The Mancos Design Review Board voted 3-0 to approve aesthetic architecture plans for the Family Dollar store Monday night.
The plan includes a dark green awning, a stone facade below the front windows, bronze-colored trim around the windows, subdued sign and building lighting, a screened-off trash bin, and a detention pond to control drainage.
Project manager for the 8,320-square-foot store, Greg Wall, said a final building permit has not been approved by the town, but is expected soon. A CDOT permit is also pending, and the property-sale for the store, at the corner of Willow and Menefee Streets, has not been finalized.
"We want to get all the permits in place before we close," Wall said. "At that point, construction will take six to eight months."
The sign falls within the town's 32-square-foot maximum size limit and will be illuminated from within.
"It won't broadcast," Wall said. "Building lighting will be directed down, and does not broadcast beyond the property."
Wall presented a study showing lighting measurements that zero out at the property line.
The detention pond was explained. The drainage feature will not have permanent water. During heavy rains, it is designed to control the rate at which runoff drains into the town's stormwater system so it does not overwhelm it.
The store also has a curb-and-gutter plan as required by city ordinance, said design board member Tim Hunter. Also, the screen for the dumpster will match the earth-tone colors of the store.
One resident expressed concern about the closing of the thrift store at the location of the new Family Dollar.
"I'd like to see the thrift store saved and relocated," he said. "It is relied on by the community."
From a building integrity standpoint, officials said it is unlikely the store could be salvaged and moved.
Wall noted that plans are also underway to re-open the Family Dollar store in Cortez after the previous one was destroyed by fire in May last year.
jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com
