Centennial staff outline incentives, developer RFI and Midtown sewer study in housing update

City of Centennial planning staff on Monday briefed the City Council on a package of housing measures that staff says aim to expand housing options across the city, including proposed amendments to the economic development incentives policy, a developer request for information (RFI) and a sanitary-sewer capacity study for Midtown Centennial.

“This update is intended to serve as a chance to update council on all the work that is ongoing related to housing,” said David King, a senior planner for the city, as he summarized recent policy changes and ongoing work.

The briefing recapped policies the council adopted in the last 18 months intended to increase housing supply and choice, including adoption of the city’s accessory dwelling unit regulations in May 2024, new neighborhood infill zone districts and an Employment Center Mixed Use Zone District intended to support mixed-use change near I‑25.

Staff described three near-term strategies. First, planners proposed amending the city’s existing economic development incentives policy to allow incentives to be awarded for housing projects; staff said the approach would prioritize flexibility so council can consider a range of tools on a project-by-project basis. Second, staff proposed issuing a developer RFI to solicit examples of recent Colorado projects and the site or market features developers would need to build housing in Centennial. “This RFI would go a step further to really put Centennial on the map as a willing partner,” said Melanie Ward, the city’s manager of development, foresight and infrastructure readiness.

Third, staff proposed using remaining funds from a Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) innovative housing planning grant to partner with Southgate Water and Sanitation District to model sanitary‑sewer capacity and identify infrastructure needs tied to increased housing in Midtown Centennial; staff told council an item to authorize use of those planning funds appears on the meeting’s consent agenda.

Staff also told council the city has been tracking state housing legislation and rulemaking. As a result of those conversations, staff said it worked with the Regional Transportation District and the state to remove Arapahoe Road from a state parking map, which staff said preserves Centennial’s ability to enforce local parking minimums in that area. Staff warned the council that two state-related deadlines—one for ADU-related rulemaking and one for minimum parking—carry a June 30, 2025 statutory or rule deadline.

Staff noted work on Proposition 1‑23 funding (state-authorized housing funding). The city submitted a letter of interest to the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) for land‑banking funds to acquire property in Midtown Centennial and partner with an affordable housing developer; staff said CHFA accepted the letter and the city is preparing a formal application due Feb. 10. Staff said CHFA ran one land‑banking funding round last year and that state funding levels were limited in the first year because of the fiscal calendar.

Council members asked clarifying questions but did not record a formal vote on any of the items. Council member Norris asked what kinds of incentives the city might offer; King answered that the incentives would be folded into the city’s existing economic development incentives policy and could include options such as construction‑use‑tax reimbursements or upfront funding depending on the project. Council member Sheehan raised examples of small, factory‑built housing products such as Boxabl and other modular units; Ward replied that such units can be sited in Centennial if they are built on a foundation and meet building‑code and local zoning requirements but noted a parcel cannot generally host two detached dwellings unless it is subdivided or includes a permitted accessory dwelling unit.

Staff closed the briefing by saying it would return with more detailed proposals and that Council’s feedback would guide next steps. The transcript indicates staff intends to bring the DOLA-funded sewer modeling partnership to council as a consent item and will file the CHFA application by the Feb. 10 deadline.

For the council: no formal council action on amendments or funding approvals was recorded during this portion of the meeting; staff described proposed actions and near‑term administrative steps.