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Council directs resurvey of 1st North right-of-way as hospital eyes expansion
Summary
City staff told the Gunnison City Council that existing sidewalks and private improvements mean the historic 99-foot right-of-way on 1st North may no longer match physical conditions; council directed staff to do a targeted survey and return legal descriptions before any ordinance or vacation process.
City staff told the Gunnison City Council on Monday that a targeted resurvey of 1st North is needed because sidewalks and long-standing private improvements have moved the practical back-of-walk inside the city’s historic 99-foot right-of-way.
Dennis, a city staff member who presented the item, said last year’s resurvey of 300 South revealed the city’s record ROW often no longer matches on-the-ground conditions and that some blocks now measure 60–70 feet from curb to curb. "The city's actual right of way was narrowed from 99 feet wide and narrowed down in some places to around 70 feet and in other places closer to our standard 60 feet," he said.
The council focused on the block of 1st North between Main Street and 1st East because the hospital owns most parcels there and is proposing building expansion that would approach the ROW. Staff said engineers had been using the back-of-sidewalk as the practical property line in places and that the planned hospital expansion would, under the recorded 99-foot ROW, sometimes encroach within 12 feet of existing buildings.
Council members asked whether the city should resurvey both sides of the street or limit the work to the east side where immediate improvements are proposed. Staff estimated a single-side survey bid at about $2,000 and said the hospital’s engineering consultant and the city’s consultant have already done some field work. Dennis told the council staff would prepare a legal description from the survey and that the city would need to hold a public hearing before adopting any ordinance to change ROW lines.
One council member disclosed a potential conflict of interest in the discussion, noting a role with the hospital; the speaker said the hospital owns both sides of the block in question and that any change would primarily affect the hospital’s property.
The council directed staff to proceed with targeted surveying and to approach property owners, including the hospital, about possible cost-sharing. Staff will return with survey results, a recommended legal description, and the process needed to move toward public notice and ordinance adoption.
