Lumberyard affordable housing project’s $360 million price tag explained

A $360 million price tag might sound like a lot.

But when constructing an affordable housing project with the aim of providing a roof to the equivalent of 8% of Aspen’s population, it might not be so outlandish. The $360 million development estimate for the Lumberyard affordable housing project, construction for which is slated to begin in 2026, includes 277 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units, over 200 underground parking spaces (and 435 total), a plaza, a half mile of public roadways surrounding the development, a half mile of utility infrastructure under those roadways, and more.

“The Lumberyard’s not just some housing buildings,” said Chris Everson, the city of Aspen’s affordable housing project manager. “It’s also an entire neighborhood.”

Everson estimated 500 to 600 people — or more — will live in the development, which will be located on 11.3 acres of land across Highway 82 from the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport. 

“It’s the biggest affordable housing project the city’s taken on,” he said. “Period.”

The 277 units will be constructed in three separate buildings, which Everson described to be each about the length of a city block. 

With about 265,000 leasable square feet, the development will cost an estimated $1,355 per square foot of leasable space, about half of the market-rate cost in Aspen, according to Everson and real estate experts Avant Garde Aspen. The Lumberyard’s projected cost per unit stands at about $1.3 million, based on the $360 million estimate, though that projection includes non-unit infrastructure like roads and parking.

“I think a lot of people who are closer to the industry understand that there are extremely high labor costs in Aspen and the upper Roaring Fork Valley. There’s a shortage of skilled trades, there’s a lot of remote logistics, like transportation,” he said. “How do you get all those workers up the valley, day in and day out?”

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In addition to the labor costs, the Lumberyard development will include an underpass so a trail can avoid the entryway, as well as a transit station. Everson added that the city must construct stormwater infrastructure on the 11.3-acre site, which is sloped. 

And construction costs have been rising since the COVID-19 pandemic, Everson said.

The city of Aspen will not cover the entire $360 million price tag. Wisconsin-based Gorman & Company, the group hired by the site to build and operate the Lumberyard development, agreed to pull together $110 million from various external sources to contribute to the project. According to Everson, the company itself will invest about $7 million in the project.

“I think there’s a misconception that the city’s going to be paying the whole bill,” Aspen City Council Member John Doyle said. “And actually, we’re in a partnership with Gorman, and they’re picking up a large portion of it.”

Skyler Stark-Ragsdale can be reached at 970-429-9152 or email him at sstark-ragsdale@aspentimes.com.