Durango City Council has approved the annexation of the Vero Ridge Addition directly west of Mercy Hospital into the city for the future development of nearly 200 homes.
A couple living on High Llama Lane near the future building site said they approve of the development proposal because Durango needs more housing. They also described the gradual loss of the scenic rural countryside to urban sprawl. Another man appeared to oppose the development, only saying the area is too congested.
The Vero Ridge Addition contains three properties on 28 acres. The properties are 455, 541 and 589 High Llama Lane. Sandbox Developers plans to build up to 195 single-family homes in the area.
Wes Hill, representing Sandbox, said he was involved in a number of developments in Durango over the past 20 years, including recently the Maverick gas station, McDonald’s and Starbucks in Grandview. He is building a Hilton Hotel in the area and installed about $12 million worth of city right-of-ways in Three Springs.
High Llama Lane resident Laura Godfrey attended a public hearing about the annexation at City Hall on Tuesday. She said she’s seen “tremendous growth” in Durango since she first moved to the city and bought her first home on East Third Avenue for $74,000 in 1982.
“There’s a desperate need for housing in Durango. You all have the responsibility and the authority to address that need,” Godfrey said. “Where we are is no longer an idyllic rural area out there. If you go past Maverick, there’s a car dealership, there’s a McDonalds, there’s a Starbucks, there’s a senior center, and there’s a hospital that wasn’t even there when my husband moved out there many decades ago.”
Wally White, another High Llama Lane resident at the public hearing, said he lives in one of the properties in question and represents the estate owner of another, and he approves of the development.
White said he’s lived in the county since 1979 and has owned his property on High Llama Lane for 46 years. He recalled looking out of his window sometime during the winter of 1979-80 to see 35 elk in his front yard.
“Things have changed considerably since then,” he said.
The elk have been driven away, although deer and small wildlife still live in the area, White said. He enjoyed his time living in a rural atmosphere, but those days have passed.
“I would encourage you to approve this project and continue to work for better conditions in housing for our community,” he said.
Godfrey said she would have loved to continue living in a quiet, rural setting, but development on High Llama Lane has been planned for a decade.
“It is not a sweet little country lane,” she said. “Please, I encourage you to go forward with this as expeditiously as possible.”
Water and sewer infrastructure were important elements of City Council’s discussion on Tuesday.
City planner Scott Shine said Sandbox would be required to build all the infrastructure in the new subdivision, and it would pay impact fees for water. The area is in the South Durango Sanitation District, which has the capacity to provide wastewater conveyance and treatment services, according to the city.
Councilor Gilda Yazzie asked for a guarantee water lines wouldn’t encroach on the Southern Ute Indian Tribe’s exterior boundary. Shine said SUIT’s boundary is further south from the area in question.
Tom Stalz, another resident, said Durango needs more housing, but High Llama Lane isn’t the place for it.
“I’m going to be very short, sweet and simple. It’s too much congestion. It’s 195 units. They’ve just put in condos. And yes, Durango needs housing. But this is just too much congestion. It’s excessive,” he said.
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