Hudson, Lochbuie reach tentative agreement in BNSF annexation battles

HUDSON & LOCHBUIE — The months-long tug-of-war between Hudson and Lochbuie fighting over control of the BNSF Railway Co. intermodal facility and logistics park, as well as surrounding future land development, is expected come to an end this week.

Leaders from both towns believe they have hammered out an agreement that could benefit both communities as BNSF moves forward. Lochbuie Town Board members will discuss the settlement agreement at their regular meeting on Tuesday, and the Hudson Town Board will discuss the settlement at its meeting on Wednesday.

BNSF has planned an intermodal facility that would allow for transfer of freight between trucks and railroad cars, as well as an adjacent logistics park that could accommodate 20 million square feet of development on a total of 2,400 acres off Interstate 76 between Hudson and Lochbuie, northeast of Denver. The railroad has an existing relationship with Hudson over the separate Logistics Center Hudson, a 430-acre development on Hudson’s north side.

But BNSF applied to Lochbuie for annexation of the intermodal facility, and Hudson and Lochbuie both initiated annexation proceedings for other parcels around the planned development. Some of the annexations overlapped in terms of rights of way, leading to annexation litigation for the past several months.

According to an agreement forged from court-ordered mediation in August, both towns will drop lawsuits against each other over competing annexations or challenging each other’s annexations.

The agreement delineates specific areas for available annexations between the two towns, and initiates some cost-sharing agreements over traffic impacts.

“WCR 45 south of the southern edge of the intersection of WCR 45 and WCR 8 will be located within Lochbuie’s jurisdictional boundaries. WCR 45 north of the southern edge of WCR 8, to include the street intersection of WCR 8 and WCR 45, will be within Hudson’s jurisdictional boundaries. Hudson will control WCR 8 from I-76 east to the eastern edge of the intersection of WCR 8 and WCR 45,” the agreement states.

While Lochbuie will keep the BNSF annexation into its town; Hudson will get a one-time payment up to $250,000 from Lochbuie once BNSF pays $1 million in taxes to Lochbuie “for the adverse impacts caused by the BNSF project.” The agreement also calls for an annual 50-50 cost-sharing on the maintenance of a traffic signal at Weld County Roads 8 and 45, and annual road maintenance.

“Lochbuie will annually financially assist Hudson with its WCR 8 (from the eastern edge of WCR 45 west to I-76) and WCR 45 (north of the southern edge of WCR 8) roadway maintenance costs that are directly proportional to traffic impacts generated by the BNSF-owned Intermodal Facility and Logistics Park at such time as such BNSF-related traffic impacts are realized and there are revenues generated to Lochbuie from the BNSF development to pay such costs,” the agreement states.

Additionally, if annexation requests are made to either city in a joint planning area, both towns will seek consent from the opposing town before moving forward, according to the agreement. Both towns have agreed to work out conflicts between BNSF’s annexations into Lochbuie and Hudson’s Ranchos East and West annexations. Likewise, Hudson will not annex the Sack property.

Town administrators Bryce Lange from Hudson and A.J. Euckert from Lochbuie both declined to comment on the settlement before their town boards could discuss it.