Hideout Lake wins approval

MONTROSE — The issue at hand was zoning requirements, not traffic, the county said Monday in approving Hideout Lake’s final development plan.

The final development plan is a zoning plan that lays out how the high-end golfing community off Dave Wood Road will be constructed, Land Use Director Steve White said. It is not the same as a subdivision plan, which would address specific issues, such as access.

“The issue was more related to zoning and internal construction,” County Commissioner Bill Patterson said after Monday’s public hearing. “This is just general. They still have to submit a preliminary plan, and then a final plan of how it is being constructed.”

He and fellow commissioners, Allan Belt and Gary Ellis, required Hideout Lake to submit an annual wildlife management plan as requested by San Juan Corridors Alliance representative Shirley Jentsch.

The commissioners also said that before further approvals could be granted, Hideout needs to file its service plan with the local courts.

This second condition was imposed after attorney Bob Thomas, who represents neighboring property owners (the Eldred family), said the service plan, though approved, had not been filed.

Thomas also said Hideout Lake’s application was not complete, and, as had others, expressed concerns about the developer’s plans to truck in water, possibly in perpetuity, if a piping system could not be devised in the future.

Hideout Lake’s representatives said that if the development reaches 100 percent build-out and occupancy, it could see as many as 25 water trucks per day on the road, each taking more than 2 hours to complete a roundtrip journey.

“That’s significant,” Thomas said, contending the truck load would wear down the pavement, as well as slow other traffic.

Audience member Christine Kovacic, meanwhile, said the county should take a look at the water delivery schedules to better assure public safety.

She also expressed concerns that Dave Wood Road would become a shortcut to Telluride, though County Engineer Brian Wilson said it would not take the place of state Highway 62 for regional traffic.

Hideout Lake’s attorney Pat Coleman later said Thomas had missed critical information about the truck traffic. Twenty-five trucks per day would only be realized if Hideout were to achieve 100 percent occupancy, 100 percent of the time.

The former was unlikely, he said, and most homeowners would only be in residence in the summer months.

Coleman additionally said the 2-hour figure per truck included time for loading and unloading. He said traffic studies indicated minimal impact.

Rick Weaver, an engineer with DelMont Consulting, said water-hauling had a long history in the region. In addition, Hideout Lake has a “will-serve” letter from Chipeta Water, and can use its fill station at Popular and Dave Wood roads.

 During the development’s initial phase, Weaver anticipated only four loads of water per day.

The 943-acre development is to include 283 lots at a density of 1 unit per 2.5 acres and more than 45 percent open space.

Coleman said Hideout had met all 26 conditions necessary for its final development (zoning) plan approval. Other conditions must be met as the project progresses.

The development will improve and use Road EE 58 as an access road to Dave Wood. Thomas contended the ingress and egress requirements weren’t being met.

“We (he and the Eldreds) believe there are some dangers and safety issues to the road, unless you can make improvements to the road,” he said.

Thomas also brought up ongoing discussions between the county and the Forest Service concerning Road EE 58 and Dave Wood Road, which visibly annoyed Belt.

“We have discussed these issues over and over,” Belt said. “We’ve already made clear EE58 is a county road. Why anyone would assume it is a Forest Service road is beyond me.”

Wilson also had sharp words for Thomas’ truck traffic concerns, calling them a “red herring.”

“I think you’re out of line,” Wilson said, accusing Thomas of misrepresenting the engineering design. Dave Wood Road, he said, was “more than adequate” for the projected traffic load and was structurally sound.

Belt reminded everyone the issue was the zoning plan, not traffic.

“Your desire to build a case is admirable, but irrelevant to what we’re talking about today,” he told Thomas. “What you’re saying is doing nothing to help your client.”