Konrads’ mixed-use development aims for affordable housing
The Twisp Town Council has approved a pre-annexation agreement for two lots that would be part of a mixed-use housing development proposed by Hank and Judy Konrad for property they own along Highway 20 at the east end of town.
The agreement was worked out between town staff and council members and representatives of Milltown Twisp LLC, the legal entity formed to pursue the annexation and subsequent development of the housing project.
The council took action on the detailed agreement at its meeting last week. Although the document spells out many of the conditions the town has set for both annexation and development of the project, it is not the final stop in the complicated annexation process. And it does not require the town to accept the annexation.
But it is a vital step toward bringing the property into the Twisp’s jurisdiction while satisfying the town’s requirements for the housing project to proceed.
The Konrads’ proposed development is on a total of about 10 acres along Highway 20 at the east end of town, including one lot of about 3 acres within the town limits and two lots totaling about 7 acres that they have asked the town to annex. That request was first submitted in August 2021, and the Konrads have been working with the town since then on terms of the pre-annexation agreement.
Variety of units
At an earlier council meeting, developer Gary Scott, representing the Konrads, presented a plan to develop a total of 73 housing units, from small and medium-sized houses to larger homes, apartments, lofts, senior housing and possibly retail, in a mixed-use development that would include pocket parks, community gardens, a self-storage area and off-street parking. The development will be called Milltown as an homage to Twisp’s past.
At that earlier meeting, Scott said the Konrads, owners of Hank’s Harvest Foods and other properties in Twisp, will be asking the town to consider some variances to existing planned development provisions in order to fulfill Milltown’s vision of providing affordable housing.
Scott said the Konrad will ask the town to consider reducing the required open space from 40% to 20%, noting that the development includes several park areas and other open-space features. Another request, Scott said, is to modify internal street standards to narrower widths but with street-level sidewalks and no on-street parking.
Each dwelling unit would have its own off-street parking, he said, and several small off-street parking areas would be set aside for visitors.
Scott also said the development will be asking for the option to pay off town services connection fees over time to amortize the payments over a longer period.
Council members said at that meeting that they did not object to considering any of those requests in the crafting of the pre-annexation agreement.
Petition next
With the pre-annexation agreement, the Konrads can now file a formal petition for annexation with the town, which then forwards it to the county to be reviewed for compliance with applicable state regulations.
The town council then sets a date for a public hearing on the request, after which it can make a decision on the annexation proposal. Milltown Twisp LLC is responsible for all costs associated with the application.
Among terms of the agreement are that annexation will include adoption of the town’s comprehensive plan, and assumption of existing indebtedness for the area to be annexed.
Other details in the agreement include that it may not exceed 100 units; that the proposal must go through the planned development process and meet all town codes and requirements defined in any planned development approval; that Milltown will be a single development although it may be built in stages; that two existing wells on the properties to be annexed will be decommissioned and the water rights turned over to the town; and that the project must connect to town water and sewer systems and pay appropriate hookup fees.
Milltown Twisp must also provide to the town an estimate of water and sewage usage, two weeks prior to the public hearing. The date for the hearing will be published in the legal notices section of the Methow Valley News.
The Konrad parcels proposed for annexation are located on the north side of Highway 20, near the highway’s junction with Twisp Airport Road. The two that would be annexed are directly east of the lot that is already within town limits. The parcels proposed for annexation are both within the town’s urban growth boundary. The town’s existing R-3 zoning would allow mixed-use development.
