Downtown Steele’s store to be de-constructed

FORT COLLINS – The former downtown Steele’s Market at 309 W. Mountain Ave., which has sat vacant since its sale related to the former grocery chain’s bankruptcy in 2001, will be de-constructed and removed for recycling in preparation for redevelopment of the two-acre site.

Joe Zimlich, CEO of Fort Collins-based Bohemian Cos., said the 17,000-square-foot store will be taken apart and removed from the site. The property is currently owned by Bohemian Mountain LLC, an entity created by Bohemian Cos. to buy the property in 2005 for $4 million.

Zimlich said there are no firm plans at this time to redevelop the property. “We’re going to take it down but we don’t have plans finalized for what we’ll do with the site,” he said.

Steve Dush, advance planning director for the city of Fort Collins, confirmed that the city has seen nothing yet. “There is no (development) application for that site,” he said.

In 2002, plans were announced by owner Mountain Avenue LLC to redevelop the site into a condominium project. But opposition from neighbors who feared the project’s two proposed high-rise towers would keep them in perpetual shade killed the proposal.

In 2005, St. Joseph Catholic Church — located just across Mountain Avenue from the site — considered the idea of buying the site for parking and other possible uses but ultimately rejected the notion.

Zimlich said he didn’t expect any construction to begin on the site this year because it can take up to two years to go through the permitting and public comment phase of a major development project.

Bohemian Cos. is owned by Fort Collins billionaire and philanthropist Pat Stryker.

Darin Atteberry, Fort Collins city manager, said he was glad to hear of the Bohemian Cos.’ plan to begin redeveloping the site.

“I think that’s great for the community,” he said. “It’s just an optimal site, a key site in downtown along the Mason corridor. It’s really exciting.”

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