Boulder County board authorizes sale of North Broadway Complex to ABMG LLC after debate over housing and park preservation

Boulder County commissioners on Nov. 18 authorized the county administrator to execute a contract to sell the North Broadway Complex at 1333 North Broadway to ABMG LLC, following a lengthy staff presentation and debate about community priorities and long-term control of the property.

Evette Bowden, deputy county administrator, told the board the county received five offers and negotiated terms with one bidder; staff sought authorization to have the county land officer finalize real estate documents to close the transaction in early 2026. "Negotiations have pursued one of those offers, and today, we are seeking the board's authorization for the county administrator or her designee to execute a contract for the sale of North Broadway Complex that is substantially consistent with the deal and terms set forth in the memo," Bowden said.

Commissioner Lee thanked staff for an exhaustive process and emphasized community concerns about preserving park space and ballfields at the site historically known as Marilyn Bone Park/Iris Ballfields. "We laid out some goals that we wanted to achieve, and one of which, for me... was that we preserve that park, the playing fields," Lee said, urging clarity about who will hold responsibility for preserving community amenities after the sale.

Commissioner Schleswig, who supported the proposal, framed the sale as a response to operational inefficiencies: the county would move services to a smaller, net-zero facility and eliminate the county’s need to retain a 100,000-square-foot campus that is costly to operate. Schleswig noted environmental and accessibility benefits of the new facility and said the proposal was the "premier" option among bids.

During the meeting, Assistant County Attorney Ryan Miller clarified the buyer's legal entity after commissioners had used the informal name "the academy." "They refer to themselves as such, but their actual legal entity name is, ABMG LLC," Miller said on the record. The board reopened the motion and then approved a motion authorizing sale to ABMG LLC under the negotiated terms.

The motion as finalized authorized the county land officer to sign associated real estate documents. The board passed the motion, with recorded opposition noted during the initial vote sequence. Commissioners emphasized that, once sold, the county will have no continuing vote over the property's uses and that enforcement of any community commitments will fall to the purchaser in coordination with the City of Boulder.

The vote followed a broad discussion touching on housing priorities and the county’s role: some commissioners urged that the parcel could have been used for county-led housing or other public purposes, while others said timing, financing and the county's existing commitments (including major ongoing housing projects) made disposal appropriate. The board’s authorization allows the county administrator or her designee to finalize and sign closing documents consistent with the negotiated agreement.

Next steps: staff will proceed with contract execution and standard closing steps; the authorization includes consultation with the County Attorney’s Office and delegated signing to the land officer to effectuate closing in early 2026. If the purchase and due diligence proceed as negotiated, future zoning and entitlement matters will be the responsibility of the buyer and relevant municipal authorities.