Turbines like these will be seen on the
Eastern Plains thanks to the vision of
the voters of Colorado.
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On Oct. 19, the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) rejected a proposal by the State Land Board that would have paved the way for development of the publicly held land on the former Lowry Bombing Range.
Environment Colorado opposes the proposal because it would violate the Denver metro area’s urban growth boundary and threaten wildlife habitat in the range.
“The land in the Lowry Bombing Range was set aside to protect open space and wildlife habitat,” noted Pam Kiely, Environment Colorado’s land use associate. “Allowing development here would threaten habitat in the area and encourage sprawl.”
Urban Growth Boundary
The urban growth boundary (UGB) is an important element of MetroVision 2030, the master planning document that guides development in the Denver metropolitan area.
Specifically, the urban growth boundary
sets limitations for new development,
with the intent of encouraging smart growth throughout the region.
“The urban growth boundary is an essential policy for encouraging smart growth in the Denver area,” said Will Coyne, Environment Colorado’s environmental
advocate.
“As a result of this regional agreement to promote smart growth, Denver area local governments will protect more open space and build more livable communities.”
The urban growth boundary was created
with the original MetroVision plan in 1997. To come up with the boundary, DRCOG asked cities how much space they would need over the next 25 years and conducted modeling
based on growth rates and other factors.
DRCOG’s modeling showed that the region could limit growth to 750 square miles if individual local governments promoted smart growth.
The 750 square mile limit will be significantly less than the 1,100 square miles each municipality would grow without regulations.
The growth boundary’s first test
The development at the Lowry Bombing
Range is the first test of the UGB.
“Development of the range is clearly outside the growth allocation and contrary to many MetroVision goals,” stated Kiely. “We will continue working
to ensure that growth follows MetroVision’s intent.”
Authorizing or enabling development in areas outside of the urban growth boundary is a slippery slope; future cooperation and the success of MetroVision
depend on defending the principles it was based on.
Not only could this development be the death knell for MetroVision’s UGB which took years of cooperation and energy to create, but the development does not even serve a pressing need for a new urban center.
The initial document released by the State Land Board in late August of 2002 outlining the Vision Process for the Lowry Range highlighted a number of challenges.
Of significance was the panel’s acknowledgement
that “the existing inventory of undeveloped lands within the Denver Metro area, and within the DRCOG 2020 (urban growth) Boundary,
will likely serve future development
and land use needs for the next 20 years.”
Dangers to the ecosystem
Even though current plans only call for initial development of a small tract of land in the northwest corner of the bombing range, Environment Colorado is demonstrating that this will significantly affect the overall ecosystem of the Lowry area.
The area was placed in the Stewardship
Trust to be managed in a way that protects its natural characteristics.
When nominating the portion of Lowry north of Quincy Ave (the site slated for development) for inclusion in the trust, the land was cited as also being an “integral part of the ecosystem
south of Quincy.”
Senac Creek and Coal Creek meet on this land, and provide a corridor critical
for wildlife habitat that exemplifies the type of cottonwood-willow riparian systems that are characteristic of river flood plains in the high plains.
It is an unusual ecosystem, represented on only 3 percent of land area in the West. Almost 220 different bird species in Colorado, as well as five types of amphibians, 10 reptiles, and 43 mammals
rely on this habitat.
Short-grass prairie ecosystems rely on large, contiguous, undeveloped tracts.
Lowry development will also have significant implications for regional transportation and development of water resources.
Many questions need to be answered and Land Board planning documents actually confirm these fears. The Urban Land Institute outlines water resources, site cleanup and environmental
impacts as the biggest concerns in promoting development.
Despite the initial victory at DRCOG, the fight to protect the open space at the Lowry Bombing Range is not over. The State Land Board continues to pursue development and another proposal
is expected this summer. |
