Breckenridge with new and updated statistics on the workforce Develops policy requiring certain businesses to provide housing for their workforcebut officials are divided on how the mandate should work for small businesses.

Like mountain towns in Colorado’s High Country they find themselves searching for ways to provide affordable housing for their workforcemany have undertaken similar requirements. Aspen and Telluride have similar policies but require more from new businesses to contribute to their affordable housing stock than Breckenridge. Other towns, like Vail, require less than Breckenridge.

Breckenridge’s policy, known as 24A It requires two different types of new businesses to provide workforce housing for a certain percentage of their staff. The requirements were implemented in 2020.

The first type of new business subject to the policy are those adding a new building or storefront to the city. Other businesses subject to the policy are businesses that move to existing areas that will increase their density of operations. For example, this might be the case when a café moves into the storefront of a former clothing store. Breckenridge rules recognize that food and beverage outlets have “busier” operations than retail outlets.

Breckenridge City Council has long been considering the idea of ​​exempting small businesses from this policy, and after learning more about the implications of the requirements at the Oct. 22 meeting, the council had differing views on what to do moving forward.

The town requires these businesses to provide affordable housing for 35% of their workforce and uses an elaborate formula to determine what a business’s contribution to the community should be.

Because the township takes into account many factors when determining how many employees a business produces, it is often left with a number that includes a decimal. For example, a small retail space of approximately 1000 square meters is estimated to create 2.4 employees.

The need to provide workforce housing can be met by building new units, purchasing existing units and imposing title deed restrictions, or in some cases, paying a fee for workforce housing.

Small businesses with only a few employees often pay wages in lieu of meeting other requirements. At the Oct. 22 meeting, council was presented with an example showing that a small business that falls into the fast food/bank service category and adds 0.9 employees to its workforce would be snared for a fee of approximately $31,300.

Council members have previously expressed concern that this would deter small businesses from coming to Breckenridge, especially considering businesses had voiced concerns to the town about what they felt were high fees for parking and water use.

Council member Todd Rankin repeatedly expressed fears that this policy could stifle small businesses and wondered if there was a different way to meet this requirement.

“In my personal opinion, we are handling the issue the wrong way,” he said.

Regarding the wage strategy a small business must contribute to, he said the town needs “many more dollars than this will generate” to provide adequate workforce housing inventory.

He asked staff if it was possible to use a metric such as how many jobs a particular spot is estimated to bring to the city, rather than relying on the number of employees. He said he was especially considering businesses adjacent to the tourism industry.

Council members felt that spots like Helly Hansen USA and The North Face wouldn’t bring a lot of new employees to the community, but they could generate a decent amount of revenue given their popularity. They argued that such stores are branches of large companies and have more resources than a small business owner.

Small business owners agreed with Rankin’s sentiments and said if they were subject to the policy, it would make it more difficult to bring a new business to Breckenridge and could deter them from doing so. Anna Higgins opened Higgles Ice Cream store in 2017, three years before 24A came into force. The storefront Higgins moved into was previously a retail store, so by introducing food he was increasing the density of operations at the storefront.

Higgins said the fees for parking and water use are already enough of a burden that if he had to pay them, he could “bankrupt himself.”

Council members Carol Saade and Marika Page floated ideas about giving owners a break and setting an employee “free.” So, if the town determines that a business produces 4.8 employees, the town will require the business to provide housing for only 35% of the 3.8 employees instead of 4.8. This would result in small businesses with a single employee being exempt from the policy.

Mayor Kelly Owens asked town staff if some type of loan program could be implemented for small businesses.

Julia Puester, assistant director of community development, said it may be difficult from an administrative standpoint, but it can be done.

Council member Dick Carleton said it could become “really problematic” if the city grants certain business exemptions because officials would have to determine where to draw the line on a case-by-case basis.

Mayor Kelly Owens said discussions and concerns about stifling small businesses may be a conversation that can be had outside the lens of the town’s 24A policy.

Town manager Shannn Haynes agreed and said the issue might fit better into a broader discussion about economic development in Breckenridge.

a job recently Breckenridge Grand Vacations was required to comply with this policy.recently received approval for a development plan consisting of seven parcels featuring a variety of home types and residential units and a new hotel. Breckenridge Grand Vacations provided 92 workforce housing units in this plan even though it was responsible for providing housing for only 40 employees under town policy.

No decision was taken at the meeting on October 22.