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OPINION – Red Tail Ridge: “The 50 Million Dollar Question”
OPINION – Red Tail Ridge: “The 50 Million Dollar Question”
August 15, 2020
----by Chris Wheeler, a Louisville photojournalist and producer of more than 30 Visitor Center films for the National Park Service.
----by Chris Wheeler, a Louisville photojournalist and producer of more than 30 Visitor Center films for the National Park Service.
Of all the questions raised about a Denver developer’s bid to build a small city within our town, one stands above the rest: “Why doesn’t the City of Louisville just purchase the land and turn it into open space?”
The question is usually asked with a degree of exasperation, a reflection of the growing frustration many in Louisville have with the proposal to turn the old StorageTek land into a massive development. Brue Baukol Capital Partners is under contract to purchase the 389-acre land they call “Redtail Ridge” from its current owner, oil titan Phillips66. On Tuesday evening, City Council will decide whether it should amend Louisville’s Comprehensive Plan and give Brue Baukol the green light to proceed with the project.
During this process, it seems like we have largely skipped the public discussion about whether Redtail Ridge is good for Louisville and fast-forwarded to the extreme outcome submitted by Brue Baukol. Compromise and creative solutions have been absent in this conversation. That’s because the citizens of Louisville have been in the unenviable position of responding to the “all or nothing” terms of Brue Baukol.
Here are terms: the developer will turn the private land into a 5.8 million square foot development consisting of commercial, residential and office space. And on the site, Brue Baukol is requesting more than twice the currently allowed square footage. To gain leverage in negotiations, Brue Baukol is planning to make Medtronic, the medical device-making Fortune 500 Company, the anchor commercial tenant. Medtronic has a large office in Louisville and is threatening to leave town if the Redtail Ridge development is not approved. Many fear the 20-year construction project will bring more traffic, noise, pollution and sprawl. The biggest concern, however, is that the construction of the development some are calling “Broomville” will impact the small town feel residents of Louisville treasure.
The price tag for the 389-acre vacant land is said to be in the neighborhood of $50 million, although the actual purchase price for Brue Baukol is a closely-guarded secret. The answer to “the $50 million question” about the City purchasing the land is complex. In the end, it comes down to one word: money.
The Phillips66 property has been fendced and gated since 2009.
The City of Louisville has a strong commitment to acquiring and preserving open space within and surrounding our town. Eight members of our community serve on the Open Space Advisory Board (OSAB), which is charged with advising City Council and City staff. Since the 1970s, the results have been wildly successful. Our town is now surrounded by approximately 700 acres of open space. Places like Davidson Mesa and Warembourg Open Space strongly contribute to the values that make Louisville a wonderful place to live. Rest assured, the Open Space Advisory Board has our back.
So how does the City determine what open space to target for acquisition? The OSAB identifies potential open space lands, then evaluates them using a ranking system that consists of 22 categories like “Wildlife Habitat,” “Threat of Development,” “Recreational Potential,” etc. Once the category rankings are totaled, the open space candidates are ranked by number. In 2017, the western parcel of the Bennett property at Highway 42 and 96th Street was ranked 1st, followed by the Newbold Property, also at Highway 42 and 96th Street.
So how did the Phillips66 property rank? “Actually quite high,” says Graeme Patterson, who served on the Open Space Advisory Board from 2015 to 2017. The OSAB divided the 389-acre Phillips66 lands into seven separate parcels ranging in size from 9 to 228 acres. Three of the Phillips66 parcels ranked 3rd, 4th and 5th out of 36 candidates.
Because of its sheer size, Graeme ranked the Phillips66 lands “high” for acquisition. “It is an impacted site and does not have the highest current conservation value,” said Graeme. “But given its scale, it would be a real opportunity to practice some grassland/prairie restoration to accelerate and enhance the natural processes already happening.”
Brue Baukol’s own biological assessment shows more than 140 acres of active prairie dog towns plus habitat for tree-nesting migratory bird species, including bald eagles and other raptors. Last week, volunteer naturalist Tamar Krantz observed more than 20 native plant species on the perimeter of the Phillips66 land. (See “Manifest Destiny at Redtail Ridge.”)
So we now know that the Phillips66 lands have been considered by the Open Space Advisory Board. But what about other city officials?
Public documents reveal that the Phillips66/StorageTek property was high on the radar of then councilmember Ashley Stolzmann. In 2017, the now Mayor Stolzmann attended a June meeting of the Open Space Advisory Board and inquired about the possibility of the City purchasing the Phillips66 lands.
