#Silverthorne #Colorado
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| Summit Daily News |
Spread across the mountainside near the Blue River Valley, Summit Sky Ranch aims to be a cluster of environmentally friendly homes within a span of open space. The development could also be a new hotspot for community gatherings for residents in the town of Silverthorne.
The Silverthorne Town Council voted to approve three resolutions for final plats for various phases of South Maryland Creek Ranch, now known as the Summit Sky Ranch development, which has been under construction since 2015. The plats are one of the final steps for the development to begin selling lots within those phases.
The development has already sold 82 of the planned 240 single-family homes, with a sales volume of $67 million. Tricia McCaffrey Hyon, the director of sales for the development, said that a third of the buyers have been Summit County locals. She added that buyers will be able to move into completed homes this coming spring.
"Despite coming out of a time of year that is typically slow for mountain real estate, coupled with heavy snowfall that makes property tours a challenge, Summit Sky Ranch has experienced steady and increasing sales for the development, with stronger than predicted sales volume to date," said Matt Mueller, the director of development at Summit Sky Ranch.
The Summit Sky Ranch property spans 416 acres, which are owned by the family of the project's developer, Tom Everist. The family first came to Summit County in 1965, and has owned the property for more than 20 years.
The development has been working hand in hand with the town, planning for community areas and expanding on trailheads connecting to the Gore Range. The council approved the three resolutions on the provision that trail connections were made, something that staff at Summit Sky Ranch have been working with the U.S. Forest Service to accomplish.
"Everybody's working from the same sheet of music to get those connected," said Ryan Hyland, the town manager of Silverthorne. "We're a growing community and we're excited to see new residents in Silverthorne."
Hyland mentioned that the development created a business plan to specifically attract permanent residents to the area over second-home owners.
The neighborhood was built with environmental homeowners in mind. It is the first known dark sky development in Central Colorado. Dark Sky neighborhoods use minimal, shielded lighting to preserve views of the stars. The community will also have a telescope used by professional and student astronomers. A live stream from the telescope will be sent to the Aspen House, the neighborhood's community center. Everist has also been working to restore lakes in the area from gravel quarries.
"Environmental stewardship isn't new for Everist," Mueller said. "The six-generation family business has been recognized for its environmental stewardship in mine reclamation."
At the entrance of Summit Sky Ranch will be a 20-acre park. Hyland said that the area is four times the size of Rainbow Park in Silverthorne. The development brought in the local branch of Norris Designs to help create a concept. The Silverthorne Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails committee created a subcommittee to help get town perspective. Susan Lee, the park planner for the town, was also involved in helping to build a concept for the park.
The town created a survey hoping to find what people were looking for in a new park. The town held an open house at the recreation center last Thursday to present Norris Designs' mark up, as well as the results from the survey. The town received 400 responses.
The park is set to have two areas of open space, one large enough for a high school soccer field and the other for Little League Baseball. There will also be a dog park, nine holes of disc golf as well as a sledding hill. Lee said that the park will also act as a new trailhead for the routes leading up to the Gore Range.
"This park is going to be the jewel of Silverthorne," Hyland said.
