AURORA | The groundwork for further revamping of the area east of Town Center at Aurora — with plans for a central ribbon of businesses, housing and roads between Interstate 225 and South Chambers Road — has been laid.
Aurora City Council unanimously approved the City Center Station Area Plan at a Nov. 23 regular meeting. The plan outlines the long-term standards and expectations for the regions surrounding transit-oriented development areas, including new zoning regulations and green space regulations intended to spur development, according to Mindy Parnes, interim planning manager for the city and staff source for the initiative.
Shifting to a more pedestrian- and bike-friendly approach is a critical component of the plan, with proposals for a bike lane along Sable Boulevard and an underground pedestrian walkway to connect the north and side sides of Alameda Avenue at Sable as evidence of the changing development mentality.
City Center was Aurora’s first urban renewal area established in 1982, and its first district to exceed the state-sanctioned 25-year tax-increment financing (TIF) clock, according to Andrea Amonick, manager of the city’s development services division. She said a second urban renewal district at City Center was established in 2009.
At the same meeting, council members also approved plans to create three new TIFs in the area during a public hearing. According to city documents, those TIFs will encompass the land just west of East Alameda Drive, between East Centrepoint Drive and East Alameda Avenue.
City council members also approved removing one TIF area from the plan east of South Chambers Road and East Alameda Parkway.
Arapahoe County Commissioner Nancy Jackson spoke in opposition to the TIFs, as well as a city agenda issue concerning urban renewal at the Old Fan Fare site on Havana Street, during a public hearing.
“We are asking that we have a seat at the table as we go forward,” Jackson said. “Most of our tax comes from commercial development.” Jackson said Arapahoe County has some of the lowest property taxes in the state for a relatively urban area.
The Regional Transportation District’s forthcoming 10.5-mile light rail line, which will begin making stops at seven new Aurora transit stations late next year, will allow riders to step onto the grounds of the Aurora Municipal Center or shop at the adjacent retail strips just moments after stepping off the train. That enhanced access has ignited the city’s efforts to double down on the City Center improvements.
Parnes said at a study session earlier in the evening, the updates to the plan will allow all businesses located within a mile of the new RTD to rezone to transit-oriented development if they so desire.
— Aurora Sentinel Staff Reporter Quincy Snowdon contributed to this story.
The City of Aurora can never get its hands on enough money to feed the public trough.
you ever attend a council meeting? or budget meeting??
Yes.
And… What are you getting at Joe? The city’s budget barely accounts for a third.. what feeding are you referring to? that usually is handled at the county, state, or federal level.