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Fort
Collins — Colorado’s
own version of Tomorrowland is moving through the
planning process in Fort Collins.
With seed money of about $30 million, developer Lloyd Goff and his
investment partners hope to transform 50
city blocks on the north side of town into a $1 billion research
campus similar to Los Alamos,
N.M., and a mixed-use village
with housing for 12,000.
The crown jewel of the
development would be a guided transport system a la Disneyland.
“Fort Collins
has a strong residential market already,” Goff said. “Where they are weak is
in the commercial offerings. Pair that with the high intellectual capacity of
Fort Collins,
and this is the perfect time for a development like this.”
Goff would like the research campus to focus on reducing America’s
dependence on foreign oil. Proposed areas of next-generation infrastructure
research include transport, robotics, conservation, renewable energy, water
recycling and automation.
“The Department of Energy
predicts it will take several trillions of dollars to find alternatives to
foreign oil,” Goff said.
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“If this development captures even a
fraction of the money, it will have a major economic impact on the community
of Fort Collins.”
Goff estimates that the completed
project will generate $6 million in annual revenues and nearly $2 million just in property
taxes within the 150 acres
in Airpark Village.
“If it is completed as
planned, this will be a substantial project for the city,” said Pete Wray,
senior planner with the City of Fort
Collins. “This type of development could serve as a
focal point for growth along the Mulberry corridor.” Mulberry Street runs along the northernmost
border of the city and is primarily industrial. For the purposes of this
project, the corridor was rezoned as an employment district.
The new zoning designation allows for more than million square feet of mixed
uses, including residential, office, hotel, retail, labs, restaurants,
medical, clubs, industrial and other commercial uses.
To maximize the space, Goff’s housing plans focus
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on
vertical options such as townhouses that have ground-floor commercial with
residential units above.
“We want to stack up housing instead of spreading it out like you see in a
lot of typical developments,” he said. The initial plans for the development
show “multiple mixed uses all snuggled up next to one main road,” he said.
“Envision everything built on one linear corridor about the length from
Broadway (in Denver)
to the railroad tracks beyond Union Station.”
House hunters who visit Airpark Village’s web page will feel as though
they are being recruited for a bold new mission. “We’re building a community
for the new creative class,” Goff said.
“Scientists, teachers and
others in the research infrastructure need a collaborative environment. It’s
not like the old days when a guy invented the telephone by himself in a back
shop.”
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In addition to the
scientific community, Goff expects the development to attract baby boomers
who want to keep learning. He is exploring the possibility of assisted-living
facilities that include recreation and entertainment areas, food service and
access to the public transportation system. Retirees would also have access
to some of the most up-to-date research facilities available.
Perhaps the most innovative amenity will be the guided transport system. A
group of former Disney engineers who built the original monorails at Disneyland
and Disney World have designed a simple system that would be integrated into
the Airpark Village development. “The plan is to
prove the system’s effectiveness and sell it as a model of how well
automation can work,” Goff said. “Ultimately this type of transport could
serve as a backbone of transport that could go anywhere.”
Although Goff has been in talks with the city for more than two years, his
vision is still a ways from reality.
Airpark Village developers have completed the
purchase of the 150-acre Community Airpark and are slowly moving through the
planning process.
“We recognize the need for industrial uses in this area,” Wray said. “But
this type of development would create a whole different kind of hub for the
city.”
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