Town of Telluride Comprehensive Plan

Telluride sits in a box canyon at 8,750 feet with a permanent population of about 2,600 and almost no undeveloped land. The numbers describe the transformation: 802 registered short-term rentals — a third of all housing. Ten operators control 469 of those units. School enrollment has dropped 18% as families leave. The median home sells for $2.62 million; a three-bedroom under $800,000 doesn’t exist. Only 238 deed-restricted units, about 10% of the housing stock, remain affordable.

Whole streets have gone quiet — homes that were once neighborhood hubs sit empty most of the year.

Western Spaces led the housing and demographic components of the town’s comprehensive plan, alongside specialists in transportation, historic preservation, and land use, replacing the 2006/2012 master plan. The work covered demographic trends, housing inventory, jobs-to-housing ratios, and commuting patterns that show where people work versus where they can afford to live. The housing framework sits within a broader plan addressing land use, transportation, historic preservation, and economic development — all shaped by a community working to remain a town, not just a resort.