“She [Ms. Stolzmann] thinks the City could think of creative ways to fund it, such as a voter-approved bond or regional partners.
She thinks it’s not a crazy idea to consider buying the land, but she needs guidance on how it could work. She thinks citizens would be in favor of it.”
- June 2017 OSAB Meeting Minutes
So why did Ashley Stolzmann’s idea not get traction? The answer comes down to dollars and cents. Or lack there of.
In 2017, the City partnered with Boulder County and the City of Lafayette to purchase another open space, the 200-acre Mayhoffer property just east of downtown. The price was $8.5 million. Boulder County paid half; the cities of Louisville and Lafayette each paid $2,063,947. Those numbers work within the city’s budget for purchasing open space. $50 million is simply out of reach.
“It was beyond the ability of the City to allocate those funds,” believes Graeme. He says the Phillips66 property was not a higher priority for the City because “it was not realistic for the City to consider purchasing.”
Our state’s wildfires create eerie skies over the Phillips66 property.
On the other hand, Brue Baukol Capital Partners has the resources to find that kind of money. Their website describes Brue Baukol as “a private equity commercial real estate firm to acquire real estate, multi-family properties and operating businesses.” In other words, exactly what they are proposing for Redtail Ridge.
Brue Baukol is in the business of raising huge sums of cash through partnerships and investors. Michael Eisenstein, owner of Louisville-based Land Management LLC, says Brue Baukol collects “institutional money” – hedge funds, pensions funds, insurance companies and so on. There is no way a small municipality like Louisville can compete against such corporate wealth. It is sort of like one of our small businesses on Main Street going toe to toe with Amazon.
Brue Baukol may have the deep pockets but City Council has something money cannot buy. To accommodate 1,326 senior living rental units and 900 rental apartments, Brue Baukol is requesting that the City change the designation of the Phillips66 land from rural to suburban. “Suburban” means that residential property can be built. It’s a key component of the Brue Baukol plan. Without residential, Brue Baukol says there is no deal. City Council is expected to vote “yea” or “nay” on Tuesday evening.
Louisville City Council has the power of “no.” And real negotiating power. Graeme thinks Council has plenty of options with the Redtail Ridge proposal. “I think it is realistic for Council to ask Brue Baukol to add more open space to their plan,” he says.
And what about other options, the kind of creative thinking that Ashley Stolzmann mentioned in the June 2017 OSAB Meeting? No matter where you stand on Redtail Ridge, almost all in Louisville understand the value Medtronic brings to our community. Can City Council ask Brue Baukol to come up with a plan that creates a home for Medtronic but also creates substantially more open space for the community? Can the City of Louisville form partnerships (ex. Mayhoffer properties) with other government entities to purchase one of the parcels of Phillips66 land? And what about a ballot issue, as Mayor Stolzmann suggested three years ago? Is that an option in 2021?
Graeme Patterson has on out of the box idea. “The [Phillips66] site could support a modest herd of 25-30 bison,” he says. Graeme is the former Director of Conservation for the Denver Zoo. During his time there, the Denver Zoo helped manage the bison herd just off I-70 in Genesee. “They would be a attraction in themselves but also would play a huge role in ecosystem restoration – the bison are incredible engineers,” Graeme says.
Graeme’s idea is indicative of the smart, creative problem-solving power in our community. Brue Baukol’s plan needs a healthy dose of innovation. Their predictable, tired idea for Redtail Ridge is nothing different from other developments creating sprawl along the Boulder Turnpike corridor. Many in our town long for an approach that reflects environmental values of the 21st century. They hope for something more visionary in our post COVID-19 world. Louisville deserves better than what Brue Baukol is proposing.
The problem thus far in this confounding process is that everything has been on Brue Baukol’s terms. Those terms mean exploiting almost all of the 389 acres, noise, pollution, more traffic, and very little open space. Many citizens in Louisville are upset because they feel their voices have not been heard.
Tuesday night is an opportunity for City Council to control the narrative and represent the people of Louisville. It time for the real negotiation to begin. It’s time for dollars and sense.
This is the sixth in a series of stories. Please bookmark this website or contact us for updates.
Fifth in the Series: OPINION – Redtail Ridge: Fragile Fragments by Chris Wheeler
Fourth in the Series: OPINION – Manifest Destiny at Redtail Ridge
Third in the Series: OPINION – “No on Redtail Ridge”
Second in the Series: THE PROPOSED REDTAIL RIDGE-– Wisdom from Monarch High
First in the Series: THE PROPOSED REDTAIL RIDGE--Through the Lens of Another Developer
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