Vail, Colorado has grown around
skiing and snowboarding. Winter sports are considered key to the economy. The
location and makeup of Vail have made it so prohibitively expensive. This has
led to the push of wanting to build more affordable housing near job centres.
However, it is challenging to find ways to build in towns that sit in mountain
valleys. They are ringed with federally owned land that often can’t be
developed. Vail is testing new strategies that are meant to increase housing
supply and keep workers from being priced out.
The housing stock in Vail is 80% owned by second homeowners. During ski season
the houses are turned over to tourists and workers are left with few affordable
places. Therefore workers opt to move and go live 30 miles west in Eagle,
Colorado. The approximately 2300 houses in Eagle Colorado are occupied by 90%
full-time residents. The house prices are fair enough and it has become a
bedrock community for resort workers.
A program called Vail InDeed has plans to resolve the real estate problem
through deed-restricted homes. The process wants to keep deeds of local
properties with full-time residents and take them out of the second-home
market. The program has been a success so far and it has a plan of absorbing
1000 homes by the year 2027.
The municipality has also approved an entire community of tiny homes. The
community will consist of 200 homes that will cost approximately $750 to $1400
a month. It will be located 30 minutes from ski areas and the houses will range
between 200 to 800 square feet. Aspen skiing company has also built a village
of tiny homes to help with providing more space for workers.
Resorts have also come up with solutions to help their workers. They plan to
increase investments in housing for workers. There is 148 room workforce
housing development that is being built for the workers by Aspen skiing
company.
Living in Vail: Affordable Solutions for Ski Season and Year-Round Living
