Aspen to approve just 6 demolitions of homes a year

Aspen City Council agreed Monday to limit the number of homes that can be demolished within the city limits in a year to six.

The new policy, which was agreed on by the majority of council during a work session, is in response to the unprecedented pace of residential development in town and the impacts it creates on the community.

The limitation on demolition permits will be included in an ordinance that will be introduced on first reading to council June 14 with a final vote expected June 28.

The regulations contained in the ordinance have been in the making for five months, since council in December passed a six-month emergency moratorium on new residential development, citing massive quality-of-life impacts to traffic, affordable housing, environmental conditions and other issues that are detailed in the Aspen Area Community Plan, which is a guiding document that officials base their decisions on.

City Council last month extended the moratorium to Aug. 8 so staff could continue to work on policy and formulate regulations based on public feedback.

Councilman Ward Hauenstein said Monday he favored limiting demolition permits to five a year.

“We are here because we feel it’s out of control, and I think that to make some kind of meaningful adjustment requires meaningful action,” he said.

Councilman Skippy Mesirow supported the limit of five while Mayor

Torre and Councilmembers John Doyle and Rachel Richards landed on six.

There is a recent trend showing a significant increase in demolition projects — 15 were issued last year and an average of 6.5 were given each year for the past eight, according to Ben Anderson, the city’s principal planner.

Under the new rule, land use applications would be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis and entered into the queue once determined complete.

Central to staff’s proposed response to concerns about the pace and scale of single-family and duplex development is the use of the city’s longstanding growth management quota system to regulate projects that engage in the demolition and redevelopment of a property.

Currently there are 19 residential development allotments and under current code, they are only necessary for new subdivisions or multifamily units.

In staff’s view, residential projects that trigger demolition are impactful to neighbors, to Aspen’s physical infrastructure and environment, and to the capacity at the Pitkin County Landfill, according to Anderson.

“They generate a significant employee demand and often, these projects transform the scope and scale of the existing home into a new residence that is fundamentally different, both in form and function, from the previous structure,” he wrote in a memo to council.

Council also agreed to allow demolition projects to be reviewed administratively by staff, rather than the current system of by right and straight to building permit.