HomeMy WebLinkAboutBFAG EDU CTR COUNCIL REQUEST TO PROCEED Letter to TOV CouncilHUNN CONSULTING GROUP, LLC
PO BOX 1095 / VAIL, CO 8165 - 970-390-4537 - jack@hunnconsultinggroup.com
November 14, 2012
Mr. Bill Gibson, Planner
Community Development Department
Town of Vail, Colorado
75 South Frontage Road
Vail, Colorado 81657
RE: Betty Ford Alpine Gardens – proposed Alpine Education Center –
Request for Inclusion on Town Council Meeting Agenda for November 20, 2012
Dear Bill,
Please consider this letter as a formal request from my client, Betty ford Alpine Gardens to be included on the
agenda for the November 20, 2012, Vail Town Council meeting. I would appreciate it if you would include this
letter in the Council’s packet for the meeting so that they may review it in advance.
The non-profit entity known as Betty Ford Alpine Gardens has been leasing land from the Town of Vail now for
almost 25 years and has developed a world class alpine garden in the lower bench of Ford Park. The garden has
become a major attraction within our community during the summer and literally draws visitors from all over the
world. The gardens have evolved into what is now nationally renowned and acknowledged as a highlight of any
visit to Vail, bringing in an estimated 11 million dollars for Vail’s summer economy. The gardens are a wonderful
complement to the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, as patrons of the events at the Amphitheater enjoy the garden
before and after Amphitheater events. The gardens provide inspiration and education to our community and
guests.
The staff and volunteers who manage and maintain the garden are in need of improved facilities. The current
offices for the staff are in Vail Village, remote from the gardens. The Board of the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens
has been studying opportunities to construct a new facility adjacent to the “old school house” which is currently
used as a retail outlet for the gardens. With a footprint of less than 2,000 sf, this new facility would fit nicely to
the west of the school house, south of Betty Ford Way. This two-story, 3,000 +/- sf building would provide a
year-round presence for Betty Ford Alpine Gardens and would include; display/multi-purpose space, men’s and
women’s restrooms, office space for staff and a greenhouse for year-round cultivation /education purposes.
Because of the proposed inclusion of an elevator, the facility would provide much needed ADA access to the
pathways along the stream corridor.
Administrative space is listed as an allowed use in the Ford Park Management Plan; in fact offices for the Vail
Recreation District are already in the park. The Betty Ford Alpine Gardens have operated for twenty five years in
a location remote from the gardens. This has been inefficient and creates many operational challenges. The
proposed new facility would foster the following improvements;
1. Allows for increased year round education programs and activity in Ford Park.
2. Increased efficiency with staff not constantly travelling back and forth.
3. Improved visitor relations with more staff on site. Becomes a heartbeat for the Park.
4. Gives the horticultural staff access to an office and break room during the day.
5. Gives horticultural staff access to the computers and databases.
6. Makes it possible to have staff meetings with office and horticultural staff.
7. Administration area does not add to size of building, being underground.
You may recall that the Council agreed to include a “place holder” for this facility in the Ford Park Management
Plan, which was amended last year. We have previously presented our plans for this facility to the Town Council
in a work session and received a non-binding endorsement from the majority of the Council. We are now
requesting that the Town Council grant permission for Betty Ford Alpine Gardens to proceed into the formal
approval process for this proposed facility, which would include the submittal of a “Development Plan” to the
PEC and the submittal of our plans to the DRB for their consideration. It will also be necessary to modify the
lease boundary of the gardens to accommodate this proposed improvement.
In collaboration with the Vail Valley Foundation, the fundraising effort is underway for the Alpine Education
Center. The estimated cost to construct the facility is $1.4M, including hard and soft costs. The fund raising goal
is $3.0M, which would allow for the inclusion of some optional enhancements to the facility and to provide funds
for the on-going maintenance of this new facility.
The schedule for the development of this facility would coincide with the Phase II improvements to the Gerald R.
Ford Amphitheater, which the Vail Valley Foundation is planning to start in the fall of 2013. With your support,
we would plan to begin the construction of our new facility at that same time and would endeavor to have it
completed by mid-June of 2014.
We are submitting conceptual drawings of the proposed facility, as prepared by Zehren and Associates, depicting
its position in the Park, floor plans indicating the uses on each of the two floors and character images of the
exterior of the facility for your review and consideration.
We look forward to making a brief presentation to the Council and answering any questions that they might have
on the evening of November 20, 2012
Sincerely,
Jack Hunn, President
Hunn Consulting Group, LLC
Cc: Nicola Ripley, Director of Betty Ford Gardens
Dave Kaselak, Project Architect for Zehren and Associates
Pedro Campos, Landscape Architect for Zehren and Associates