WHEAT RIDGE, Colo. — A 100-acre former hospital campus has been boarded up and closed near W. 38th Avenue and N. Lutheran Parkway in Wheat Ridge. The Lutheran Medical Campus moved, leaving behind a sizable footprint.
So, what's next for it?
"They were going to put this property up for sale right away. Our community development director met with them and asked them to do a master planning process to determine how this campus could redevelop in the future," said Wheat Ridge City Manager Patrick Goff.
According to the city, more than 1,200 residents participated in surveys and meetings over the course of several months before a master plan was finalized in 2021.
Kim Calomino, a homeowner a few blocks from the property, said she was in one of the first groups of neighbors invited to give feedback.
"There was some excitement about, 'Gosh, what can we do? How much open space can we have? Can we have parks?'" she said. "There were concerns about, you know, gosh, so many people — what's that going to be like?"
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They had wishlists that were "yards long" and also questions about traffic, she continued.
Recently, the city council unanimously approved a rezoning of the 100-acre property with specific requirements based on community feedback.
One requirement is that any new homes built on the perimeter — that would be near existing neighborhoods — must be single family homes no higher than 30 feet tall. That's 5 feet shorter than the height requirements of current Wheat Ridge single family homes in the area.
It also requires any new buyer to save 20% of the property for open space and to preserve two historic buildings on the property.
Toward the middle of the property, taller multi-family housing units are allowed, per the zoning. Voters approved that particular piece in November, agreeing to housing up to five stories tall.
"Affordable housing in the state is hard to come by, and we want to make sure that we're providing choices for our residents — people that want to live here," Goff said. "I don't think we have one police officer that lives in Wheat Ridge right now, because they cannot afford it."
The city said they would like to see a diverse range of housing types that can support a diverse range of income types.
"This is a great town, and we should be welcoming and enthusiastic about more diverse housing options, more diverse people," Calomino said. "We don't want something, you know, towering over us. We don't want something destroying our neighborhood feel. The answer to that was, 'OK, we will say only this kind of housing, and only so tall — less tall than the homes you have, so you have that sense of buffering. Twenty acres of open space. That's a lot of open space, and it can be used in so many ways, parks and trails and just green space. I think those are the two great things: the open space and the housing."
The land, still owned by Intermountain Health, has not yet been sold to a developer. According to the city, those negotiations could be wrapping up around the fall of 2025.
"When a new developer comes on board, they will meet with all the surrounding neighborhoods to make sure that they're informed on what's happening," Goff said.
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