News-Press DOUGLAS CO 1/24/13
Castle Rock
Douglas County, Colorado • Volume 10, Issue 44
Urban renewal on radar for town
January 24, 2013
Free
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourcastlerocknews.com
MOVING ON
Council OKs study; blight finding required By Rhonda Moore
rmoore@ourcoloradonews.com Castle Rock Town Council approved a study to determine whether the town can qualify for an urban renewal authority, which requires a finding of blight for final approval. The council took a step in that direction Jan. 15 by ordering a study to determine whether Castle Rock can qualify for an urban renewal authority, which would require a finding of blight. If the study identifies blight, councilmembers could consider establishing a URA to encourage economic development. Frank Gray, president of the Castle Rock Economic Development Council, reported in late 2012 that Castle Rock needs more office and warehouse real estate to attact major employers. Real estate experts say a URA could trigger commercial construction the town would otherwise never see. Opponents of the measure say it will be another layer of government at taxpayer expense. The issue will be debated in the months to come. URAs were established by Colorado lawmakers in 1958 to support areas that were distressed by blight and slums. A URA allows the guiding board to declare an area blighted and, working with the base property tax rate the year the URA is established, dedicates increases in the property taxes to the authority. The URA revenue, called Tax Increment Financing, is statutorily dedicated to public improvements aimed to support private development, Gray said. “At its core it’s a financing tool,” Gray said. “It funnels money to the URA to pay for public infrastructure. The money goes to build roads, grading, sewer, environmental mitigation. This is a tool to bring infrastructure to the table.” The idea for a URA came to the table via property owners interested in developing property faced with high-dollar pre-development costs, Gray said. Among the issues on vacant lots in Castle Rock are environmental impacts from historical dumps, grading expenses on properties with topographical issues and limitations that prevent access to the properties, he said. The cost of mitigating the issues can reach the millions, effectively pushing the property out of competition in the real estate market before a shovel hits the ground. “These are problems that aren’t going to go away with time,” Gray said. “At its core the URA is created because this ground has some sort of difficulty or challenge Urban continues on Page 11
Eagle Academy graduate Sommer Hinkley cheers Jan. 17 during the commencement exercise at Rock Canyon High School. “Eagle kids are some of the hardest-working people you will ever meet,” Hinkley said during her graduation speech. Friends, family members and teachers celebrated the program’s 29 graduates — some teenagers with full-time jobs, others young parents, and all students who can’t or chose not to attend Douglas County’s traditional high schools. Instead, Eagle Academy’s 120 students report to Highlands Ranch High School from 3:15 to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday. Photo by Courtney Kuhlen
Roxborough Water eyes plant replacement District offers customers options for payment By Rhonda Moore
rmoore@ourcoloradonews. com The Roxborough Water and Sanitation District has begun the process to build a new water treatment plant, before catastrophe strikes. The Roxborough water treatment plant, at more than 50 years old, has lasted beyond the end of its useful life and, according to the district board, it’s not a matter of whether disaster will strike, it’s a matter of when. The district is waiting to hear from its customers who must decide how to pay for a new facility, estimated to cost as much as $23 million. The new plant will replace the one purchased in 1972 from Aurora Water, according to the district. The existing plant was built in 1958 and refurbished at the time of the purchase. It has outlasted its expected 30-year lifespan by about 20 years, according to the district board. The aged facility has sustained structural failures, fallen victim to corrosion and deterioration and must be replaced before a “catastrophic structural failure” occurs and shuts down operations, said Larry Moore, district manager. Completion of a new facility will cap a long-term water plan that ensures delivery of water to Roxborough residents for the
next 100 years, he said. Moore was instrumental in reaching a 2010 deal with Aurora Water to get water to Roxborough residents in what Moore calls the most comprehensive, sustainable water plan in Douglas County. Roxborough signed a 99year lease with Aurora to buy into the Aurora system for $22.3 million, securing water to serve Roxborough’s build-out population of 3,800 units. The deal does not let Roxborough sell water outside its boundaries, which means the plant will not be designed to serve residents in surrounding neighborhoods, including the proposed Sterling Ranch development, Moore said. With long-term water secured, construction of a new plant is the final phase to place Roxborough in the right position to protect property values years into the future, Moore said. “This has been my life’s goal to get this water deal done,” he said. “Once we get this (plant) done the only thing we have left is to (maintain) pipes in the ground. We’re a complete community for water and sewer.” A video tour of the existing water treatment facility is on the district website, showcasing the deteriorating condition of the existing plant. The district announced its plans in 2012 and in December sent a questionnaire to customers asking them to select one of three payment options for financing the new plant. Among the options are a $20 monthly hike in water rates, beginning in March or April,
Larry Moore, district manager for Roxborough Water and Sanitation, points out one of the deteriorating areas inside the Roxborough water treatment plant Jan. 16. The plant was built in 1958, and despite patches and repairs, it needs to be replaced, according to Moore. Photo by Courtney Kuhlen which would allow the board to move forward with design and financing in the first quarter of 2013; a $10 fee, which would
double to $20 by 2014 and delay the start of construction by about 12 months; or a $5 fee Water continues on Page 11