Downtown River Corridor Planning

Just north of Old Town, the Poudre River cuts diagonally through the heart of Fort Collins. Over the years, the area on the southern riverbank has been transformed from the original Old Fort Collins military encampment, to a residential neighborhood, to the railroad-era industrial district we see today. And this function has certainly seen better days. Much discussion over many years has brought about the skeleton of a plan to redevelop the area in ways that benefit all residents of Fort Collins. And thankfully, a good economic climate is now fueling efforts to get projects underway.

First and foremost, the City Planning Office has initiated a project to survey the architectural, historical, and archaeological resources in this Old Fort Site. Timothy Wilder brought together a large group of property owners and other stakeholders with interest in the site. He was successful in obtaining a Certified Local Government grant from the SHF which he is matching with city funds to produce an extensive survey. Overlay maps and information for interpretive site improvements are also planned. At press time, the process of hiring a consultant for the 18 month project is underway. Our president, Karen Joslin, is working with Timothy on behalf of the many historic interests as member of the 5 person Project Team.

Concurrently, the Poudre River Trust held a River Planning Forum with over 40 participants. These groups ranged from the Sierra Club to the City Transportation Director and everyone in between. Rheba Massey and Karen Joslin attended and participated in the focus group on economic development. This effort was much appreciated by everyone involved and seems to have spurred the formation of the promised River Team by the city.

Another result has been the invitation of Rheba and Karen to attend the monthly Downtown River Task Force meetings held by the Chamber of Commerce. This is a similar group of invitees but with the added involvement of local business members of the Chamber. We are all working toward a way to combine our visions of just what the downtown river corridor should be.

All this activity sparked the delineation of our own HFCDC Vision for "The Fort". We worked hard on drawings and written guidelines which have been adopted formally as our own vision to promote and support whenever possible. (Additional thanks to Jim White and Craig Kelly for for their time and effort.)