New Bus Station to be built on Vail's North Day Lot

Vail’s North Day Lot will be the location of the New 18 Million Dollar Bus Station

Despite, pleas from neighbors at the Landmark Condominiums and Rob Katz, Vail Associates CEO, the Vail Town Council approved the new ground level bus station for the North Day lot in Lionshead.  Council members were concerned about future growth and the new station will include room for town buses, county buses, hotel shuttles and skier drop off. 

Vail is counting on $5 million in federal grants, $1 million in state grants, and $3 million from Eagle county, yet to be secured.  The majority of the $18 million would come from tax-increment financing funding.  A TIF district in Lionshead allows taxes generated from redevelopment to be used for public improvements in the district, like transportation.

Vail Resorts is building 120 plus beds of affordable housing on the North Day Lot, on top of this new bus station.   The completion of Vail Resort’s affordable housing, which is required because of the Arrabelle project, will likely be pushed back to 2012, about five years after the Arabelle’s opening.  The requirement to build this affordable housing has always been a topic in question.  Some people are questioning the timel line and if it would be available to other developers in Vail?

Landmarks home owners were told the bus station would be enclosed and that there wouldn’t be buses right outside their windows.  Since the Landmark is adjacent to this new bus station, owners were concerned about noise, fumes, light pollution and litter.  The Landmark is undergoing extensive remodeling and expansion on the exterior of the building and adding new multi million dollar condominiums. 

Vail had other options to locate this bus station, further west at the new Ever Vail ski village planned for West Lionshead.  Vail Town Council members felt Ever Vail would be too far from the center of Lionshead.  Is it that hard to drive a bus a few more blocks to  Lionshead?  Property values are always impacted on what is in the vicinity, so in this case, the Landmark Condominium owners should speak up and be heard.  Nothing is final until the funds come in.

For information on property in the Lionshead/Vail area, contact Teri Lester, Eco-Broker 970-376-0779 or tlester@gatewayland.com

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