A 16-acre farm on Bayfield Parkway is being sold to a developer who plans to construct commercial buildings on the property.
The Bayfield Town Board this week approved annexing the property on the southwest corner of the east intersection of Bayfield Parkway and U.S. Highway 160 into town limits.
The property is owned by Jerry and Zelma Haga and is being developed by Bayfield 1, a limited liability corporation with an address in Boulder and a mailing address in Flagstaff, Arizona.
“This is a great location for a commercial development,” said Andy Arnold, who works for SEH, a consulting firm in Denver, and is working with Bayfield 1, citing its location near U.S. Highway 160 and the availability of town utilities.
Plans aren’t yet finalized, but Arnold said the property could be developed for a small grocery store, as well as a restaurant, gas station or coffee stand.
The first phase of the development would be for 7 acres facing the highway, while Phase 2 would develop 8 acres next to Bayfield Parkway.
The development fits into the town’s comprehensive plan, said Chris Hawkins, a planning consultant for the town. Members of the Bayfield Town Board have been trying for years to increase the number of businesses in town limits that collect sales tax.
There was no public comment on the annexation, which passed on a 6-0 vote.
In other action, the board approved changing the Bayfield Sanitation District into a town enterprise sewer fund. The town took over operations of the sanitation district in 2008. Before that, it had been a separate entity.
The board also received public comment from Pam Smith, who lives in downtown Bayfield near the location of a shooting and death by suicide on Nov. 10.
Citing an increase in crime in Bayfield, she asked for two deputies to be on duty 24 hours a day in town limits.
“We need to feel safe again,” she said.
The Bayfield Marshal’s Office hired a new deputy this year and is advertising for another deputy to increase staffing for the department, said Kristin Dallison, a member of the town board. The town also is helping to fund the school resource officer position, which hasn’t been filled this school year since the previous officer retired.
Dallison thanked Smith for bringing her concerns to the board.
