Arapahoe County staff asked the Board of County Commissioners for support to submit proposed additions to the South Metro Enterprise Zone designation to the state by the Aug. 1 application deadline. Director Weimer and Larry Muddler reviewed census-based eligibility, proposed block groups inside Arapahoe County and interjurisdictional coordination with partners in Douglas and Adams counties.

The proposal matters because designation qualifies eligible businesses and qualifying nonprofit volunteer projects for state income tax credits, staff said. Director Weimer told the board the designation process occurs about every 10 years and that the state identifies eligible census geographies based on low population growth, high unemployment or low per-capita income. “We want to make as much of the county that’s eligible part of this as possible because it allows businesses in those areas to get income tax discounts,” Larry Muddler said.

County staff showed maps tied to census block groups and explained an urban-area population cap the state enforces: the combined enterprise zone population may not exceed 115,000 people. Staff said the current multi-jurisdictional package stood at about 90,000 people, leaving room for the county’s proposed additions of roughly 18,000 people. Muddler outlined specific parcels and block groups staff hopes to include — such as parts of Deertrail, Dove Valley, northwestern commercial areas and small pieces near Parker and Aurora — and said staff are negotiating refinements (for example, removing residential blocks from Inglewood’s proposal) to keep the total under the statutory cap.

Commissioners asked about partners and administration. Staff said Denver South and other regional partners (including Denver South Economic Partnership and REAP) have facilitated meetings, but no single administrator had volunteered to carry out long-term program administration. State staff will review submissions in August and September; the Economic Development Commission will consider final proposals in October, and if approved the new boundaries would be effective Jan. 1, 2026, county staff said. The county also noted a modest state grant program (historically about $17,000, potentially $18,000 next cycle) the state makes available to support local enterprise zone administration.

Board members gave an informal go-ahead — “we have 4 thumbs up” — for staff to submit the county’s portion of the application and continue conversations about who will handle administration after designation. Staff said governance and hosting (county department versus nonprofit or regional entity) is the next substantive question and that the group will continue work on that through the fall.

Background and next steps: staff will file the application by Aug. 1 and work through state review, with further local meetings to carve block groups and finalize administrative responsibility. Any final administrative arrangement will return to the board for approval if it involves county staffing or contracting.