Developer Jim Marshall outlines Ridge at Spring Valley preliminary plat in Elbert County
Loading...
Summary
At a community meeting, developer Jim Marshall and land planner John Prestwich presented a phased preliminary plat for the Ridge at Spring Valley in Elbert County, describing 606 standard lots plus 27 five‑acre parcels (633 total for phase one), water‑rights plans, utilities and likely 2028 earliest home delivery.
Jim Marshall, the developer behind Spring Valley Ranch, on Wednesday presented the preliminary plat for the project now being called the Ridge at Spring Valley and answered residents’ questions about water, roads and timing.
The presentation, led by Marshall and John Prestwich of PCS Consultants, focused on a phased first preliminary plat that the team said covers about 606 standard residential lots plus 27 five‑acre parcels (633 lots in the first phase). Marshall said the larger property had previously been zoned at a higher density — about 1,193 residential lots on roughly 1,100 acres — and that the preliminary plat refines how the homes, roads and infrastructure will be laid out.
"This project does have all its own water rights," Marshall said, adding that the team plans to drill deep aquifer wells into the Denver, Arapahoe, Laramie and Fox Hill formations and that the development will meet the county's 300‑year water‑supply rule. He said the wells will not tap the Upper or Lower Dawson aquifers and that the developer does not expect to interfere with existing private wells.
Prestwich, describing the county review process, said this was the first community meeting for the preliminary plat and that no formal submittal has been made yet. He said the preliminary plat will later be considered by Elbert County planning staff, the planning commission and the Board of County Commissioners before final plats and construction‑level drawings are produced.
Marshall described utilities and access plans: a recently activated substation will provide electricity to the area, several county roads are already paved while others will be paved as phases proceed, and the project will include a primary collector road connecting County Road 21 and County Road 174. He emphasized that required traffic studies at each platting stage will produce trip counts that determine whether roads need widening, turn lanes or other improvements.
On financing and public costs, Marshall said the developer, a metropolitan district and home builders will fund construction and infrastructure work "and there will be no county tax dollars whatsoever" used to build on the property.
Marshall said the development will include more than 40% open space but that those acres are not being placed into open‑space easements; instead the developer will use building‑envelope restrictions on private lots to preserve character. He noted lighting will be minimal — mostly entry monumentation and downward‑directed fixtures — to limit light pollution.
On timing and market outlook, Marshall estimated that if permitting and market conditions align the team could submit final plats later this year or early next year and that "I can't imagine a house being delivered until sometime in 2028," adding that actual timing will depend on builders and market conditions.
Marshall and Prestwich encouraged attendees to sign a contact sheet for future notices and said they would remain after the meeting to answer individual questions. They reiterated that the preliminary plat is subject to required county studies and public hearings and that more community meetings will follow as plans progress.
