HomeMy WebLinkAbout1992 Resolution No. 053RE SO LUTION NO . _5,}
SE RI ES OF I 992
INTRODUCED BY COUNC IL MF.MBERS
HABENICHT AND VANDYKE
A RE SOl,UTION RATIFYI NG TIIE STRATEGIC PLAN FOR THE SANTA n ; DRIVE
AREA AS PREPARED BY THE TR I-CITY PLANN ING GROUP .
WHEREAS, th e Tri-City Planning Group is a coope rativ e effo rt of the Cities of
Englewood, Littleton, nnd Sheridon Lo pion for imp rovement.s olong Snot.a Fe Drive : nnd
WHEREAS, the Tri -C ity Plannin g Group ha s developed nnd approved a Strategic Pinn
fo r Santo Fe Orl\•e Arcn whi ch addresses business development, imnce ond aesthetics;
nnd
WHEREAS, t'1e Strntebsc Pi nn wns prepn red with the participation of re pr ese ntntive s of
the Cily Councils, th e Plnnninc Com mi ssio n s, and t h e stnffs of the three Cities, ond
represent.utives of businesses, land owners, acencies, r esidents, and other s interested in
the future of the aren: nnd
12 a t
WHEREAS. ratification of this Strategic Pinn mean s that th e City Council co ncu r s with
the strategies and priorities cont.nincd in the Pinn a nd will consider active pnrticipalion in
future programs to implement the plan : nnd
WHEREA , th e City Co un cil of the City of Englewood , Colorado, recognizes that there are
co mmon issues ond co n ce rns which ore more effective ly addressed by s uch n cooperative
effort:
NOW. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCI L OF THE CIT Y OF
ENGLE\ •OD, CO LORADO, THAT :
Sfdi.gn_1. Th e Strategic Pinn for th e Santa Fe Drive Ar ea, as adopted by the Tri -City
P\nnning Group, on Mo rch 4, 1992 is hereby ratifi ed: nnd the Group is encouraged to
continue its p\nnning efforts by prepnring programs for implementation of the Pl an for
considcrntion by the City Council.
ADOPTED A:-ID APPROVED this 6th doy of Ap ril, 1992 .
ATTE T ·
I . Patn c11 11 'rO\\, City Cl erk fo r lhC' ('1ty of Englewood, Coloracio. hc•rC'hy ct'rl ify
tt,t· :1hO\'<• 1, ;1 trut· l'tip~ of Ht·~olut 1011 ~o ~. !'-it•nt•:, of 1992
4iu«A,rl'I ~
Pritn crn IL Cro w
STRATEGIC PLAN
for the
SANT A FE DRIVE AREA
Prepared by the Tri-City Planning Group.
A joint project of the Cities of Englewood,
Littleton, and Sheridan.
March S , 1992
Tony Chacon
Senior Planner
Li11leton
Jim Chambers
TRI-CllY PLANNING GROUP
Cliff Mueller
Council member
Sheridan
Tom Palmer
Econom ic Devel opme nt Specialist
Public Service Company
City Admini strator
Sheridan
Lloyd Covens
Planning Commissioner
Englewood
Deborah Foster
Councilmcmbcr
Littleton
Steve Ferris
Building Offici al
Sheridan
Roger Fraser
City Manager
Eng lewood
Alex Habenicht
Council member
Englewood
Charles Herm an
Cou ncil me mb er
Sherid an
Lind a Martin
Deput y City Manager
Englewood
Andy McMi nimee
City ~tanager
Liulcton
Pam Pepper
Economic Development Administrator
Englewood
Joe Racine
Director of Community Development
Littleton
Dennis Reynolds
Councilmember
Littleton
Roger Shoop
Planning Commissioner
Englewood
Dal e Stephens
Planning Commissioner
Littl eton
Harold Still
Neighborhood Services Admini strator
Englewood
Su sa n Ya n Dyke
Councilmember
En glewood
Jacque Wedd ing-Sco11
Economic Deve lopment Director
Sheri dan
I TRODUCTION:
Formed by City officials of Englewood, Littleton, and Sheridan in early 1991, the Tri-City
Planning Group has met regularly to address problems along Santa Fe Dri ve which are seen
to be common to the three communities. The first year of efforts has culminated in thi s
strategic plan which addresses iss ues which were identified to be of the highest priority .
