The Fraser Board of Trustees passed resolution 2024-05-07, a final plat and major site plan for a development called Strom townhomes on Clayton Court at the May 15 regular meeting. The project includes four townhome units and a commercial building on the street frontage.

Byson Investments is the development group running the project. The lot for Strom townhomes, commonly known as the barn lot, was involved in Fraser’s land swap ballot question, which voters rejected in November.

The development project is a part of Fraser’s new Riverwalk District, which is designed to foster a high-density, mixed-use, walkable neighborhood near the Fraser River.

“Town staff largely believes that the proposed development meets the intent of the Riverwalk District,” Garrett Scott, Fraser’s town planner, said.

Nat Havens, a Fraser trustee, raised concerns over parking.

The Fraser town code requires one parking space for every 400 square feet of commercial floor area, Scott said. The commercial building is just under 800 square feet so the town requires the developers to provide two parking spaces.

Town staff is allowing parallel parking spots on Clayton Court to count towards requirements for the commercial building, Scott added.

“Fraser used to have some of the strongest parking requirements in this entire county and we continue to relax those standards,” Havens said. “There is not enough parking.”

The resolution passed by a 6-1 verdict, with Havens voting in opposition.

Water meter grant

The Fraser board unanimously approved resolution 2024-05-06 to apply for a grant from the Bureau of Reclamation for $100,000 to partially fund the installation of new water meters in the town’s south water system.

If successful, the grant would cover 46% of the total cost of the project, which is $216,305.

The new water meters will save the town water by automatically identifying leaks without having to send employees to manually check water meters, Lucus Seffens, the town’s water superintendent said. Additionally, the old meters are at the end of their useful life.

The new technology allows Fraser’s water utilities department to see if a resident is using water irregularly. Seffens said if someone is using water “every single minute of every single day,” then the town can contact them and alert them to a possible leak.

Seffens said in the past users have had a leak, not known about it, and then received an expensive water bill. They don’t want to pay the bill and wonder why no one alerted them to the leak. New meters can address these issues, Seffens said at the meeting.

Ultimately, the town hopes to have all water usage information available to residents on an app so users can easily see how much water they’re using and paying for.

The town purchased and installed a handful of these new water meters as a pilot program. They simulated leaks to test the meters, and Seffens was pleased with the results.

Additionally, the executive summary for the project says that by identifying leaks and reducing water usage the town of Fraser can become a better steward of the Colorado River and protect this “critical resource.”

Public outreach is the next step in Fraser’s multi-phased water saving effort, which focuses on reducing wasted water. Seffens said he wants customers to freely make decisions about their water usage with as much information as possible.

Most leaks involve toilet flappers running continuously, Seffens explained, and he encourages residents to regularly check on their toilet flappers.