Brighton approves Kmart rezoning to lure battery factory

BRIGHTON — After another round of extensive public comments, the Brighton City Council Tuesday gave final approval to a rezoning of the former Kmart/Sears distribution center, paving the way for the project to lure a lithium-battery manufacturing plant.

Council members voted 5-2 in favor of a Planned Development application by property owner Starboard Platform Brighton JV LLC, an arm of Newport Beach, California-based Starboard Realty Partners LLC.

Starboard purchased the property at 18875 Bromley Lane in September 2018 for $40.75 million. First built as a Kmart Distribution Center, the property at the time of the sale functioned as a Sears Distribution Center.

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The Mile High Logistics Center application sought to rezone the property from distribution and warehouse uses to allow for industrial, manufacturing technology, public and civic uses, commercial and wireless-communications facilities.

Amprius Technologies Inc. (NYSE: AMPX) of Fremont, California, seeks to lease 775,000 square feet of the 1.3-million-square-foot property, with an option to use more. The company has received approval for incentives from the city of Brighton, Adams County and the Colorado Economic Development Commission.

The company would add up to 332 jobs in the city at an average pay of $69,458, with the plant operational by 2025. Its products will be used in electric vehicles, drones, and by the aerospace industry.

The Brighton Planning Commission in August recommended a denial of the rezoning. A large crowd filled City Council chambers on first reading of the zoning change Sept. 5, at which the rezoning was approved on first reading, 4-3, and more attended Tuesday’s meeting.

Neighbors of the property, many of whom signed a petition against the rezoning, expressed concerns about hazardous materials, fire dangers and other factors.

Kathleen Hide, who lives near the property, said the proposal already has affected property values in the area.

“This is a case of perception being reality,” she said. “It is perceived that a lithium-ion battery factory is dangerous, and if given a choice, people don’t want to live near one. I sympathize with Starboard, but even considering this rezoning proposal has put the surrounding residential property owners into the same boat that Starboard is in. Starboard can’t rent or sell, and neither can we.”

Nearby resident Joe Wiliams said council members should listen to residents, not businesses.

“One of the other residents said that businesses will prosper and grow and develop and that the businesses should have their voices heard,” he said. “We residents should have their voices heard. We live here. We are people who live here, not companies that decide to buy a property, not knowing what we’re getting ourselves into and then not being able to manage it, expect somebody else to fix the problem.”

Resident Ervin Cole said neighbors were worried.

“We’re here because of the potential of a bomb being put in our backyard,” he said. “That’s what we’re worried about. We’re worried about a manufacturing company coming in that is highly dependent on hazardous material.”

Speaking in favor of the rezoning, Colorado Sen. Kevin Priola, who represents District 13, including parts of Adams and Weld counties, and who has a career in real estate, said he respects the concerns of residents but noted that “these are long-term, good-paying jobs.

“Failing to adopt the PD tonight will ensure blighted conditions persist at the site and will also send a strong message that Brighton is not open for business. We learned the lesson from the 1980s that a diversified economy, having many industries that are forward-technology, high-paying is the way to benefit our community.”

Councilmembers opted to proceed with the rezoning, with the margin of approval increasing from Sept. 5.

Councilmember Ann Taddeo, who voted against the rezoning on Sept. 5, voted in favor of the rezoning Tuesday. She told BizWest in an interview Wednesday that she changed her mind after rewatching the Sept. 5 hearing and becoming reassured about certain issues.

“I’m barely on one side or the other, let me tell you,” Taddeo said. “I was a ‘no’ at the beginning because I didn’t completely understand some of the issues, one being that the place can already store hazardous materials, and the rezoning will actually help to make it safer, in my opinion because they’re going to put in all kinds of safeguards.

“At the time, I made my decision with my heart and not with my head because I was listening to the residents,” she added. “Because I voted ‘yes’ doesn’t mean that I don’t care about them. But I feel like, if we’re weighing pros and cons, last week, I felt like the pros didn’t outweigh the cons, and after getting clarification on some things, I rewatched the meetings, watched the presentations again and felt like a ‘yes’ vote was the right decision for the city, and for the residents, really. It was a very tough decision.”

In a statement emailed to BizWest, Amprius expressed gratitude to the City Council and staff “for all their work and efforts on this rezoning. We also thank those who submitted letters of support and spoke in favor of the rezoning at planning commission and city council meetings. 

“We look forward to repurposing a significant portion of the state’s largest single-story industrial building and transform it from a warehouse into a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility,” the statement continued. “We recognize that there are some neighbors who have concerns about living near our facility. We will continue to address their questions and work to earn their trust.  We will maintain open communications and transparency with the community throughout the entire project construction and manufacturing process.”

Amprius said the first phase of the project would constitute an investment of $190 million, “with more phases to follow.”

“We plan to partner with local tech schools, colleges and universities for worker recruitment and will focus on hiring locally first. We have already discussed partnership with school district 27J and Brighton High School to support their high school STEM programs.  

Amprius said construction is anticipated to start in 2023, with equipment move-in and hiring to occur in 2024 and production beginning in 2025.