COLORADO: Crested Butte eyes pricey ‘green’ building codes; forced electrification among possible mandates.

Already faced with an acute housing affordability crisis that’s driving out working class residents, the town council of Crested Butte is prepared to exacerbate the problem in the name of going green.

Following in the footsteps of the self-imposed fiascos in Louisville and Superior, the council is looking to get a jump on recently passed state legislation by considering the adoption of new green building codes by next month. In doing so, it plans to go further than any other jurisdiction to date in Colorado.

As part of a council study session concerning the building codes update, the town council is considering mandating 100% electrification for all new builds and substantial renovations going forward. That would make it the first jurisdiction in the state to require forced electrification, and one of only a handful of jurisdictions nationwide to make such a move.

The Californication of Colorado continues apace.