Chronicle Parker
Parker 10-4-2013
Douglas County, Colorado • Volume 11, Issue 49
RUNNING STRONG
October 4, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourparkernews.com
Council to decide on land proposal Homes, retail could be built near Stroh Ranch By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ourcoloradonews.com
Highlands Ranch defensive back Jordan Reliford, left, tries to stop Chaparral wide receiver Nolan Ellis. Chaparral took an 18-17 Continental League win over Highlands Ranch on Sept. 27 at Shea Stadium. Find more coverage on page 25. Photo by Paul DiSalvo
Apartments might bump plans for retail Proposal eyes northeast corner of Parker Road, Cottonwood Drive By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ourcoloradonews.com As many as 900 apartments and 40,000 square feet of commercial space could be built on a highly visible, undeveloped property near E-470 and South Parker Road. The owner of 46 acres of land on the northeast corner of South Parker Road and Cottonwood Drive, just north of Costco, earned a recommendation for approval from the Parker Planning Commission Sept. 26 on an amendment to overhaul the original plan for Vantage Point. Edward K. Fitzpatrick, the landowner and executive vice president of the Shopoff Group, is asking the town to reduce the amount of previously approved commercial space from approximately 280,000 square feet and 306 residential units to roughly 40,000 square feet of commercial uses and 900 apartment units. The planning commission recommended 5-0 that Parker Town Council approve the amendment. Council will consider the proposal during a meeting at 7 p.m. Oct. 21 at town hall. StackLot Development Services and the Stanton Group, who are representing the project on behalf of the Shopoff Group, said the “weak market for commercial at the moment” puts an emphasis on the need for residential development to create a population to support the planned commercial uses within Crown Point, an area that includes Parker Adventist Hospital. According to the proposal, “it would be unwise to attempt to duplicate the overwhelming amount of commercial area within Crown Point.” “Land use is all a balance,” Fitzpatrick said. “I’ve seen it before in other locations:
The Parker Planning Commission recommended approval of an amendment to Vantage Point, a proposed development on the northeast corner of South Parker Road and Cottonwood Drive that includes up to 900 apartments and 40,000 square feet of retail. Photo by Chris Michlewicz There’s too much retail land available and it’s not supported by enough rooftops nearby.” The Shopoff Group is a real estate venture capital and investment firm. The company’s mission, as stated on its website’s home page, is “creating wealth through real estate investing.” Multifamily housing would occupy 26 acres, at 22.5 units per acre, while the commercial components would be reduced to 6.5 acres. Roughly 12 acres of park space is required, but with town council’s approval, the developer could dedicate park land elsewhere in Parker or pay an “in lieu fee per acre.” Although the E-470 Character Area allows for a higher intensity of uses, and is likely where Parker’s skyline will take shape, the proposed project is adjacent to the Valley Hi subdivision, with homes on one-acre lots. The Town of Parker’s senior
planner on the project, Patrick Mulready, said there initially was no response from the neighbors when they were asked in March to comment on the proposal. “History tells me this will be a controversial request. I was not satisfied by the fact we didn’t get a response from this, so I instructed the applicants to have a neighborhood meeting with them,” Mulready said. Valley Hi residents are concerned with traffic, noise and building heights, which would be capped at 45 feet. At least three homes on Valley Hi Drive are up for sale. Bryce Matthews, comprehensive planning manager for the town, said singlefamily detached residences are not recommended in the E-470 Character Area, but the applicant can use single-family homes as a transition between the proposed multifamily uses and the large lot residential to the north.
Parker Town Council will consider a change in plans for property on the town’s southern boundary as nearby homeowners worry about the potential impacts of a proposed project on the land. The Parker Planning Commission voted 4-0 on Sept. 12, recommending that council approve an amendment to the Stroh Crossing Planned Development that would swap out commercial uses for single-family homes. The property on the northeast corner of South Parker Road and Stroh Road has been marked for development since the early 2000s, and favorable market conditions are prompting the latest request. The planning commission said the amendment request meets the nine criteria required for approval, and pointed out that specific concerns from neighbors can be addressed during future hearings. The PD amendment does not give the goahead for construction to take place, but rather sets the stage for such development in the future. Parker Town Council is scheduled to decide on the land use proposal at 7 p.m. Oct. 7 at town hall. Bill Lundell, president of the Butterfield Homeowners Association, said there are several outstanding points of contention and neighbors’ concerns are not being heard. “Everyone who lives in Butterfield is not from Parker,” Lundell said, referring to the rural-residential subdivision’s position in unincorporated Douglas County. “They couldn’t care less about us. It’s 80 homes they have no interest in dealing with.” Butterfield residents are worried about an increase in vehicle traffic on Stroh Road, as well as an old agreement to designate open space that they say is not being honored. An annexation agreement between the former landowner and the Town of Parker stipulated that an open space parcel be dedicated to the town upon approval of a plat, a document that determines the location of development on the property. However, a plat was never recorded because the previous project did not go forward, and there are no plans to dedicate that open space to the town with the current proposal. That open space was shown on the town’s master plan map, Lundell said. Another 13-acre parcel of open space will remain. During his comments to the planning commission, Lundell said he tried to “explain that the open space plan in Parker is something they should respect. The people of Parker have come to take open space very seriously.”
Land continues on Page 27
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