AURORA, Colo. — Homeowners in Aurora's Harmony neighborhood are speaking out against a proposed development they say does not fit the needs of their growing neighborhood.
The All in One Harmony commercial site would sit on the corner of E. Alameda Avenue and S. Powhatan Road — with site plans including a convenience store, fueling center, liquor store and restaurant.
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"This is a nice quiet community. It's gonna just ruin it, you know," homeowner Virang Desai said.
Residents say the far east Aurora neighborhood already has gas stations nearby but lacks basic amenities like grocery stores and coffee shops. The closest grocery store is in Denver's Green Valley Ranch neighborhood.
"We have to drive down to Southlands Mall to get closest to [shopping and other amenities]," homeowner Mark Saxelby said. "I believe it's about 13 miles."
Saxelby said he would like to see the empty parcel of land used for something that better serves the community as far east Aurora continues to grow.
“It’s a bedroom community. It's where people are usually lights out by 9:30, you know, up early, kids getting to bed, and we just don't need an environment like that here in this neighborhood,” Saxelby said.
Last month, the city's Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously approved the All in One Harmony site plan.
The applicant, Aurora resident Manraj Singh, made his case to the commission during the May 13 meeting.
"It's not a gas station, it's the future of convenience stores," Singh said.
Singh said the project was shaped by community input gathered during months of back and forth between city leaders and homeowners. The commission had initially tabled the project in January over unaddressed public concerns, prompting a neighborhood meeting where Singh met directly with homeowners.
"I designed the store specifically for what the community wanted. The products, the tenants," Singh said.
Still, some residents remain concerned about crime and environmental impacts.
Homeowner Virang Desai said his experience in the industry shapes his worry.
"I'm a past owner of gas station liquor store. I got held up twice at gunpoint," Desai said.
Homeowner Arvin Martinez echoed those concerns.
"I understand good competition and availability, but we don't need that here because there's enough of that already available. It doesn't fit into what we need," Martinez said. “Something should be done about the number of gas stations that are opening in Aurora.”
Harmony homeowners have also started a petition with close to 800 signatures opposing the development.
Because of those concerns, city leaders voted to call up the site plans during the Aurora City Council meeting on Monday, July 27.
A call up triggers a new public hearing where council can uphold, modify, or overturn the planning commission's original decision.
Under the city's development ordinance, any council member can move to call up a development application for council review. This gives council authority to approve, approve with conditions, modify, reverse, or send the application back to the planning commission with new direction.
Residents urged city council members to listen to their concerns as they revisited the application.
"I hope that Mayor Coffman and the rest [of city council] really listens to what we want," Saxelby said.
After more than an hour of public hearing and discussion Monday, city leaders rejected All in One Harmony's conditional use plans for a fueling center — a major component of the overall site plan.
Aurora City Council members unanimously voted to send the site plan back to the planning and zoning commission to figure out next steps.
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