Real Estate & Construction  February 3, 2006

Berthoud hopes development brings revenue

Like most northern Front Range municipalities, when Berthoud looks toward Interstate 25 it sees dollar signs.

These days, Berthoud officials are looking in anticipation of Wilson Ranch beginning to fill with homes and businesses at the town’s far eastern reaches. The development, approved for the southeast corner of Interstate 25 and Colorado Highway 56, spells relief for strained municipal budgets.

Realistically, the town is some years away from reaping the fiscal boon that the massive development potentially represents, said Berthoud Town Administrator Jim White.

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“I think we’re a few years away from realizing the financial benefits that we have been anticipating and looking forward to in the future,” White said.

White said those benefits will come in the form of building permit and related impact fees, park-land dedication, property tax and sales tax revenues.

Just how much money is likely to pour into town coffers is unknown, White said. The time frame for build out stretches between 20 and 40 years into the future, and market forces could lengthen or condense that period. “The project is definitely a multi-million dollar project to build,” he noted.

The Berthoud Town Board gave final approval for the 1,600-acre development in 2005, White said.

The project is approved for 4,000 residential units and 5.3 million square feet of commercial space, said Troy McWhinney, principal with project owner and developer McWhinney Enterprises.

McWhinney is reluctant to speculate just when actual construction of homes or commercial development will begin. “We’re watching the market. Real estate is a cyclical business. It’s important to start a master-planned community of this size in good market conditions.”

In the town’s municipal offices, meanwhile, there is hope that work on the $1.2-million wastewater treatment plant that will serve Wilson Ranch and the surrounding area can begin later this year.

Additional benefits

White said members of the town board have expressed excitement over seeing the development process begin to come to fruition.

“The town board engaged in several years of extensive hard work to iron out all the particulars. We embarked on some new ideas and new concepts,” he explained.

The wastewater treatment plant, which McWhinney Enterprises will be financing for the town, offers one example. Another is a metro district at Wilson Ranch – the first in Berthoud – which will help finance the cost of infrastructure.

Increased tax and fee revenues aren’t the only effect the town will likely experience. Michele Jurs, executive director of the Berthoud Chamber of Commerce, said the development could bring retail types that won’t locate in a small downtown. “You can only grow so much downtown,” she said, noting that Wilson Ranch might draw larger chain retailers and commercial businesses.

A larger population could well mean more participation at community events downtown and more business for retailers there. Jurs said the chamber and other organizations will work to strengthen downtown commercial areas as the town’s core.

“Windsor is a good example of how they have outlying areas developed but still have that core downtown area of businesses that people frequent constantly,” she said.

The 4,000 new residential units that could one day be built at Wilson Ranch will undoubtedly spell population growth for one of Northern Colorado’s smallest remaining small towns. “Obviously it will increase the size of our town,” White noted.

That 4,000 units represents a nearly 200 percent increase over current existing housing stock. According to census information provided by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, Berthoud had an estimated 2,021 housing units in 2004.

Quality growth

When growth does come to Berthoud via development at Wilson Ranch, it will be quality growth, McWhinney said.

“We did a very extensive Wilson Ranch development manual which has substantial design guidelines, landscape requirements, architectural requirements, etc., that exceed the town’s existing standards,” he explained.

The development will also feature diverse housing types. “With 4,000 units we’re approved for high density multi-family all the way to estate lots. There will be a broad mixture. We think diversity in a master-planned community is critical,” McWhinney said.

Wilson Ranch represents some of the town’s first steps toward creating a gateway to Berthoud along the I-25 corridor. That presence, too, is expected to provide benefits to the town.

“We’re hoping, ultimately, that once some of the homes are built and commercial development comes in we’ll be seeing an economic benefit at I-25, not only from residents but people who are traveling I-25 who can contribute to our sales tax revenue,” White said.

That gateway could increase the number of people who are drawn in off the interstate to shop in Berthoud’s core, as well, he said.

In the short term, White said a developing Wilson Ranch could strain already limited resources and services. Police coverage and street maintenance, for example, already are stretched to the limits.

White and others acknowledge that with the benefits come challenges, but those don’t seem to dampen enthusiasm for the changes Wilson Ranch spells in Berthoud’s future.

“We’re excited,” White said. “We’re hoping for better days ahead. We realize they’re not right around the corner, but we’re optimistic that they’re closer.”

Like most northern Front Range municipalities, when Berthoud looks toward Interstate 25 it sees dollar signs.

These days, Berthoud officials are looking in anticipation of Wilson Ranch beginning to fill with homes and businesses at the town’s far eastern reaches. The development, approved for the southeast corner of Interstate 25 and Colorado Highway 56, spells relief for strained municipal budgets.

Realistically, the town is some years away from reaping the fiscal boon that the massive development potentially represents, said Berthoud Town Administrator Jim White.

“I think we’re a few years away from realizing the financial benefits that we have been anticipating and looking…

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