The Winter Park Planning Commission will hold a public hearing Tuesday morning on a major zoning application and a minor site planning application for the Roam housing project that could clear the way for the demolition of the long-standing Beavers Lodge building. The meeting will be held at 8 a.m. Aug. 13 at Winter Park City Hall, with the option to attend virtually..

The proposed project calls for the construction of a facility to be used as a recreation center for the Roam community, called Roam Beavers Lodge. It would replace the existing Beavers Lodge building, according to a staff memo filed with the Aug. 13 Planning Commission agenda packet. In a project overview, the memo states that Roam Beavers Lodge would include approximately 12,900 square feet of recreational space, consisting of a building of approximately 5,500 square feet. Residential units are not proposed in this project.

Roam is a development consisting of 218 residential units and 23,000 square feet of commercial space in its first phase, located off US Highway 40 near downtown Winter Park. According to the Roam website, it is a project started by Bob and Suzanne Fanch, owners of Devil’s Thumb Ranch.

Beaver Village Lodge opened in 1940, the same year as Winter Park Resort.

Indoor amenities at the proposed Roam Beavers Lodge include a gym, game room, conference room, restrooms, non-commercial kitchen and more. Outdoor space includes a pool, outdoor kitchen, fire pit, fitness spa and yoga lawn, according to the plan overview included in the memo.

A submitted application for a land use review states: “The intention is to demolish the existing building and build on the same footprint as the proposed building.”

According to a Facebook post, Beavers Lodge is a historic and iconic building The Grand County Historical Association announced that the authorship was by its board chairman, B. Travis Wright.

“This building is the first building you see as you enter the city of Winter Park, Colorado, and it has been a landmark for nearly the last century,” the Facebook post said.

The post explains that Beavers Lodge was likely one of the first guesthouses in the city of Winter Park and features some of the most unique architecture in Grand County.

“Even though it is private property, you can encourage stakeholders, including the Planning Commission and the City, to get creative and generously provide incentives to preserve this structure,” the post said. “You can be the voice that says this structure, this architecture, this history is important in Colorado.”

Tara Alatorre is the editor of Sky-Hi News. Reach her at 970-557-6031 or [email protected].