WOODLAND PARK — A village of 53 sort-of tiny homes is still being planned to drop at the end of Tamarac Parkway located in Woodland Park.
The move being made by M3XP2 LLC is intended to offer many residents obtainable housing and a chance to buy a starter home or begin to build equity.
According to Pete LaBarre, lead for the proposed development, buying a home in the area is an option not everyone can currently afford.
In fact, statistics pulled from Zillow indicate that the current average price of a home in the area sits at nearly $350,000.
"[This is] just another approach to providing houses to people," commented LaBarre.
The houses are only slightly larger than 500 square feet and will start at a price of $115,000. On top of that base price, M3XP2 LLC will charge $600-$700 each month to lease the property that each house sits on.
The potential homes have met with a measure of resistance from members in the community. The city planning department reports having received 34 individual letters from residents expressing concerns.
Many of the expressed concerns revolve around the potential for a loss of personal property value alongside worries regarding future property management plans for Tamarac Village.
According to LaBarre, many residents have expressed support for the development via phone call and already the village has more than 50 applications for homes.
Initially developers had hoped to begin construction during July and/or August of this year.
However, according to the city's planning department, the original plan did not meet all of the Woodland Park's code requirements.
According to Sally Riley, director of the city’s planning department, a letter requesting revisions was issued alongside requests based on comments made by the public.
LaBarre and his team have since made revisions and claim to have made efforts to accommodate some of the requests made by Woodland Park residents.
Included changes based on public comments include the agreement to create a buffer fence on one portion of the property as well as to pull development back several feet in order to preserve multiple trees.
The new plan was submitted to the city on the third of July and will receive a letter of approval or an additional request for revision this week.
If approved, there will be a ten day period for any possible appeals; after which the city will schedule a meeting (likely in September) to approve water usage for the development.
LaBarre hopes to start and finish the project within six to nine months, with the intent to start setting houses in the area near the beginning of November this year.
Of course, he admits, this is all dependent on weather and of course approval by the city.
In a recent interview with LaBarre, he told KOAA that eventually the intent is to sell the property that this development is being planned around back to the community.
