From bottles to blades, Windsor continues growth

Windsor is a unique and vibrant community – unique because of our location, situated between the three major cities of Fort Collins, Greeley and Loveland, and close proximity to state and interstate highways and in the Great Western Industrial Park Interchanges with both the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific railroads. Our centralized location has contributed to our rapid growth over the past 20 years.

Since the inception of the Windsor Chamber of Commerce in 1902, created to bring Great Western Sugar Co. to town, Windsor has continued to focus on its business community. The opening of Kodak in 1969 was the start of the economic boom, with our population doubling in size with each new census. Today our community, with its many partnerships, focuses our attention on the growth of Windsor.

The year 2015 has been the year for our community to look to the future. We began the process of creating a new comprehensive plan for the town. This plan will create a blueprint for our future – a new comprehensive plan that will guide the town in its decision making for the next 10 to 20 years.

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In 2015, Windsor also joined together with Larimer County, Loveland and Estes Park to submit the Go NoCO Regional Tourism Authority application to the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade. This proposed RTA would bring synergistic projects attracting more than $232.9 million in new state tax revenue from all sources. Windsor’s project for the new Go NoCo RTA is The PeliGrande Resort and Windsor Conference Center: As Northern Colorado’s only four-star golf resort and conference center, it would offer visitors a high-end retreat oasis with scenic mountain views, luxurious finishes and easy access to outdoor amenities.

Currently Windsor has more than 300,000 square feet of new commercial/industrial major development projects under review and under construction and more than 4,000 new residential lots under review. These projects are located throughout Windsor:

West Side projects: Power to Play Sports, a 52,000-square-foot basketball facility, and a new 40,000-square-foot Highland Meadows fitness and tennis facility.

East Side projects: Vestas has begun Phase IX with a new 62,000-square-foot building. Dirt has been moving at Falcon Point with construction to begin on Cutter Wireline (a supplier for oil and gas), The Human Bean, and a new storage facility. Other East Side projects include Solix Biosystems and Schlumberger Lift (supplier for oil and gas) with a $10.5 million facility.

North Side projects: Two new subdivisions: The Ridge at Harmony Road and Northlake.

South Side projects: Windsor South is to be the new home for Aims Community College’s training site for wildland firefighting, fire science and emergency medical services programs with a 53,500-square-foot facility and 10.7 acres.

Central projects: Construction in the center of Windsor includes a 39,280-square-foot expansion of our Windsor Community Recreation Center. This expansion will include aquatics amenities, additional gym space and the development of Westwood Patio Homes built by Columbine Health Systems.

Windsor also is excited to announce the grand opening and expansion of several new restaurants and retail stores in September. The Hearth will be opening in downtown Windsor with a beautiful, second-story space that will include 80 additional seats outdoors for seasonal patio dining. The menu will include homemade Neapolitan-style pizzas, fun and sharable appetizers, wood-fired beef, poultry, lamb and vegetables that are in season.  Roma Restaurant will be opening on Main Street next to Anytime Fitness, offering an assortment of pizzas, cannoli, pastas and more in a family-friendly environment. This new location will be Roma’s largest at 3,500 square feet.

Also opening downtown will be two longtime Windsor stores that are moving locations, remodeling and expanding. Look for Spokes Bicycles to open at 427 Main St. and Park Place Interiors to open at 520 Main St. later this fall. 

Windsor is a thriving community in its own right, featuring a wide array of business. With a solid foundation of core businesses, Windsor is in prime position for significant growth over the next several years.

Michal Connors is executive director of the Windsor Chamber of Commerce.