former colorado football stadium site plan may result in smaller housing component

Plans continue to advance for the redevelopment of the 165-acre Hughes Stadium site in west Fort Collins.

That 34,000-seat facility, which for four decades served as the home to the Colorado State University Rams, was demolished in the spring of 2018 after the school built a larger stadium on its Fort Collins campus.

Since the demolition of the structure, school officials, along with Fort Collins leaders and area residents, have been working - and sometimes arguing - over the site’s future.

Earlier this year, CSU’s Board of Governors voted to see the site redeveloped as a subdivision that would allow for the construction of up to seven hundred new homes.

In subsequent public meetings, area residents expressed concerns regarding the density of the redevelopment, as well as the amount of traffic it would generate, and its impact on area wildlife.

Now the city staff of Fort Collins is considering a rezoning of a portion of the Hughes site that would allow for up to four different styles of houses, but would ultimately reduce the overall number of homes.

The proposed rezoning would additionally allow for the construction of a neighborhood center.

The reduction in the actual number of homes, according to city officials, is particularly in response to resident demands for more open and green space at the site.

But that lower number may prompt developer Lennar Homes, which earlier this year signed a contract with Colorado State University to build a minimum of six hundred homes, to exit the project.

The city’s Planning and Zoning board is expected to make a decision regarding the rezoning question when it meets in late September.

More than 4,300 people have so far signed a petition calling for a “more sustainable, community-friendly alternative” to the proposed redevelopment plan.

By Garry Boulard

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