A new income-based, for-rent housing complex near the town of Breckenridge could begin accepting applications in January, roughly a year after work on the site began. 

The 52-unit development, dubbed Larkspur, is located on county-owned property near the Summit County Justice Center building on Airport Road, just outside Breckenridge’s town boundary. A joint partnership between the county and town, it marks a departure from more traditional workforce housing builds seen elsewhere. 

Unlike what is referred to as a “stick build,” where housing is constructed completely on site from the ground up, the Larkspur complex was assembled like a puzzle piece. While site work for the project began last winter, it wasn’t until spring that a Buena Vista factory began constructing what would become dozens of individual compartments slated to be new homes. 

The first shipments arrived in the county this summer. From there, the premanufactured pieces were stacked together to create a full-fledged housing complex — a process that took about 10 days. It’s a process that county officials said has not only saved money but time. 

“Usually, we plan on two years of construction on an apartment building. This happened in half that time,” said Commissioner Tamara Pogue. “I think this opens up a whole new opportunity for Summit County.”

According to county Housing Director Jason Dietz, the project’s overall $22 million price tag was likely 10% to 20% less than what it would have cost for a traditional build. 

“The nice thing about modular projects, both for the supply chain and impact to the neighbors, is that a lot of the construction is not on site,” Dietz said, adding that while snowy weather put site work on pause, progress was still being made at the factory. 

The units will consist of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments with rents aimed at county residents making between 70% and 100% of the area median income. In 2023 figures, that equates to an annual income between $54,320 and $77,600 for an individual. For a two-person household, it would be between $62,090 and $88,700. Rents will range from around $1,350 for a studio up to roughly $2,500 for a two-bedroom unit.

Officials are hoping to open applications for a weighted lottery by the beginning of January with residents being notified if they receive a spot before the end of the month. An actual move-in date may not come until the spring, as Dietz said the complex is still waiting on some final finishings. 

As of early December, more than 450 people have been placed on an interest list, Dietz said, further highlighting the lopsided need in the county for lower-priced housing. 

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For Javier Pineda, co-founder and program coordinator for the immigrant advocacy nonprofit Mountain Dreamers, this issue is especially salient for the county’s Spanish-speaking community. 

A survey of thousands of county residents released earlier this year found wide ranging disparities in the housing experiences of Spanish and English speakers, with Spanish-speaking respondents reporting higher rates of eviction, overcrowding and renting without a lease agreement. Long before that data was known, Pineda said Mountain Dreamers has been working to improve the outreach and application process for government-led workforce housing developments after encountering issues in the past. 

Most notable was the rollout of the 80-unit Alta Verde 1 complex in Breckenridge in fall 2022. While the project’s developer, Gorman & Co., and the town issued social media posts, newsletters and flyers with information about Alta Verde in Spanish, it didn’t happen until weeks after applications officially launched. The timing was critical because applicants were treated on a first-come, first-served basis and placed on a waitlist. 

“There’s been a lot of frustration in the past about different housing projects, and sometimes Spanish speakers feel they get left out in the process,” Pineda said. “Everybody knows there’s a housing crisis in the county, so my main role is to ensure that the protocols and processes in place are more equitable, especially for our Spanish-speaking community.” 

Pineda said he’s been heavily involved in discussions with officials to secure their commitment to Spanish language outreach. Dietz, the county’s housing director, said the 52-unit Breckenridge complex will have both English and Spanish applications as well as bilingual staff through its property management, which will be run by the company Corum. 

In the days leading up to the application launch, Pineda said Mountain Dreamers intends to promote the opportunity through its social media pages to help make residents aware, just as they did ahead of the launch for the former Days Inn hotel in Silverthorne that was converted into 51 rental units and which opened in May. 

Pineda said it’s not too early for residents interested in the new complex to begin compiling the paperwork they need to be an eligible applicant. That includes proof of being a county resident and documentation that shows they are working a minimum of 30 hours in the county each week and fall within the targeted income spectrum.

“This project has come on pretty quickly and people need to know and be ready to go,”
Pineda said, adding that residents should also “be mindful that this is not the only project — there are other projects in the works.” 

The Larkspur complex is set to be the first of several to open in 2024 as multiple housing developments remain underway throughout the county. In total, 489 income-based units are under construction in the county while hundreds of more units, still in predevelopment stages, are coming down the pipeline. 

The push for more housing comes after a housing needs assessment released this fall recommended an additional 2,528 workforce units be built over the next five years. That’s in addition to the 804 rental units and 555 for-sale units already planned to be built in the county in that same time. 

Still, Dietz said he’s optimistic that projects like Larkspur will help make a dent. 

“With everything that is coming online, we are going to be taking a big bite out of the demand side with the supply side,” he said.