Council appoints two new Planning and Zoning Commission members

At its Oct. 13 meeting, the Gunnison City Council appointed Chris Cassling and Lisa Lucas to five-year terms on the Gunnison Planning and Zoning Commission.

Three of the seven commission members recently resigned due to conflicts with the city council over the commission's role and its relationship to it.

These resignations, in addition to one seat on the commission already being vacant, left the commission without a quorum. The commission now has a quorum.

In an interview, City Manager Amanda Wilson and Community Development Director Anton Sinkewich explained that Cassling and Lucas both applied to fill the previously vacant seat and were progressing through the interview process to fill the seat prior to the departure of the three other commission members.

In his application, Cassling said that he is currently a Park Ranger at the Curecanti National Recreation Area and that he was interested in serving on the commission to “help guide the city's growth in a way that does the most good for the most people.”

He also highlighted his experience with federal government and policies from his service as a Park Ranger as well as his ability to bring a “public safety and operational leadership” perspective to the commission, also rooted in his work as a ranger, and to understand the challenges for new people moving into the Gunnison Valley.

In her application, Lucas said that her education and background in construction management would give her a valuable perspective in serving on the commission, as would her experience in project management.

“As a second generation Gunnison native who is now raising my own family here as well, I am deeply invested in the growth and development of the City,” she said in her application. “It saddens me to see the empty storefronts in downtown, and it frustrates me to see the continued struggles around issues such as housing and business development. It would be very fulfilling for me to be able to contribute to positive change for the community I grew up in and I think my history with the area and my knowledge around construction would allow me to meaningfully contribute to the Planning [and] Zoning Commission, and by extension, Gunnison as a whole.”

At the meeting, Sinkewich explained that the applicants underwent an interview process, which identified no concerns with either applicant. He said that copies of the commission’s member charter and Planning and Zoning Commission bylaws were distributed to the applicants before the interviews and served as a basis for the discussions.

He said that members of the commission serve five-year terms from the date of their appointment.

Councilor Matt Schwartz asked whether the openings on the commission were due to term expirations or whether one of the appointments would be to fill the remainder of a term.

Sinkewich said that one position was open due to a term ending, but that the city would have to determine whether the other position would be for the remainder of a term or for a full term.

Wilson said that, in her understanding of the member charter, the council would be appointing commission members for five-year terms from the date of their appointment. She added that the commission does not function the same as city council, which has fixed end points for individual terms.

Councilor Loren Ahonen said that this approach made sense to him, given the terms of the new member charter.

Ahonen asked both applicants what they were most excited about in the role of serving on the planning commission and what they felt might be the biggest challenge for them.

“I’m extremely excited about learning about city government and learning about the development and how the city decides how to build out, how to expand, where it’s going to grow and the priorities in implementing that,” said Cassling. “For me, one of the biggest challenges is just transitioning from, I’ve worked for the federal government with the National Park Service, so transitioning from the federal government where things move extremely slowly to city government which, to my understanding, it’s a lot more dynamic and things can happen, change and actually changes that can affect the population, the citizens, can get made to make things better, so I’m excited to be involved with that.”

Mayor Pro Tem Marisela Ballesteros thanked both candidates for applying.

“I think the hardest step is applying,” she said. “A lot of people don’t apply because it’s something they’re not used to or something that’s there’s no written guidance as far as like other than what we have provided not too long ago. But, as far as experience and what do you do as a board and what are your aspirations and passion, that’s what you bring to the table, so thank you for bringing that voice.”

Lucas highlighted that she was born and raised in the community, adding, “Coming back to Gunnison, not a lot has changed and many other things have changed but having the opportunity to move around the country and just how other communities are doing things, I kind of hope to bring a lot to the table of just seeing how other places have done things and I want to be a part of how this community grows and seeing it grow and seeing, you know, what we can do with what we’ve got right now.”

Schwartz said that he was present for the interviews of both applicants and believed that they would do a “fantastic job.”

“They both interviewed extremely well, and they understand the roles that they’re about to take on,” he said. “Just thought it would be good for me to let you all know that.”

The council provided an opportunity to receive public comments on the appointments and did not receive any.

Following this, the council unanimously voted to approve the appointments of Cassling and Lucas.