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Kingsbury time-share denied

Rick Chandler

A new proposed timeshare unit to be built on Upper Kingsbury Grade was shot down by the Douglas County Board of Commissioners on Thursday.

A citizen’s group of about 15 homeowners are claiming victory, after the board voted unanimously to deny a subdivision map amendment that would have allowed the Shellback Development Corp. to build a six-unit townhouse on a steep hill off of Tramway Drive. Homeowners had claimed that the unit, which is just inside the Summit Village subdivision, would have blocked the natural beauty of the area.

“This goes to show what a few people can do if they make an effort,” said Lorraine Marlowe, who made a presentation on behalf of several Kingsbury-area residents on Thursday. “This is our fourth meeting on this subject. Some of the homeowners didn’t want to come to the meetings. There was a whole range of apathy out there. But I wish more people would come to these meetings, because as you can see, we can make a difference.”



Developer David Maizel originally purchased three separate building parcels on the property, and went to the Douglas County Planning Commission to ask to switch them for three connected parcels farther up the hill. He would use the original three parcels for driveway access.

This did not sit well with homeowners in the area, who claimed that Maizel was effectively doubling his land purchase while only paying for three parcels.



“We have no objection to residential duplexes on the property he owns,” Marlowe said. “But the other land is open space, and should be preserved as such.”

The Board also had concerns about how the environment would be impacted if a large structure were to be built farther up the hill.

“To approve this type of change, we’d have to basically gut the landscape up there,” said Board Chairman Jacques Etchegoyhen. “Plus there is the question of access. I was up on that hillside this morning, and unless they plan to use small helicopters, I don’t see how this would work.”

Maizel had already been turned down by the planning commission, and turned to the Board of Commissioners as his final hope. His only option now is to build three separate duplexes on the original lots or to abandon the project entirely.

Maizel, who was not at Thursday’s meeting, has defended his project by saying that he believed it would upgrade the ridge area and provide more parking for existing residences.

But residents did not see it that way.

“The Douglas County Master Plan mandates that the ridges be protected and preserved,” Marlowe said. “Hopefully they’ll build some nice duplexes on the other land. We have no problem with that.”


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