Strategic planning is a dynamic process which identifies internal and external factors
affecting the area, sets re alis tic goals, prioritizes stra tegi es for achieving those goals, and
converts the strategies into action . It is an ongoi ng process which continually evaluates
it self, and is alw ays open to new ideas from all persons and organizations affected by
changes .
MISSION STATEMENT:
As an early step in the planning effort , the group prepa r~d a mission statement as an overall
representation of the group's purpose . Key to the statement are the notions that there arc
issues and attributes which are common to all three communities , and that there is a
common interest in improving the area accor ding to a jointly held vision .
• 'Reco gnizing tile assets which the thre e communities share, ihe Tri-City Committee
will develop a vision and pl an to improve the areas along Santa Fe Drive and the
Platte Ri ver."
ANALYSIS:
The group performed an internal review of the area's strengths and weaknesses, and
identified opportuni ti es and thr eats which may affect the future . General objectives to be
accomplished or "strategi es" are intend ed 10: 'build on st rengths , overcome weaknesses,
exploit opportunities, and blunt threats '.
Strengths:
Mountain view s
Reg iona l attra ctio n
Medica l ind us try
Cinde re lla Cit y/Man in Mariella
Co mm uni ties recog ni ze the problems
Locatio n in so uth central metro area
Strong indus tr ial base
Strong /dive rse local economy
Active Chamhers of Commerce/Service Organizations
Climate
People
Market
Golf course/Other re creation
Good educational facilities
Access in all directions
Proximity to Denver City Center
Town Hall Arts Center
History/culture/character
We work well together
Sewer capacity
Infrastructure capacity
Connectivity to Denver and the Tech Center
Population and work force density/diversity
Highway Improvements
Land use diversity
Improved economic development activities
Complimentary, support businesses
Emergency services
Railroad
Platte River
Weaknesses:
Visual appearance of much of the corridor
Costs of making physical improvements
Lack of vegetation
Mult.iple utility districts
Location of the railroad
Bad image of Santa Fe
Limited accessibility to certain parcels
Regional access / Access to airport
Limited land use opportuniti es
Environ me nt al dama ge
Lack of kno wled ge a bout uti liti es
In fras tructure ca pacity in places
Water ava ilabilit y/future
Lack of avai lab le vacant bui ldings in the
30,000 le 50 ,000 sq. ft. sizes
Inabi lity of existing businesses to expand on sit e
Traffic now
Construction of Sa nta Fe -uncer tain sc hedule
2
Opport unities:
Lar ge parcel s of land in th e south corr id or
Exis ting av ai lable vacant small buildin gs
Rail ro ad
Enterpri se zon e
Bike tra il /Oth er recr ea tio n
Op en space/n atura l are as
Pl atte River
Sant a Fe as tr ansport atio n corr ido r
Light rail/transit po ss ibilities
Riverfront
Col orado Department of Transportation
Businesses wanting to eltJ)and and stay local
Variety of low cost housing in the area
Availability and potential of job training
Thre ats:
CDOT • Scheduling/Uncertainty
Established businesses
Governmental regul ations
Cost of land
Time may not be right for economic expansion
Uncert ain defense contra cts
STRATEGIC GOAL AREAS AND STRATEGIES:
In ord er to con centrate earl y effort s on th e high est pri oritie s, th e group decide d th at three
iss ues or "goal areas" be the initial pl anni ng fo cu s: Bu sine ss Deve lopme nt; Im age; and
Ae sth eti cs. Draft strategi es were formed in ea ch goal area . A "s tra tegy" is a gene ra l
objecti ve rathe r th an a speci fi c wo rk progra m item. It is a di rec tio n upon whic h wo rk
progra ms or "a ct ion items" ca n be for mula ted. Th ese strate gie s were th en pre sent ed to
stake holders fo r their co mm ent s. Fe edb ack from participati ng stake hold ers wa s
inco rp ora ted int o th e fi nal pl an and int o dra ft actio n it ems .
BUSIN ESS DEVE LOPM ENT
"Plan and standardi ze gove mmelll re1,~1/ar io11S ro improve busin ess
opponw1it ies."
