CSU System to abandon Fort Collins involvement, develop Hughes Stadium by itself

FORT COLLINS — Months after a rezoning proposal failed by tiebreaker at the Fort Collins City Council, the Colorado State University Board of Governors voted unanimously in a meeting last week to move forward on its own.

The board agreed to invoke a clause in law that allows state entities to start development projects on their own. While the city’s planning and zoning board would get to provide input into the plans and hold a public hearing, it and the city council are relegated to an advisory position.

CSU’s new concept for the property calls for 632 residential units, split between 242 single-family detached homes, 112 duplexes, 108 townhomes and 170 apartment units. It also proposes 34,000 square feet of commercial space and a new park on the north side of town. The disc golf course at the northwest corner of South Overland Trail and Dixon Canyon Road is to remain.

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The previous proposal in May would have allowed up to 550 homes to be developed on the former stadium site by national homebuilder Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), down from the original 600 to 700 homes. It faced heavy opposition from locals who were worried about additional traffic loads, along with environmental groups that wanted the area to remain as open space and a habitat for wildlife.

The council were deadlocked 3-3 after Mayor Pro Tem Kristin Stephens recused herself after another 11th-hour ethics complaint was filed against her. Multiple complaints were filed against Stephens and Mayor Wade Troxell, both of whom are CSU employees, and sought to have them recuse themselves on a vote that may produce a windfall for the university.

Fellow councilmembers cleared both Stephens and Troxell of any ethics claims against them last November.

It’s unclear how the move from CSU affects a signature-gathering campaign by PATHS For Hughes, the main group organizing opposition to any development on the west Fort Collins property. PATHS is proposing a ballot initiative that would ask voters in the April 2021 municipal election to zone the land as fully open space.

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