What was once a car dealership on Havana Street is now an idle piece of property waiting to be repurposed. But city officials say the building, and others like it, won’t be redeveloped unless they update their zoning rules.
Vacant building space is not uncommon in Aurora; it’s a product of the tumultuous economy and the city’s self-proclaimed cumbersome zoning rules.
City officials on April 30 proposed a new zoning district that would make it easier for developers to construct multi-use developments that could combine commercial, residential and retail endeavors. The new Sustainable Infill and Redevelopment Zone District doesn’t require developers to complete a cumbersome General Development Plan, which could save them thousands of dollars.
Aurora City Council members are slated to formally vote on the new zoning district in June.
Currently, the city’s zoning districts prohibit developers from finding more creative uses for an empty building, said Gayle Jetchick, president of the Havana Business Improvement District.
“We’re retail-saturated, and the fact that you can only replace retail with retail and you can’t have other uses really limits what you can do,” she said.
Jetchick participated in a working group that launched about a year ago and included small business owners, developers, and people with real estate backgrounds.
Developers on the working group talked about recreating the Fletcher Plaza area on East Colfax Avenue to include artist studios and housing.
One developer knew of a business owner who wanted to open a shop that made and sold hand made rocking chairs, but under the current zoning ordinances, that business would have to be located in the industrial zone.
Other ideas included a craft beer brewery and trade school, said Jetchick. The new zoning district would be a significant improvement over current zoning standards for the developers and the community, she said.
“It’s a way to help revitalize the city, rather than keep building farther and farther out,” she said. She’d like to eventually see bungalow-style houses in the northern area of the city where artists live and also have studios, and that would only be able to happen if the zoning districts were changed.
“That might encourage more art tours up through the area,” she said.
Under the proposed new zoning district, a developer would be able to repurpose the old empty Saturn dealership on Havana Street for less money, and there would be fewer restrictions in terms of city regulations, said Councilwoman Molly Markert.
“I think that’s a beautiful structure and we can talk about it in terms of how we can repurpose it, divide it up, make it more usable as a tax- paying entity along Havana instead of just making it a vacant eyesore,” she said.
In an effort to encourage infill development and redevelopment, the new SIR zoning district would allow for more creativity in the development process. It would also put less restrictive rules on developers. For example, it promotes the reuse of existing buildings but doesn’t require reuse, it doesn’t require specific height and setback limitations, and asks for sufficient parking without specifying the required amounts.
“The theory behind it is to remove some of the administrative obstacles and some of the costs,” said Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan.
The new zoning district would also allow administrative review of site plans without requiring public hearings.
“It’s to make it easier for somebody to come in and rehab a piece of property or a building,” Hogan said. “It fits with the efforts that have been going on related to helping make the city more business and development friendly.”
Developers would also save money if the zoning district was approved because they wouldn’t be required to complete a General Development Plan. That normally costs more than $200,000, said Bob Watkins, director of Planning and Development Services for the city.
A site plan would still have to be completed by the developer, however.
“We hope it will provide places that will be attractive, places where our residents and folks in the neighborhoods want to go shop and go to restaurants,” Watkins said. “We hope it’s the kind of place that maybe the young, educated employees at Fitzsimons might want to live in.”
Watkins already has some areas in mind that could be developed under the new SIR zoning district: the shopping center on East Mississippi Avenue and Peoria Street, and the one at South Chambers Road and East Alameda Avenue.
Watkins said property values will increase near those areas if multi-use development occurs.
Duane Senn, a longtime Aurora resident and former chief surveyor for the city, said he’s been pushing for this type of new zoning district for about three decades.
“I think it’s going to help give developers a boost,” he said, “because there are tons of smaller areas that really aren’t economically feasible to go after when you have to jump through all the hoops the city has placed.”
Reach reporter Sara Castellanos at 720-449-9036 or sara@aurorasentinel.com.