As Fraser and Winter Park get the ball rolling to establish a regional housing authority, Grand County and Granby want to jump on board.

On Tuesday, county commissioners unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding with the three towns that adds the county and Granby as parties in the efforts to establish a regional housing authority.

Granby is expected to discuss the agreement at their town board meeting this coming Tuesday, while town governments in Fraser and Winter Park have not yet approved the amendment.

Fraser and Winter Park previously entered into an agreement in October, deciding to work together to address the workforce housing shortage and to explore the formation of a multijurisdictional housing authority.

Both county and Granby officials attended the meeting in which Fraser and Winter Park town boards initially discussed the idea, and have expressed an interest in joining the effort.

According to the agreement, each town will contribute $50,000 to the effort. The towns will equitably share the cost of tasks associated with the effort, with the county contributing $10,000 to be used exclusively for legal costs.

Granby has budgeted $250,000 toward housing initiatives for this year, and if approved the $50,000 would come out of this line item.

A memo to the Granby town board explained that total costs between all communities are expected to be upwards of $110,000, but the extra contribution is for unexpected expenses. A grant with the Colorado Department of Local Affairs could further defray costs.

According to previous conversations, the hope with this year’s work is to define the boundaries of the regional housing authority, produce an updated housing study and put a tax question forward to voters in November to fund the authority. The memo to Granby trustees added that the boundaries of the housing authority could include the town limits of Granby and the Fraser Valley Metro Recreation District.

Representatives of Fraser and Winter Park have previously expressed hesitancy to extend the regional housing authority to include more of the county, citing a voter base that might be reluctant to approve a tax measure.

With the county approval, all three towns also need to OK the amendment to the memorandum before it becomes official.