Developers along ‘E-25’ await results of studies

A vision for commercial development along the east side of Interstate 25 may move forward by 2007 if two studies go as planned.

One study will determine the best way to drain storm water in the area. The other study, sponsored by the Colorado Department of Transportation, will project future interchange additions and improvements along I-25.

The vision for commercial development comes from a group of six landowners, organized under the name “E-25 Property Owners.” They have been working with the city of Fort Collins to economically develop a mile-and-a-half stretch of land east of I-25 between Vine Drive and Prospect Road.

The group hasn’t drawn up any plans for the 400 acres, but they have compared what they want to do to the Denver Tech Center, Centerra and Flatirons, only on a smaller scale.

“I consider this to be an extremely significant process for the city of Fort Collins,´ said Les Kaplan, one of the landowners and a former city planning director who has developed residential and commercial projects in Windsor and Fort Collins. “This will send Fort Collins into the marketplace.”

The landowners say the recent completion of the Shops at Centerra in Loveland have drawn sales tax revenue away from Fort Collins. They also say commercial development for the city is even more important since Alabama-based Bayer Properties Inc., abandoned plans to build a lifestyle retail center on East Harmony Road. The developer is seeking approval from city council in January for a zoning change on the property to allow it to proceed with plans for a “large-format” regional shopping center.

Drainage study

The first steps to development are the two studies already under way. The storm water drainage study, expected to be done by March or April, is sponsored by the Boxelder Creek Storm Water Regional Alliance. The alliance consists of the E-25 property owners, residents and community leaders from Fort Collins, Timnath, Windsor and Wellington.

The study is examining how to resolve potential flooding issues along Boxelder Creek, which starts in Wyoming and flows into the Poudre River south of Prospect Road, and Cooper Slough, a tributary of Boxelder Creek.

“We need to figure out how to control the flood flow or we won’t be able to develop that area at all,´ said Dave White, a Denver real estate developer who, along with his brother, Rick, owns 129 acres of the land.

A Fort Collins master plan completed in 2004 estimated that a 100-year storm, or a flood projected to occur every 100 years, would cause $23 million in damage to roads and structures that already exist along Boxelder Creek.

To mitigate the damage, options could include building one or more reservoirs upstream, building culverts where Boxelder Creek crosses several roads and making channel improvements to the creek, White said.

CDOT study

The state transportation department study, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2006, will establish a plan for long-term improvements to I-25 from Longmont to the Wyoming border. Those improvements could include new or upgraded interchanges, widening the interstate and rapid transit.

“Any changes to the Fort Collins interchanges could assist in economic development,” White said. “What we’re interested in is if there are improvements to be made, where would they be located and how would they be paid for?”

After the studies are completed, the city of Fort Collins and the landowners can move forward to develop specific plans for the area, including annexation of the portion of the land that currently isn’t in city limits.

White said development won’t happen next year, but Kaplan said it could occur as early as 2007.

“We have to get the floodplain and transportation issues resolved, then we can plan, then we can develop,” White said. “With the studies, we’re taking a great big step in the right direction.”

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