REAL ESTATE : Development-by-numbers: Project name ‘sophisticated’

JOHNSTOWN – For the past 10 years, development around the junction of
Interstate 25 and U.S. Highway 34 has leaned to the north.
The Centerra project, on the northwest and northeast corners of the
interchange, dominates the landscape.
Now comes a counterweight.
Two projects on the southeast corner of the I-25-U.S. 34 interchange
– one with a commercial focus, the other strictly residential – are
about to leap off the drawing board.
Developers of 2534, previously called Thompson Crossing, expect to
break ground as early as next spring on a 500-acre mixed-use project.
As planned, 2534 would include up to 4 million square feet of retail,
office and light industrial buildings, and a neighborhood of
upper-end housing with up to 200 homes.
A step south across the Big Thompson River, owners of the Wiens Ranch
are on track to develop 670 acres as a planned community called
Thompson River Ranch with up to 1,500 homes. The Wiens family has
already hooked up with Oakwood Homes to design and build the project,
which could also be under construction in the spring of 2005.

Name that development

The owners of 2534 – nee Thompson Crossing – adopted the new name to
put a businesslike edge to its identity, said Nick Christensen,
president of Chrisland Companies, which is overseeing the project’s
development.
“Thompson Crossing was a fine name, but we wanted to create something
that was commercial and business-park oriented,” Christensen said.
“We felt this (new name) accomplished what we wanted to do.”
Christensen believes the name emphasizes the location and presents a
“straightforward, yet sophisticated image.”
“First, it took me a moment, too,” he said of the mod tone. “We’re
excited about it.”
The first signs for 2534 – pronounced twenty-five thirty-four – will
be posted in June.
Christensen thinks the project has a tactical advantage in the
competition for future retail users that may be overlooked, given the
attention to Centerra on the west side of I-25.
Traffic counts on U.S. 34 east of the interstate actually exceed
numbers on the west side, even without the commercial presence of the
west side. The 2534 ground also has 1.5 miles of frontage along U.S.
34.
Christensen said he expects the project buildout over 10 years.
A county road runs through it
The Big Thompson River separates 2534 from the Thompson River Ranch,
The two projects are bound, however, by the recently created Thompson
Crossing Metropolitan District.
The landowners have agreed to assess themselves to support the
district, which in turn is paying for a sewage treatment plant to
support the two developments. Furthermore, the town of Johnstown,
which has annexed to the southeast corner of the interchange, is
building a 20-inch water line to the properties.
Another connection between the two sites will be Larimer County Road
5, a north-south road roughly parallel to I-25, which eventually will
run through both projects.
Currently, the county road stops at Crossroads Boulevard, two miles
north of U.S. 34. As planned, construction of the new Shops at
Centerra lifestyle center will extend County Road 5 southward to U.S.
34. From there, it will continue southward through 2534 and into
Thompson River Ranch.
“It will be the strongest north-south corridor, other than I-25, in
the region,” Christensen said.

Local firms among top sellers

Two Northern Colorado real estate firms were recently listed in the
RealTrends list of top selling residential brokerages.
The Group Inc. of Fort Collins ranked No. 92 nationwide in sales
volume, with $1.37 billion in closed sales for 2003. The company,
which also has offices in Greeley, Loveland and Windsor, was No.84 in
closed sides, at 6,195.
Re/Max First of Fort Collins ranked No. 248 in volume, with $543.8
million in sales. The firm was No. 21 in closed sides, with 3,115.

Editor Robert Baun covers real estate for The Northern Colorado
Business Report. He can be reached at (970) 221-5400, (970) 356-1683
or via e-mail at bbaun@ncbr.com. His fax number is (970) 221-5432

on Facebook on LinkedIn