Arapahoe County weighs Strasburg 2050 plan for growth, infrastructure and open space
The proposed update would guide land use, transportation, utilities and development boundaries in the Strasburg area through 2050.
Arapahoe County commissioners were scheduled Tuesday to consider adopting the Strasburg 2050 Subarea Plan, a 20- to 25-year policy guide for development and infrastructure in the eastern county area around Strasburg.
The update would replace the area plan first adopted in 2002. County materials say subarea plans provide more detailed land-use guidance for unincorporated areas. The Strasburg draft addresses land use and housing, East Colfax Avenue design, transportation, economic development, community identity, parks and open space.
The draft would steer most residential and commercial growth into the planning area while preserving agricultural land outside it. It adds a recreation-commercial category for tourism and active-recreation uses, expands mixed use along East Colfax Avenue and caps that mixed-use area at 14 dwelling units per acre. It also adds language on drainageway protection and calls for commercial buildings to face East Colfax in one mixed-use area.
The plan also addresses transportation and utilities. It calls for trail connections linking Bennett, Strasburg and Byers, coordination with the Colorado Department of Transportation on infrastructure improvements, and possible public or utility sites for water, wastewater and other services.
Concerns in the planning record focused on infrastructure and environmental impacts. Referral comments summarized in the Planning Commission review said Arapahoe County Public Health urged evaluation of water and wastewater capacity, while Colorado Parks and Wildlife raised concerns about trail development and wildlife impacts. Staff said the draft was revised in response, and the Planning Commission voted 7-0 to recommend adoption.
The public record reviewed here did not include the board's final action, so it is not possible to confirm from the available sources whether commissioners approved, amended or delayed the plan. If adopted, the plan would set the policy framework for future zoning, subdivision and infrastructure decisions in the Strasburg area rather than approve a specific project.