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Residents press council on Mineral Place trees, 'missing middle' housing and environmental protections
Summary
Public commenters urged Littleton leaders to require drought-tolerant tree replacements at Mineral Place, consider buffers on gas stations and clarify the Neighborhood Housing Opportunities ordinance; city staff responded on code compliance and planting approvals.
During public comment, several Littleton residents raised environmental concerns tied to the Mineral Place development and urged more clarity and protections in the Neighborhood Housing Opportunities (NHO) ordinance.
John Marchetti, a District 4 resident, asked whether the environmental stewardship board will require tree replacement guarantees at Mineral Place and whether planted species will be drought tolerant as the city forester recommends. He also suggested Littleton consider restricting new gas stations and car washes to help meet regional air-quality goals, citing actions by Lakewood, Louisville and Denver.
Pat Cronenberger, a District 2 resident and member of South Metro Housing Options, congratulated Joel Zink on his appointment and urged the council to continue work on housing. He said the NHO ordinance was correctly tabled because of public confusion and misinformation and urged broader public education.
Greg Sullivan, representing concerns about the Costco-area development, said he had distributed 1,800 flyers and gathered about 200 signatures about environmental impacts; he recommended restoring a 300-foot buffer, adding 20% green space, stronger public engagement and creating a Littleton Tree Trust to use developer contributions for replanting.
Pam Chubb said the NHO ordinance does not ensure affordable, accessible or sustainable housing and asked the council to publish the stakeholder working-group membership and process steps. Aileen Kitko, District 4, urged the council to clarify the term “missing middle,” saying the public perceives it as an affordability measure while the planners’ definition centers on 2–4 unit housing types and density.
City Manager Jim Becklinburg responded to the Mineral Place concerns: “The property owners of the Mineral Place development have not complied with all of the city's landscaping requirements for that development.” He added that tree planting is governed by city code and that tree selection is done by the developer in consultation with the city forester and will be subject to city approval. The city manager also said planning commission and city council meetings related to the NHO ordinance were duly noticed.
The city attorney offered no substantive comment during the public-comment response period. The council did not take action on the ordinance at the meeting; council members noted a study session on the “missing middle” scheduled for Jan. 28 where deliberations will occur and public viewing is allowed but no public comment will be taken.
