Commission continues ski-resort PUD after water, road and density concerns

The commission voted Jan. 8 to continue VanSteenkiste’s PUD25-0001 to Feb. 5, 2026, after an extensive presentation from applicants and substantial public and staff questioning about water, roads, septic, and the number and placement of cabins.

Applicant Aaron Swenson and owner Mike VanSteenkiste said the resort draws roughly "2,500 kids from the community" annually and that the Preliminary PUD would add 30 two-story cabins in Phase 1 with shared water and sewer systems and one private road feeding the development. Swenson said the project team had performed perk tests and some geotechnical work; VanSteenkiste said they had won safety awards and wanted to make the resort year-round.

Neighbors and local stakeholders raised concerns. Public commenter Jonathan Blakely said a spring used for livestock "has already reduced" and expressed worry the development's water demand could affect his livelihood; he also cited wildlife disruption and road safety. In rebuttal, an applicant representative stated the proposed water systems were "in compliance with state code" and that discussions with agencies had taken place.

Commissioners and staff requested more information, including: comparative examples of mountain-resort PUDs, fuller road plans and where the private road meets the parking area, more detailed water-rights and well-yield tests (redundant well suggestions), septic siting details, and results from any geotechnical analyses. Planning Administrator Milton Ollerton and several commissioners said they wanted sample PUDs and additional R&B (roads and bridges) input before forwarding a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners.

Commissioner Sean Priest moved to continue the application; the motion passed with a majority (recorded 4–1). Staff noted the continuation will allow collection of additional technical reviews and comparable PUD examples before the commission issues a recommendation.