FAQs
Articulate the community’s shared desires for how the area will grow and change in the future.
Signal to developers what types of development opportunities are available and what the city and community desires.
Can be used as a marketing or economic development tool for attracting desired development.
Provide context and direction for zoning and development standards and a measure against which to review proposals.
Provide context and direction for infrastructure planning and budgeting to support anticipated development.
Support and strengthen grant funding applications.
Fitzsimons-Colfax and 13th Avenue Station Area Plan (updated plan)
Colfax and 13th Avenue Station Urban Renewal Plan (new plan)
Why are a vision and plan important?
Cities create plans to meet the future needs of residents, businesses and visitors. Some plans, like the city’s comprehensive plan, describe the city’s overall long-term goals, community vision, and policy priorities, while others address specific topics, like housing, parks or transportation. Plans like the Fitzsimons-Colfax and 13th Avenue Station plans address multiple topics for a smaller, specific area within the city.
A vision describes a future condition or goal, while the plan outlines the reasons why and how this future will be pursued and realized. A community vision and plan:
What is urban renewal?
Urban renewal creates great places, revitalizes neighborhoods and spurs economic development, resulting in new housing choices, shopping and dining destinations, and business relocation opportunities. The Aurora Urban Renewal Authority administers and implements the city's urban renewal area plans, which the Aurora City Council has approved.
An urban renewal area is an area that has met the criteria for blight and has been publicly declared as blighted and appropriate for urban renewal, per the Colorado State Urban Renewal law. It is typically identified as an area targeted for redevelopment.
“Tax Increment Financing” (“TIF”) is often used to finance redevelopment projects in urban renewal areas. TIF allows a local authority to leverage taxes to help finance redevelopment projects, such as infrastructure and environmental cleanup.
For additional information, visit the city’s Urban Renewal / Redevelopment website.
Why are two plans being developed for one area?
The city intends to use a single planning and community engagement process to update or create two plans:
The station area plan portion of the project will update the 2009 Fitzsimons-Colfax and 13th Avenue Station Area Plan. This updated plan will reflect recently adopted citywide plans and policies, as well as consider new input from residents, business owners, and other stakeholder who currently live, work, shop or travel within the area.
The updated station area plan will serve as the foundation for creating an urban renewal plan for the area. The adoption of an urban renewal plan will allow the city to use “tax increment financing” (“TIF”) to fund important public infrastructure that supports new development and investment in the area.