AURORA | Aurora lawmakers are poised to complete designating 109 acres and a light-rail station near the Fitzsimons campus as blighted in an effort to win grants to create infrastructure for housing and business developments.
The January blight designation by the Aurora Urban Renewal Authority, made up of city council members, focuses primarily on the Tollgate Creek area north of the medical campus, but includes the RTD light-rail station at East Colfax Avenue, according to city planners.
A lack of sidewalks, pedestrians being required to cross high-speed light rail tracks, homeless encampments, graffiti, illegal dumping, crime, asbestos in the soil, multiple environmental spills were among reasons given for the blight declaration, according to city urban renewal records.
The proposed $8 million urban renewal plan would support the extension of Dillon Way and construction of a bridge over Tollgate Creek, addressing long-standing development infrastructure deficiencies in the corridor, officials said.
Aurora has already secured two, $2 million grants from Colorado’s Department of Local Affairs to fund infrastructure improvements in the Fitzsimons-Colfax and 13th Avenue Station area. The grants, awarded in April and July 2024, require local matches of $350,000 and $583,000.
The city hopes to use grants and other funds to extend Dillon Way and construct a multimodal bridge over Toll Gate Creek, paving the way for more than 900 workforce and mixed-income housing units near the 13th Avenue RTD station.
Infrastructure costs are estimated at $8 million, with the grants covering about half. To bridge the funding gap, the Aurora Urban Renewal Authority would loan the city up to $5 million, to be repaid through some kind of a tax-increment financing district over 25 years.
Any additional costs could be covered by Bach Homes, a Florida-based home developer of adjacent properties, according to city planning documents.
In a study session Jan. 27, council reviewed the findings of a newly commissioned blight study for the East Colfax 13th Avenue Station RTD Light Rail Corridor along Toll Gate Creek.
Blight Factor: Unsanitary or Unsafe Conditions is present.
The study, conducted by Matrix Environmental in late 2024, was commissioned to update a 2019 assessment that had previously declared the area blighted and suitable for urban renewal. The recent analysis confirms that significant blight factors persist, meeting the legal threshold required for redevelopment under Colorado’s Urban Renewal Law.
The 108.5-acre study area spans Adams and Arapahoe counties, including five parcels in Adams County and 18 in Arapahoe County. The area includes an RTD bus depot, light rail platforms, a Park-n-Ride lot, commercial properties, Interstate 225, Toll Gate Creek and vacant land.
“The city has long-envisioned the transformation of 13th Avenue Station into a multifaceted neighborhood with diverse transit-oriented housing choices,” the study said.
There are 12 factors that can qualify an area as blighted, and only five are required for eminent domain, according to the study.
According to the report, six key indicators of blight affect the area:
- Defective or inadequate street layout
- Faulty lot layout related to size, adequacy, and accessibility
- Unsanitary or unsafe conditions
- Inadequate public infrastructure or utilities
- Environmental contamination
- High levels of municipal services required due to vacancy or underutilization
The study said that these conditions make the area eligible for urban renewal programs, including the creation of a Tax Increment Financing District, a taxing district that can generate revenue to pay for public infrastructure projects.
City Council has scheduled a public hearing and vote to finalize blight designation details at a March 10 city council meeting.
If the blight designation is approved, city staff will negotiate intergovernmental agreements with taxing jurisdictions and finalize an urban renewal plan, setting the stage for redevelopment efforts in the 13th Avenue/Colfax Station area. A timeline for funding, tax district creation and breaking ground on construction weren’t specified.