July 27, 2021 |
For the dozens of Encampment residents who attended Monday’s public hearing, the second this month to discuss the Green Mountain at Brush Creek P.U.D., the outcome merely confirmed their suspicions about the process. Although their concerns, questions and data points regarding water, helicopters, septic, roads taxes and quality of life were heard during six hours of testimony, in the end, the little guy lost. The super rich are closer to securing a Shangri La in the Sierra Madres. The Carbon County Zoning and Planning Board approved an application for an exclusive ski resort to be built on the side of Green Mountain above Encampment.
With that, Tuesday’s three-hour meeting came to a close. Many of those who had come to voice their concerns had left at that point, deflated. Their voices had been heard, but many wondered if their concerns had been taken to heart. About an hour into the public hearing, town resident Mary Pickett summed up the thoughts of the room, including for those who had come armed with maps, facts and figures to protest a development that could impact more than just the water supply in Encampment.
At the center of the discussion is a relatively new way to build on a large parcel of land — a way that critics say can be used by developers to circumvent traditional regulations. Brush Creek Ranch wants to develop a 620-acre parcel in the North Fork of the Encampment River watershed into a mountaintop playground for the super-rich. The area is zoned residential now, platted for 285 lots. Brush Creek Ranch is seeking a zone change to a Planned Unit Development of 16 lots, each 35 acres or more.
P.U.D.’s first appeared after World War II. They are designed to develop large tracts of land for multiple uses, including housing, recreation, and even commercial centers or industrial parks. They give developers more flexibility than traditional regulatory codes. For instance, the definition in Carbon County for a P.U.D. allows for variations in average lot area, architecture and the clustering of buildings to create open space. Brush Creek Ranch is taking advantage of the looser regulations to develop a subdivision on Green Mountain without regard for power lines or other infrastructure that might otherwise be required. This has residents of Encampment concerned, and others thinking about what it could mean for future developments within the county.
The biggest concern in Encampment is the potential impact on drinking water. The Green Mountain P.U.D. is located off U.S. Forest Road 550, along the steep slopes above Encampment within the attenuation zone of the town’s water supply protection plan. Ben Jordan is the water engineer hired by Brush Creek Ranch to study the water issues. Jordan, the senior hydrogeologist at Weston Engineering in Laramie, is in charge of research, testing and permitting. Jordan, who maintains the P.U.D. will not produce any negative impacts on the water supply, said that the project is on a short leash with the state. When someone asked how often the Encampment River should be sampled for water quality, Jordan responded this way.
The answer might have been yes earlier in the meeting, but most townsfolk had left by then. For those who stayed until the end, many were not even sure what the board approved before adjourning. The last 30 minutes of the meeting was taken up with unclear changes to amendments and edits to the language in the application and 90-plus pages of appendices. The final draft will go to the Carbon County Commissioners, who will hold their own public hearing on P.U.D. Case #2021-02 – Green Mountain at Brush Creek.
Pictured above: File photo of Green Mountain. Photo courtesy of Brush Creek Ranch.
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