East Lafayette Advisory Committee
The purpose of the East Lafayette Advisory Committee (ELAC) is to engage in shared learning about the issues and interests behind the planned community of affordable homes, as well as understanding the needs of and impacts to the immediate and broader communities. Boulder County Housing Authority staff and team members are fully committed to taking all advisory opinions and recommendations into consideration. While not bound to honor all recommendations from the group, BCHA staff will review them and give due consideration and discussion. Additional community meetings will be held in 2018 to begin envisioning the design of the property and how best to ensure it integrates into the surrounding neighborhoods.
See the East Lafayette Advisory Committee Membership and Charter PDFs for additional information.
Latest Updates – ELAC
The Boulder County Housing Authority (BCHA) met recently with the City of Lafayette to review the third submittal of Willoughby Corner’s sketch plan. They have requested a few modifications and we will submit those changes by mid-September. City staff have scheduled a hearing before the Lafayette Planning Commission on the final Willoughby Corner sketch plan on Tuesday, September 24th at 7:00 p.m. The agenda will be available from the city about a week prior to the meeting. The ninth East Lafayette Advisory Committee (ELAC) meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 9th at 6:00 p.m. at the Aspinwall Community Center, 771 Excelsior Place in Lafayette. Here is the agenda for the meeting.
Earlier this year, BCHA submitted to the City of Lafayette our illustrative plan for Willoughby Corner, a new east Lafayette neighborhood of diverse homes for families, seniors, our workforce, and others who are struggling with the high cost of housing in our community. The plan, which is based on community input and the goals and mission of the Boulder County Housing Authority, can be viewed here. The City of Lafayette provided comments on this plan, and BCHA (via Norris Design) responded to those comments.
BCHA met with the City of Lafayette to discuss their comments in more detail and made a third submittal of the Sketch Plan on July 26th. BCHA also revised its sketch plans in response to input from the City of Lafayette as well as from discussion with the East Lafayette Advisory Committee. The City of Lafayette’s comments on the second sketch plan are here. This was the focus of conversation in the eighth East Lafayette Advisory Committee meeting on July 15th. Also on the 7/15 ELAC agenda was a focus on BCHA’s planned changes to the site plan and the surrounding roadway network. BCHA also reviewed the gross density (via a question from an ELAC Member) and focused on density within zones of the site. The number of planned homes at Willoughby Corner remains at approximately 400 but density has shifted inside of the plan based on the comments from the City of Lafayette and ELAC members. In the July meeting, BCHA also discussed community outreach and next steps. See the minutes of the July 15th ELAC meeting here.
The seventh ELAC meeting was held on Monday, May 13th. Here are the minutes from that meeting.
The sixth ELAC meeting was held on February 11th. Here are the minutes from that meeting.
The fifth ELAC meeting was held on Monday, January 6th at 6 p.m. at the Community Room at Aspinwall at Josephine Commons, 771 Excelsior Place, Lafayette. During this meeting, a proposed illustrative plan for the development was presented. The results and analysis of a traffic study of the area related to the proposal and its potential impacts were also shared. Here is the agenda for the meeting as well as the packet of materials that was reviewed and discussed by ELAC members. Minutes from the meeting will be posted soon.
The fourth ELAC meeting was held on Monday, December 10th. Here is the agenda for the meeting, which included a re-cap of the recent “pre-application” meeting with City of Lafayette staff, a discussion around density, and a detailed look at the sketch plan process and timeline for the planned neighborhood of affordable workforce homes. Here is the presentation that was given, and here are the density comparables that were shared with the committee. Minutes from the meeting will be posted once approved by ELAC members.
The second meeting of the East Lafayette Advisory Committee (ELAC) was held on Monday, September 17th, in the Community Room at Aspinwall @ Josephine Commons, 771 Excelsior Place in Lafayette. Here is the agenda and here are the minutes from that meeting. In this meeting, ELAC members reviewed the outcomes from the Design Workshop Open House and provided additional feedback for consideration for the planning of the site. Most of the discussion was on the Design Workshop Open House planning outcomes that will guide the planning moving forward.
The BCHA planning team carefully reviewed the design suggestions from the Design Workshop Open House and ELAC members, and created three DRAFT site plans for community review. These plans reflected input received from neighbors and other area stakeholders combined with the mission of BCHA to increase the availability of affordable housing in our communities and the requirements of the intergovernmental agreement between BCHA and the City of Lafayette. We presented these draft site plans at the third ELAC meeting on October 22nd (see the agenda for the meeting, and here are the minutes). We had also shared the draft site plans electronically with all ELAC members via email to allow one week to review the plans before the October ELAC meeting.
At the October 22nd meeting, the BCHA team also provided a presentation on the recent transportation/traffic study that was conducted near the planned housing site, and shared the latest information on transportation improvements planned for the area as well as other potential improvements that could result from the presence of the new neighborhood. Here is a PDF of the presentation that was given.
The first meeting of the ELAC was held on Wednesday, Aug. 15th. Here are the agenda and minutes from that introductory meeting.
The next steps in the Public Engagement Plan’s Community Planning and Design Engagement phase include additional community meetings focused on refined plans resulting from the current design process (including additional opportunities to discuss mobility and transportation issues), and a naming contest for the new neighborhood of affordable workforce housing.
Concurrent with this outreach are ongoing presentations to community groups as well as backyard meetings and coffees with interested neighbors or groups who want to learn more about the planned housing and provide feedback. We are presenting and listening to neighborhood associations and business groups throughout the area. We welcome the opportunity to share our story and hear how we can make this affordable workforce housing community a model for both design and engagement.
Engagement, Design, and Planning Timeline
See the East Lafayette Affordable Workforce Housing Timeline PDF for more information about what will be happening and when.
The site for the future East Lafayette affordable workforce housing community is currently vacant. Through an inclusive planning process, the new development will take shape. Once the form and shape of the site is drawn, then appropriate zoning will be determined and we will seek approval from the City of Lafayette. At present, we anticipate construction at the site could begin in 2020, with first move-ins possible the following year.
Please let us know how we can help you get involved in the planned affordable workforce housing community, including if you want us to meet with you or your organization.
To facilitate community feedback on the initial plans, we have created multiple ways to communicate with our project team and community ELAC members:
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- You can email the ELAC Board and the BCHA Project Team at ELACboard@gmail.com. Every email sent to this account will be shared with all the members of the ELAC as well as the relevant BCHA representatives. This email is set up to provide open communication with fellow Lafayette community members and volunteers serving on the ELAC.
- Each ELAC meeting has dedicated time for public Q&A; see the information above for details about the next meeting.
- BCHA’s Outreach team is available if you would like to share your feedback via the phone, by calling 303-825-1671.
- If needed, materials can be translated into a language of your preference.
- For more information, or if you have general questions or comments, email us at jcwilliams@bouldercounty.org.
BCHA continues to coordinate various community meetings with our ELAC community representatives. Meetings are being held in conjunction with Old Town, Arbordale Acres, Peak to Peak School and other Lafayette ELAC groups. We are also planning a walk along Emma Street with neighbors and the BCHA Team, details will be posted on the website and shared once a date is finalized.
Sign up here if you’re interested in living in this new community in east Lafayette. Please note: this is not an application, nor does it put you on a wait list for these homes. Additional steps would need to be taken once the homes are complete and ready for move-in. We will contact everyone on this list as that time approaches.
Sign up here if you only want information updates about this new community in east Lafayette (and would not be interested in living in it).
