas (day care, food hub, indoor recreation), and stressed the limits of town power over privately owned properties.
Carbondale candidates at a Sopra Sun forum discussed new development along Highway 133, traffic and pedestrian connectivity near the City Market site, and options to reuse long-vacant commercial properties.
Speakers framed the Highway 133 corridor as a gateway where zoning and the town's Unified Development Code (UDC) should shape design and parking standards. "It's a work in progress," said Colin Laird, urging further code changes to improve pedestrian and bike access and reduce parking requirements.
The nut graf: Candidates balanced welcoming development that supplies commercial activity and housing with concerns about vehicular congestion, walkability and long-term vacancies; several urged adaptive reuse of large vacant parcels rather than treating them as permanent liabilities.
Multiple candidates cited specific projects. Chris Hassig acknowledged the City Market development changed the town character but noted it also generated sales tax and that later projects added employee housing. Kaye Giannetti and others described ideas for the Old City Market property — from a community hub with daycare and a teaching kitchen to indoor recreation and a USDA processing facility — and urged negotiations with owners to enable reuse.
Joanne Tipple and Colin Laird pointed to ownership as the core constraint. Tipple said some properties are not attractive to business tenants and suggested the chamber or private creative teams might lead reuse plans; Laird noted town-owned redevelopment (like the Third Street Center conversion) works because the town controlled the land.
Candidates repeatedly cautioned against overbuilding new commercial square footage and recommended code checks to avoid future vacancies. There was no consensus on eminent-domain-type interventions; most candidates said the town's leverage is limited unless ownership issues are resolved.
What's next: Candidates proposed more careful UDC rules and pursuing adaptive reuse partnerships. The forum produced no formal town action but highlighted redevelopment as a continuing policy challenge for the next board.
