Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Midtown Centennial topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Centennial council reviews implementation plan to make Midtown a new neighborhood
Summary
City staff outlined a long-term implementation strategy for Midtown Centennial focusing on land-use tools, public realm standards, infrastructure studies and potential governing authorities including a downtown development authority and urban renewal tools.
David King, senior planner in the City of Centennial's economic development department, briefed the council on implementation steps for the city's Midtown vision, emphasizing that change will occur over multiple development cycles and will require coordinated land-use updates, infrastructure studies and partnerships with regional service providers.
King said Midtown's vision builds on Centennial Next, the city's comprehensive plan and strategic plan goals for economic vitality and transportation. He described two implementation categories: land use and city policies. Land-use steps include a Midtown subarea plan, amendments to the land development code and additions to the recently adopted Midtown Centennial Overlay District (which currently focuses on building height and parking screening along I‑25). King also identified potential design standards, tree-preservation work and specific studies for water quality, detention, transportation and utility capacity.
On the operations side, King described options for creating a governing and funding authority for Midtown: a downtown development authority (DDA), a business improvement district (BID), metropolitan districts, and targeted urban renewal. He said the city's initial consultant work and fiscal analysis from EPS pointed to a DDA concentrated near the Dry Creek light-rail station as “the leader in the clubhouse” for a first-phase funding entity, while noting urban renewal could be a better fit for some areas that meet statutory blight criteria, including the OC‑4 area cited in the presentation.
King told council the city has already begun coordination with service providers. Centennial partnered with Southgate Sanitation District and used DOLA grant dollars to fund sewer modeling tied specifically to Midtown redevelopment scenarios. King said Southgate’s model did not identify locations requiring “significant upgrades” beyond normal fee-funded work, which King characterized as favorable for prospective redevelopment.
Council members asked detailed implementation questions about geography, sequencing and interactions with existing metro districts. Councilmember Sutherland asked which tools staff considered most feasible; King replied the DDA focused around the light-rail node was the current front-runner but said staff will continue to evaluate options. Councilmember Austin emphasized prioritizing Midtown identity and gateway signage. Councilmember Thorpe asked for examples of public‑realm investments; King listed plazas, streetscape design, sidewalks and multimodal connections, plus smaller elements such as benches and lighting that contribute to place-making.
King said staff will produce a Midtown subarea plan and return to council before the end of the year with a review of the past 18 months of work and proposed next steps for both East and West Midtown. He stressed the work is “future oriented” and will be implemented in phases through private redevelopment and city or partner-initiated public projects.
The presentation did not contain a council vote; King was asked to return with more detailed analyses and land-use materials to guide reviews of future rezoning and site-plan applications.
