Fort Collins eyes 'agri-urban' future

In the northeast corner of Fort Collins, beyond where most think the city ends, lies an opportunity, as officials describe it: 1,300 acres of "blank-slate land" that today serves as a throwback to the area's agricultural roots.

It's also the city's last, best option for major development, an area eyed by housing advocates, commercial developers and industrial interest. It starts at the northeast corner of Vine Drive and Timberline Road and stretches to near the Budweiser plant about 2 miles away as the crow flies. The space encompasses almost 3,000 acres, but the city of Fort Collins isn't interested in building up the whole swatch.

And that's kind of the point.

Cameron Gloss, planning manager for the city of Fort Collins, described a vision for the area at a Tuesday presentation to City Council as a "living corridor," where housing and employment uses are pierced by "fingers of open space." Or, in another word, the entire vision is one of an "agri-urban" development to make use of some of the last remaining real estate in the city's growth management area while paying homage to the city's roots.

"This is really the final frontier in Fort Collins," Gloss said, adding that it represents a "huge opportunity for future housing growth."

The area may be the final frontier, but it's far from unexplored; the city has had some kind of plan for the area, dubbed Mountain Vista, since 1999. The city's vision for it has bounced between full-rural and full-development before city leaders started looking at melding the two ideas.

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Gloss is quick to note that the reconfigured space doesn't lose any of the employment or housing possibilities that has made city officials so interested in the development.

"How often does that happen in a city that's growing out?" City Councilmember Gino Campana asked at the work session, adding the "blank slate" comment. He also warned that market pressures may soon come to bear on the land.

"The window could close quickly," he said, adding that "I love the direction it's going."

That's ultimately the challenge Gloss and city staff face: It's privately-owned land, and the city is not a developer. So how to coax an eventual developer into the vision presented?

Gloss lays out two scenarios: Establish guidelines, or suggestions, for developing the area and creating specific rules for the area, such as through an overlay zone. Right now, feelings from council have staff leaning toward using guidelines.

"There may be a lot of value of just providing a lot of good examples on how to preserve open lands in any development," he said.

Developments like this are complex, and complexity typically means cost. As a result, "very few developers have pulled this off," Gloss said.

"(Developer's the city has spoken to are) saying 'we can agree with the vision,'" Gloss said. "But it still comes down to, how do we accomplish the vision? Say you're a developer: How do you ensure it's financially feasible to build in this pattern?"

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There is no solid timeline from the city on when these plans may be finalized, or how the city can offer carrots to entice developers into buying in. As it stands now, it's still a vision, albeit one with the support of many on the city council.

"It would really make for a distinctive part of the city," Mayor Wade Troxell said.

Mountain Vista vitals

Acres: 3,000

What's there: Budweiser brewery on 986 acres in the northeast section; various housing developments. Poudre School District owns land that could be developed into a future school campus.

Capacity: City plans say the area will include roughly 26,600 employees and 9,500 households when fully developed, based on existing zoning.

Features: City planners envision an area with its own economic, recreational and residential centers, preserving open space while offering opportunities for urban gardening, affordable housing development and other city priorities.

Source: City of Fort Collins

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This story has a correction: A photo caption misidentified the direction the of the farmland relative to the Anheuser-Busch plant. The land in question is west of the brewery.