An historic stone house at Liberty Bell will be documented, taken apart, and reconstructed by the developers of the Idarado Legacy subdivision.
The proposal approved by the San Miguel County Commissioners on Wednesday resolves a conflict between two objectives spelled out in the county's approval of the Idarado Legacy. As part of that approval, Idarado was required to preserve historic structures and also to ensure that the soil on the property is not contaminated beyond minimal levels.
In carrying out the required environmental remediation, Idarado discovered that not only is the soil adjacent to and under the stone house contaminated, but the mortar used to construct the house was made with tailings and contains elevated levels of lead.
As part of the plan to preserve the house and allow it to be used, it will be relocated closer to Colorado Ave., where it will be more visible.
Idarado has stabilized a historic retaining wall and the concrete ruins of the Liberty Bell Mill on the site.
Lawson Property Owners
to Buy Land
The Lawson Hill Property Owners Company has entered into a contract to acquire two commercial lots in the subdivision. To facilitate the acquisition, the San Miguel County Commissioners this week waived a requirement for the Lawson Hill developer, Telecam Partnership, to build a community center and primitive ski touring huts and primitive summer shelters.
Were the developer required to build the amenities that were among those spelled out as a condition of approval of the Lawson Hill Planned Unit Development, it would use the same funds generated by real estate transfer assessments and retail sales tax that the LHPOC has earmarked for the land acquisition.
The LHPOC's ownership of Lots H and I will enable the property owners company to control the land's future use, whether for future community facilities, recreational facilities or a regional medical center, as has been contemplated.
Land Exchange Contemplated
The San Miguel County Commissioners on Wednesday approved the subdivision of the Roanoke Placer, a parcel of land at the Ophir Loop, a portion of which contains mine tailings. The intention is for the approximately 30 acres that do not contain tailings to be purchased by the Telluride Regional Airport Authority, which hopes to trade it to the U.S. Forest Service for a parcel of land adjacent to the airport runway. The airport is pursuing a runway improvement plan.
The remaining nine acres of the Roanoke Placer will remain the property of Lee Wynne, but will have no development rights. That land is subject to a voluntary cleanup developed in conjunction with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
The land acquired by the Forest Service, if the trade is consummated, would enable the completion of a portion of the Galloping Goose Trail.
If appraisals do not pan out or for some other reason the proposed exchange involving the airport authority is not completed, Wynne told the commissioners that he would be open to alternative means of transferring his 30 acres at the Ophir Loop to the Forest Service.
Ames Due for Relicensing
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is in the middle of the process of relicensing the historic Ames Power Plant, which is operated by the Public Service Company of Colorado. The power plant is currently off-line, however, due to a long-running dispute related to the safety of the penstock, or water pipe, supplying water to the power plant from Trout Lake. The penstock has been determined to be unsafe because it runs beneath a road accessing the Pathfinder Gravel Pit. A court recently ruled against Public Service in an easement dispute with Pathfinder.
FERC will conduct a hearing at the Telluride Conference Center in Mountain Village on Aug. 11.
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