Plans spring into life along U.S. 34

Artist’s renderings are beginning to come to life as projects along the U.S. Highway 34 corridor east of Interstate 25 rise out of the corn fields.

No longer are they developments planned for sometime down the road. They are here and now. And they are a mix of commercial and residential, from Loveland to Johnstown, Windsor to Greeley.

The 540-acre mixed-use development overseen by Chrisland Inc., 2534, is off and running. Two buildings are currently under construction just off Thompson Parkway, directly opposite the signaled entrance to The Promenade Shops at Centerra. The westernmost building belongs to Eheart Flooring and Design; Ethan Allen, the upscale furniture store, is expected to break ground next door in the next month.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Select your Republic Services residential cart now!

In preparation for Republic Services becoming the primary provider of residential recycling, yard trimmings, and trash, residents should now select the best cart size and service schedule for their household needs.

Behind these frontage businesses will be the 500,000-square-foot retail Plaza and an 85,000-square foot office building designed and developed by Chrisland. “It’ll be a very attractive five-story office building with incredible views,´ said Nick Christensen, partner in Chrisland Inc. “We look forward to getting it out to the real estate community.” The design is somewhat new for Northern Colorado, he said, “modern with a Rocky Mountain feel to it.”

Ground should be broken later this summer or early fall on a 46,000-square-foot, two-story building that will be home to health-related businesses, including a health club, day spa/salon and physical therapy practice. Kevin Younger, Jason Sherrill and Jon Mosier are partners in the project.

Residential under way

Nestled down along the Big Thompson River, south of the commercial activity, is Thompson Crossing subdivision by Hartford Development Co. of Windsor. Developer Gary Hoover said 149 lots are under way with home construction expected by the first of September.

Homes by five builders will start at $300,000 and go into the millions, Hoover said. Thompson Crossing is one of the  sites for the 2007 Northern Colorado Parade of Homes, which will decorate five million-dollar-plus homes to the hilt and place them on display.

Hoover also has a project on the north side of U.S. 34, aptly called Miracle on 34, which will include 120 acres of commercial development with the balance in residential. “It’s been annexed (by Johnstown), zoned and we’re just starting the platting process for the residential. We anticipate the residential neighborhood of 900 homes over the next six to seven years.”

Getting back to 2534 and east of Thompson Parkway, Home State Bank has laid claim to the southeast corner, and next to that will be three restaurants, which Christensen could not yet identify. Bank of Colorado’s four-story structure, which will also house Burns Marketing and LBN Insurance, is already under construction.

To the east of that, Larimer Parkway, which will be a signalized intersection and also part of 2534, will provide easy access to U.S. Bank. The bank just bought the southeast corner near Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital, which opened in August 2005 and is the first completed business in the 2534 development.

Christensen said a total of six to seven buildings could be under construction by the end of the year. “That’s pretty significant activity,” he added.

Iron Horse, Iron Mountains

McWhinney Enterprises – the developers behind all that is Centerra west and east of I-25 – is expanding its presence along U.S. 34 with Iron Horse, a 165-acre development at the southeast corner of Weld County Road 3. Ron Kuehl, vice president of real estate, said plans for the property are yet to be determined, but the site does include rail access.

If it’s significant activity you’re looking for along the corridor, check out Iron Mountain Auto Plaza at the northwest corner of U.S. 34 and Weld County Road 17, which falls into Windsor’s boundaries. John Chamberlain said his Chevrolet dealership will be selling cars by the first of September and his Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge dealership will be open for test drives later that month.

That’s also when Chamberlain will break ground on his Mazda dealership, which will be open in March 2007. “As soon as that is done we’ll break ground on KIA,” he added. And by then he expects to close on his 12-acre option piece and put in an additional three or four dealerships.

Just to the north of the auto plaza is Iron Mountain Retail Center, one of developer Martin Lind’s many Northern Colorado projects. It will include a 20,000-square-foot retail center, gas station and bank location. Lind said he has two or three “sincere deals” going on for the retail and gas station, and construction should be under way this fall.

Promontory, too

As for Greeley’s stake in the U.S. 34 corridor, you’ll need to drive a few more miles to reach Promontory, currently home to corporate offices of Swift & Co. and regional headquarters of State Farm Insurance Co.

McWhinney Enterprises last year completed a 35,000-square-foot expansion for Swift on 20 acres at Promontory, leaving five additional acres for future development, Kuehl said. No plans for that small acreage are yet on the table.