Planning commission recommends approval of Inglewood Plaza PUD at 401 Inglewood Parkway

The Englewood City Planning and Zoning Commission on Jan. 7 voted to recommend City Council approve a planned unit development (PUD) for the Inglewood Plaza site at 401 Inglewood Parkway, a proposal from Kimco Realty that would rezone roughly 6.2 acres and allow a 260-unit apartment building and a potential future hotel.

The PUD would change the site’s standards within the Transit Station Area (TSA) overlay and the Mixed Use Central Business District by lowering the proposed minimum density from 75 dwelling units per acre (the TSA baseline) to 40 dwelling units per acre and by reducing maximum building height from 100 feet in the TSA plan to 70 feet in the PUD. Will Charles, Planner 2 with the Community Development Department, told commissioners “this case tonight is for ZON 2020 Four-two, for the Inglewood Plaza PUD” and outlined the project’s footprint, existing zoning and the staff recommendation of support.

Why it matters: the site, formerly anchored by Hobby Lobby and now partly used as a car museum, sits within a quarter- to half-mile walk of the Inglewood light-rail station and is identified in the TSA plan for higher-intensity, mixed uses. Supporters and the applicant argue the rezoning would activate a long-vacant commercial parcel, add workforce and transit-oriented housing and provide public improvements; opponents and commissioners pressed the team on parking, drainage and keeping an existing early-childhood education provider in the neighborhood.

Project details and public benefits

The applicant team, led by Kimco Realty, presented a phased plan. Phase 1 would be a four- to five-story multifamily building with about 260 units and a detached parking structure; a later phase would reserve a pad for a hotel (approximately 100–120 rooms discussed by the applicant) or additional housing if a hotel partner is not found. The site includes a 40-foot drainage easement that the applicant proposes widening by 30 feet (15 feet on each side), which would consume roughly 1.1 acres of the parcel.

Applicant counsel Claire HaVelda told the commission the PUD seeks a reduced minimum density “about 40 per acre” to account for the utility easement, and Mark Rickards of Kimco described the easement’s engineering constraints: “it’s an 18 foot wide by 12 foot tall box culvert, and and it runs right under the existing, buildings.” The applicant’s materials and testimony emphasize public benefits including expansion and protection of the drainage corridor, a new plaza and open space through the easement, two speed cushions on Cherokee Street, ADA and walkability improvements on a shared access to the south, and a $65,000 multimodal fee-in-lieu payment.

Parking and transit

Staff and the applicant described multiple parking calculations during the hearing. Will Charles said the site currently has about 400 surface parking spots; the proposed plan would reduce surface parking to approximately 146 spaces and provide the remainder in a parking structure. The applicant later described a parking-structure total of roughly 360 spaces plus about 100 surface spaces, which the team presented as sufficient to serve residents, guests and the hotel while preserving on-site guest/visitor convenience. Commissioners pressed the team repeatedly on whether that parking balance would push spillover parking into the adjacent single-family neighborhood to the north.

Traffic and multimodal funding

Victor Rochelle, Englewood’s director of public works, described how the $65,000 multimodal fee in lieu would be used: “that money would be allocated to fund improvements, say from the walk and wheel plan that are immediately adjacent to a project of this nature.” He said the funds would be held and applied to completeable multimodal projects rather than piecemeal frontage work and would not offset the city’s 2025 budgeted projects.

Drainage, flood control and coordination with external agencies

Commissioners and the applicant discussed Little Dry Creek and a box culvert that crosses the property. The applicant and its engineers said the site cannot by itself solve the larger regional drainage issues and that buildings directly over the culvert would complicate future regional fixes. Applicant engineering counsel noted engagement with Mile High Flood District and said the team will coordinate with that agency as designs progress; transcript testimony also records the planning commission chair disclosing professional ties to Mile High Flood District for the record.

Community outreach and public comments

The applicant said it conducted two formal neighborhood meetings (March 20 and Sept. 18, 2024) and multiple small-group meetings; turnout at the neighborhood meetings was described as about 40 attendees for the first meeting and 25 for the second. The Inglewood Downtown Development Authority submitted a conditional letter of support and its executive director, Hillary Portel, testified that the DDA is “very supportive of the opportunity to turn around a very large parcel that could easily fall into neglect and attract nuisance activity to the area and replace it with new economic activity, tax revenue, market rate housing options, a possible hotel with meeting space.” A nearby resident, Sam Koenig, told the commission he supports redevelopment and had concerns about overbuilding parking on the larger block.

Conditions and next steps

Staff recommended approval with explicit conditions that the applicant must satisfy before building permits or as part of later approvals. Those include compliance with any affordable-housing standards adopted by City Council at the time of permit application, completion of off-site traffic improvements and specified ADA and pedestrian upgrades, payment of the $65,000 multimodal fee-in-lieu and payment of required impact/open-space fees. The Downtown Development Authority asked the commission also to seek accessible housing units (the DDA requested up to 10% of units meet fully accessible Type A standards; the applicant had previously referenced 5%). The applicant agreed to work with the DDA and indicated willingness to incorporate accessibility and Greenway connectivity language into final conditions.

Commission action

Commissioner Stephen Bridal moved to recommend that City Council approve the PUD and Commissioner Michelle seconded. The commission recorded unanimous votes in favor from commissioners present: Miss Austin, Mr. Montiel, Stephen Bridal (attending virtually), Mr. Martinez, Mr. Rinson, Mr. Caplan and Chair Haggerty. The commission’s recommendation is advisory; final approval rests with City Council.

Ending

The commission’s recommendation and the record from the Jan. 7 hearing will be forwarded to Englewood City Council for its consideration. The applicant said it expects to pursue a joint-venture partner and further design development if council approves the rezoning. The commission asked staff and the applicant to clarify sidewalk ownership on the property’s southern frontage, to refine parking and landscape details before building permits, and to coordinate with Mile High Flood District on Little Dry Creek as the design advances.