#Frisco #Colorado
Summit County’s lack of workforce housing is an issue that cannot be solved overnight, and one that will take multiple partners and solutions to fix. Local leaders and business owners continue to identify potential short- and long-term strategies, and one of those is turning hotel spaces into long-term rentals.
This isn’t a new concept in the region. In nearby Eagle County, a hotel was converted into an apartment complex in 2018. Called The House, the property has 54 studio units that have about 300 square feet of space, including a living area, bathroom and kitchenette, according to the property’s website
Similar concepts are now making their way to Summit County.
County turned landlord
During a Summit Board of County Commissioners work session meeting June 15, Summit County Housing Director Jason Dietz outlined multiple strategies the county could use to help mitigate the affordable housing shortage, one of which included working with Alpine Inn in Frisco to lease its units.
Isabel Rawson is a manager of the Alpine Inn, which is owned by her father. Rawson said she and her father were aware of the critical housing need in the community and had already been thinking about ways they could use their property to help be part of the solution.
The two partnered with Summit County to nail down a one-year lease agreement, which Rawson said will work well for both parties.
“We’re longtime locals, so we know what a big local housing issue we have here in the county, and we saw this as an opportunity where we came to great terms,” Rawson said. “It’s going to work wonderfully for both parties and kind of also give back to the community, which is so super important.”