Eac h ju ri sdic tion has its own se t of regu lations, cove ring sig ns,
zoni ng, subdiv isio n, landscap ing, busi ness licens in g, an tl taxes,
th at has a corre sponding imp act on bu sin es s deve lopm ent
wit hin the corrido r. Throu gh stand ard iza tio n of re gu lati on
req uirement s and opti on s can more qu ickly be commun ica ted
to bu sine ss by which to make a decision . Further, by
streamlinin g reg ul ati on, "so ft " cos ts to the busine ss man ca n be
mi nimize d.
"Im pro ve accessib ili ty to business reso urc es."
Existing re sourc es and opportunities for networ ki ng abound for
the local busin ess , from chambers of co mm erce to fin anci al
institutions to local government economic development
programs to business networks . Yet, there is no readily evident
coordinated effort to support and reach out to business . Every
effort has to be made to provide support in a comprehensive
and convenient mann er.
"Address retention and relocation of busitress to remain in the
three city area. •
As Santa Fe Drive is improved and bus iness needs change ,
bv.:;ine sses will have more and more pressure to relocate, either
lo a new lo ca tion or on the existing site , or expand. It is in the
in tere st of th ree cities to provide as much opportunity as
possib le fo r th e bus in ess to rem ain in the same ge neral location .
As such it is e>:tre mely critical that the local governm ent reach
out and assis t such bu sine ss es to di scour age th em from leavin g
the tri-c ity area .
• IMAG E
"Creat e a theme for physical improveme 11 s. ·•
Coordinated effo rt to de sig n an aesth etic ima ge fo r the co rr ido r tha t can be
used in mark et ing the cor rido r in the metro area, stat e wid e, and nationa ll y
for econo mic deve lopmen t whe n cons tructi on is completed an d open fo r
bu sin ess.
"Improve appearance of public highway improvemellls according to a theme."
"Develop an advertising program to convey the theme metro-wide." "Incorporate
the th eme into public and private signage."
Work with the COOT, the railroad, the RID, and South Suburban Parks and
Recreation on landscaping along the ROWs, medians, and retaining walls .
Uniform signalization (masted arm) and undergrounding PSCo and U.S. West
line s. Po ssibly create a character as a directional and information symbo l to
be used throughout the construction period and for advertising the area for
later de velop ment .
AESTIIETICS
"Prepare a list of short tenn projects."
There are many inexpensive, short term projects which can make an early,
positive impact on the corridor . Part of the process should be io identify
these projects for early implementation .
"Define and protect view corrido~ within the study are~"
The study area contains views of both the mountains and of the river .
Recognizing and protecting these features is critical to the development and
enhancement of a positive im age of the study area.
"Pro vide for rhe coordination of design J°,!atures in th e study area."
A coordinated and consist ent general design theme is an integral pan of the
development of an upgraded image for the study area. The three Cities plan
10 work together to establi sh th is ge neral de sig n them e and to develop
individual implementation pl ans consistent with each City 's spe cialize d needs.
"Improve rli e appearan ce of th e ra ilroad."
The rail road is one of th e predomina nt features of the study :i rea. It s "look "
con tribute · significantly to the image of the study area. Th erefore, a program
of making p'lsitive use of thi s feature will be develop ed.
"Improve the design of proposed highway projects.·
Concerns of urea re sidents and businesses included both th e apparent lack of
aesthetic concern by COOT in their plans for the Santa Fe improvements and
problems with access to properties along the road .,ftcr construction . It was
felt th at it was not too late to make changes in the plans 10 be11er address
these concerns.
ACT ION PLAN:
A se parate plan will be produced which assesses available resources and lists specific work
prog,ams or action items which will carry out each of the strategies.
STAKEHOLDERS:
Pe rson s and organizations which have a stake in the future of the area are important to a
successful planning process . Initially, the commiuee intends to make opportunities available
10 the following list of "stakeholders" as a means of obtaining ideas for improving the plan .
Businesses
Property Owners
Citizens
COOT
Rai lro ads
RTO
OR CO G
Cl,umbers of Comme rce
S.Suburban Board of Realtors
S.Suburbao P & R District
Ci ty Councils
Commute rs
Transportation industry
Salvage yards
6
Hugh M. Woods
Pace
Residents (mobile home parks)
Industry
School di stricts
Utility Companies
Banks
Corps. of Engineers
Tri-County health
EPA
Urban Drain ag e
Workforce