The Valley Housing Fund purchased lots 9, 10, and 11 from the estate of Paul Redden with the intention of increasing housing for the working class. The Fund is currently in the Board of Zoning and Architectural Review (BOZAR) process for approval of a plan to place two 3-bedroom and one 2-bedroom manufactured homes on the property.

The immediate community need is for long term rental housing, so VHF intends to rent these three homes to workers who make their income within Gunnison County and meet income requirements. In the future, the units may be sold with deed restrictions to income-qualified workers to enable VHF to invest in additional projects.

The anticipated timeline for the project is to prepare the site this summer, install infrastructure, and place the homes in late fall 2022. Although it is a small project, it will contribute to the Town’s goal of increasing affordable housing within the existing grid of the Town of Crested Butte.

For the past several years, VHF has been working to purchase 3.5 acres of land from Colorado State University on the west side of Hwy 135, just north of the Gunnison City Limits. We are currently under final contract to buy this property, with the closing date set in July, 2022. Once the purchase is complete, an application to annex the land into the City of Gunnison will be submitted. VHF intends to place workforce housing on this parcel, although the details will not be formulated until an annexation decision is made to identify zoning for the parcel. This is a long-term goal for the VHF, as the process could take one to two years.