The Cortez City Council unanimously approved a conditional use permit that would allow for multifamily development at the old Calkins Building.

The Housing Authority of Montezuma County is looking to turn the site into affordable rental units. The permit doesn’t guarantee that development will take place, but it is necessary for the group’s application to move forward and for the Housing Authority to secure grant funds.

Terri Wheeler, executive director of the housing authority, says development will fill a crucial need in the community.

“Our waitlist is three years,” she said at the City Council meeting Tuesday. “That’s a long time for families that are in stressful financial conditions, that need to have affordable housing to look forward to and be able to come home to.”

The Calkins Building, 121 E. First St., was built in 1909 as a high school, and has been used by the Montezuma-Cortez School District RE-1 for a variety of purposes until 2008.

The building was entered in the National Register of Historic Places in 2016, the same year the housing authority released its development plans for the parcel.

The housing authority plans to create 42 residential units on the site, and divide the 6.65-acre land into three lots, according to a staff report by associate planner Neva Connolly.

Lot 1, a 1-acre parcel on the northeastern part of the property, would include the historic Calkins Building itself. The building would be renovated to house 12 residential units and 2,500 square feet of office space.

On Lot 2, a 2.7-acre plot on the northwestern part of the land, the housing authority proposes to build two 15-unit buildings. Each building will be 18,120 square feet, have seven one-bedroom units, seven two-bedroom units, and one handicapped-accessible unit.

The third lot includes 3.28 acres on the southernmost part of the property. There are currently no plans for development on Lot 3, and so the conditional-use permit applies to only Lots 1 and 2, according to Connolly.

Based on the city’s current land-use code, Lot 1 would require 33 parking spaces and Lot 2 would need 60 spots.

Because the building is a national historic site, any renovations would need to be done in a way that retains key historic elements. If development proceeds, it would undergo some renovations. In particular, reconstructed staircases and handicapped-accessible ramps would be needed so the building is in compliance with requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The other two housing buildings would need to be built in a complementary style, but not exactly replicating the Calkins Building, Wheeler said.

The Cortez Planning and Zoning Commission approved the permit on May 7. The project then moved to the City Council for final approval.

The lone opposing voice was Dr. Marcelyn Ann LePique, who owns the 11-unit Adobe Apartments at First and Ash streets. LePique sent a letter to the council expressing concerns that a large rental complex would be a disruptive presence and she questioned the need for more apartments.

During the Tuesday night meeting, Wheeler responded to the letter, saying she understood the concerns, but a market study showed a high need for affordable one- and two-bedroom apartments.

“What we’ve tried to do with this development is look at the populations that aren’t being served, which are the 60% and 80% median-income residents,” Wheeler said. “So that’s one reason we went with more 60% and, for the first time, 80% units.”

She noted as of April, each of the three affordable rental sites the housing authority operates had a waiting list of about 26 applicants. Recently, she said, the authority was forced to turn down a teacher who earned $200 too much to qualify.

Although the council has approved the conditional use permit, the applicant will still need to obtain full site plan approval from the city before construction could begin.

According to Wheeler, the permit is just one piece of an application needed before a prospective development proves it is suitable and before it receives Colorado Housing and Finance Authority funds. The housing authority will submit an application for state housing funds in June, but it won’t find out if it is awarded funds until the fall.

ealvero@the-journal.com