A rezoning proposal for a massive mixed-use development on the western side of the Greeley, Colorado has won the initial approval of the Greeley City Council.
The Cheyenne, Wyoming-based Edwards Development, in a planned unit development proposal, wants to build what could be around 5,800 residential units on some 822 acres currently made up of farmland.
The project, which will go up south of U.S. Route 34, east of Weld County Road 17, and to the west of Colorado State Highway 257, would also see the building of commercial and industrial space.
The commercial and industrial portions of the project would be built near the roadways bordering the site.
Edwards Development, which for more than four decades has been a subdivision developer, additionally plans to create designated open spaces and parks at the huge site as well as walking trails. It is expected that around 141 acres of the site will be given over to open spaces and parks.
The residential units themselves are expected to be everything from single and multi-family structures, we well as duplexes and townhomes. According to city documents, the residential units will comprise 421 acres of the site.
Plans for a school, which would be a part of the Johnstown-Milliken Re-5J School District, have also been announced for the site.
The LAI Design Group, based in Englewood, has signed on as the architect and planner for the project, while the Lone Tree-based CWC Consulting Group is providing civil engineering and surveying services.
An objection to the proposal has been raised by two oil and gas exploration companies claiming that there is a coal formation underneath the site in question.
A second hearing by the city council is expected to be held in the months to come, with an emphasis on public input.
If finally approved, the large development would be partly responding to Greeley and larger Weld County’s double-digit population growth in the last two decades.
By Garry Boulard
