Future of Holcim land linked to highway’s direction

LAPORTE – Residents and business owners in LaPorte and northern Fort Collins are waiting with baited breath to hear about the future of the proposed Glade reservoir and the possible relocation of U.S. Highway 287.
Waiting alongside them are officials with Holcim Inc., who are waiting to hear the results of an environmental impact study to determine whether the highway will be moved onto company land.
“The Army Corp of Engineers is in the process of performing an EIS on the feasibility of the project,´ said Carl Brouwer, project manager of the Northern Integrated Supply Project – of which Glade Reservoir is a part. “There are environmental consultants performing analysis and checking on the preferred alternative route that will be the least dramatic.”
Completion of Glade Reservoir – a proposed 177,000-acre-foot water-storage reservoir – is expected by 2012. The reservoir will be located one mile north of the intersection of U.S. Highway 287 and Colorado Highway 14.
The most logical path for the highway relocation is onto vacant property owned by Holcim.
“We have a number of (highway routing) alternatives and we will present these to the public early next year,” Brouwer said. “From those meetings we will come up with a preferred route for 287.”
Holcim operated a 74-year-old concrete plant on its 3,800 acres until production ceased on Aug. 31, 2002. Holcim officials said the decision to close the plant was based on market conditions and the opening of the company’s new plant in southern Colorado.
At full capacity, the plant in Florence can produce up to 1.9 million metric tons of cement each year. In comparison, the LaPorte plant produced 450,000 metric tons of cement each year.
The company employed between 80 and 100 workers before the closure. Seven employees remain at the site, which the company uses for distribution activity.
Tom Chizmadia, a spokesman for Michigan-based Holcim, said the company plans to continue operating the site as a distribution point for the Colorado market through the demolition process and beyond.
Chizmadia said he expects quarry reclamation at the Laporte site to wrap up this year; the plant and manufacturing buildings were previously demolished. The company has until August 2008 to complete the entire reclamation process.
The Holcim land is currently zoned for agricultural use or low-density housing by Larimer County. This zoning allows for one unit for every 10 acres – approximately 300 homes. Part of the land is in the Laporte planning area, but county officials speculate that any residential development would be clustered on the land. The homes would be condensed in one area, which allows for easier sewer and utility connections, leaving the rest of the acreage as surrounding open space.
But the idea of housing on the land is all speculation; planning officials have not been contacted by anyone associated with Holcim for more than a year.
“What we are hearing is all rumors that maybe they are hanging onto the land until they find out the route of the 287 realignment,´ said Rob Helmick, a planner in the county planning office. “The impact of the selected alignment might or might not affect their plans.”
If the highway were relocated onto Holcim property, the state would have to purchase some of the land, which could be lucrative to the company. The company could also profit from the increased exposure of its land to passing traffic.
“We are aware of the proposal, but it is one of many issues affecting the sale of the property,” Holcim’s Chizmadia said. “The relocation will not deter or dominate the sale. Based on our time table it will be more of an issue for who ever buys the property.”
A portion of the land is part of the Laporte Area Plan, which was approved in early 2004. The plan focuses on maintaining the rural feel of the town, and major development on this land could affect the town’s ambiance.
“Holcim has been tight-lipped about their plans,´ said Tim O’Hara, chairman of the Laporte Area Planning Advisory Committee, a community organization that advises the Larimer County Commissioners on land use matters in the Laporte area. “When the plant closure was first announced, 70 developers approached Holcim about developing the land. But it is my understanding they are going to develop themselves under their real estate arm.”

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