Longmont City Council refers 310-unit townhome development to annexation review process
Mar. 27—The Longmont City Council referred an 18.6-acre property at 8902 Quail Road into the city's annexation review process during its regular session Tuesday.
The land, which is made up of four parcels, is located on the south side of Quail Road in unincorporated Boulder County. It is north of Clover Basin Drive, west of South Fordham Street and east of Airport Road within a county enclave in the southwest region of the city.
The applicant has submitted a concept plan for the property that includes a 310-unit townhome development and amenity space, according to a staff memo.
The council did not vote on the actual annexation agreement or concept plan. Instead, it voted 5-1 to simply allow the annexation process to move forward.
Councilmember Diane Crist cast the lone "no" vote, and Councilmember Shiquita Yarbrough was not in attendance Tuesday.
"I know this is surrounded by development," Crist said. "But, sometimes an open field and some open spaces are very important to the play activities of the children in that area and that type of play leads to a lot of development ... for young individuals."
Longmont Principal Planner Jennifer Hewett-Apperson said that the submitted plan was very conceptual and largely for informational purposes.
"The exact road connections are still being worked out," Hewett-Apperson told the council. "Traffic studies have not yet been reviewed by the city. Those would be part of the formal application."
As part of the annexation process, the proposal needs to go before the Longmont Planning and Zoning Commission as well as the City Council. A neighborhood meeting will also need to occur.
A timeline for those public hearings has not yet been determined.
The property, which is currently zoned for agricultural use in unincorporated Boulder County, has three single-family homes, two barns and two sheds on it.
Information as to whether or not the existing structures would remain intact, should the annexation agreement and subsequent development ultimately be approved, was not available. Hewett-Apperson indicated they would probably not remain on the property.
Vista Residential Partners, which is headquartered in Atlanta and has a regional office in Denver, is the project's developer.
The development team did not present to the council during Tuesday's meeting, as that will occur later in the annexation review process.
The requested zoning for the property, should it be annexed into the city, is "Residential — Mixed Neighborhood," which allows attached residential units at densities ranging from six to 18 units per acre.
An attached residential townhome development with 310 units on 18.6 acres amounts to roughly 16.6 units per acre.
