Dear fellow Nederland residents,

Tuesday’s February 21st BOT 7 p.m. meeting has the potential to change Nederland forever!

There is an agenda item in which the BOT will hear Mr. Mitchell’s application to rezone 100 East 1st street from HDR- High Density Residential - to CBD (Commercial Business District).

On Wednesday January 25, 2023, The Planning Commissioners unanimously denied Mr. Mitchell’s application to rezone 100 East 1st street from HDR (High Density Residential) to CBD (Commercial Business District).

The Planning Commissioner’s unanimous decision serves only as a recommendation to the BOT. The BOT is the ultimate deciding body.

On Thursday January 26, 2023, Mr. Mitchell closed all of his parking lots to the public.

This was referred to as “The Mitchell intimidation maneuver” in a February 9, letter to the editor submitted by Arden and Betsy Busk.

A common argument in favor of Mr. Mitchell’s proposal is -“it is his land, he should be able to do whatever he wants to… we are being unfair to Ron… why don’t we just let him build his dream development?

The reality is a change of zoning could enable Mr. Mitchell to pursue his long dreamed development project for Nederland. It could also enable Mr. Mitchell to sell all of his property to someone else.

The reality is we really do not know what Mr. Mitchell will do if he is granted a zoning change. The only person who does know is Mr. Mitchell. A zoning change would be applied to whoever owns that lot.

Changing this zoning is a serious matter for our East end neighborhood. The current HDR zoning on that lot, creates a buffer between our residential homes and the encroaching business district.

In addition, myself and my neighbors have a concern about infrastructure. We do not have the infrastructure to support the consequences of this zoning change. Our town already struggles to support our current infrastructure needs.

Mr. Mitchell owns most of downtown Nederland. Mr. Mitchell does not live in Nederland. I live here, you live here. We will have to bear the consequences of any zoning change. We will be living in and paying for the needs of the town that is left.

I understand that attending meetings may feel like the last thing you want to do at the end of your work day. That being said, I strongly urge you to either join via web ex or show up.

I look forward to seeing you there on Tuesday, February 21, at 7 p.m. https://townofnederland.colorado.gov/ board-of-trustees.

Sincerely,

Teresa Robertson

Nederland