Fort Collins continues quest to improve North College

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

Rivers have formed boundaries between tribes, territories and countries for thousands of years. Within cities, rivers can also create divisions, and despite modern transportation they can be difficult barriers to cross.

Fort Collins is no exception. The Poudre River runs through the north part of the city, and people seem to agree that it creates a psychological barrier between two very different retail areas. South of the river is Old Town, with its martini bars and gift shops. North of the Poudre are car lots, various kinds of automotive businesses, restaurants and other small businesses, in addition to the Albertson's Shopping Center.

It's not just a matter of perception, said city planner Clark Mapes. The North College corridor lacks basics such as a drainage system, street gutters and driveways.

"It's hard to have curb appeal when you have no curbs," he said.

North College needs about $70 million in infrastructure improvements, including the replacement of aging and obsolete utilities, to bring it up to the standards of the rest of the city.

Fort Collins wants to improve the North College corridor, and it has embarked on an effort to combine city and private resources to accomplish that goal. A year ago, Fort Collins formed the North College Urban Renewal Plan, a framework for allowing the city to help private businesses with infrastructure needs. Using what's called tax increment financing, the city can borrow against future property and sales taxes in order to make infrastructure improvements.

Mapes pointed to Valley Steel & Wire Co., a business on West Hickory Street, as an excellent example of how the Urban Renewal Plan and TIF can benefit the area. The business wanted to expand, but one of the requirements was to install an expensive sewer line on Hickory Street. The Urban Renewal Authority stepped forward and, using TIF, installed the sewer line itself.

"We installed a missing piece of infrastructure that can now serve other developments," Mapes noted.

Mapes said there are four or five other requests for similar improvements in the works.

In addition, the city is hoping the Building on Basics ballot issue will pass, since one of its provisions is improvements to North College Avenue.

Most recently, Fort Collins completed a market analysis for the North College area, to determine what kinds of businesses are most feasible for the area and should be supported by the city.

Consultant PMG Associates presented its findings in late September. The company found that the North College corridor could support three to five more family restaurants, two to four apparel shops, one more large grocery store, and businesses including outdoor goods, home improvement, personal services and general merchandise.

PMG recommended putting a limit on the number of businesses involving outdoor storage and auto sales and service, since those tend to pull down property values in the area.

Ways to improve the aesthetics of North College include enforcing requirements for landscaping, facades and setbacks, according to Phil Gonot of PMG. "There's too much asphalt now," he said.

More housing developments in the north part of the city are part of the formula for strengthening the market in the corridor. PMG estimates that there is a potential for 4,000 additional housing units in the area over the next 10 years. One new housing development is now under construction, northeast of the College and Vine intersection. The Dry Creek Drainage Basin Master Plan, which will eventually remove some North College properties from the flood plain, is also an important component in redeveloping the area, Mapes said.

Gonot noted that although city officials want to improve the North College sector, they do not plan to take people's property or remove mobile homes now in the area. "The market will correct the situation" in terms of removing dilapidated buildings, he said.

Edward Zdenek, president of ZTI Group Development, owns commercial property just north of the Poudre River. He said there are "many opportunities" for improving the North College corridor if the city and the private sector can work together. However, he said, the city will have to provide incentives if it wants developers to upgrade property or to construct new, high-end buildings.

"The cost of developing is the same, on North College or South College," he said, but there is a big difference in what people are willing to pay for rent. If the city subsidizes developers on North College, Zdenek said, rents and property values will rise along the corridor over time.