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Fort Collins staff recommend phased TOC designations, seek early certification using existing TOD overlay
Summary
City planners told council how HB24-1313 (TOC) affects Fort Collins, explained a housing-opportunity calculation and recommended designating the existing TOD overlay as an initial transit center to pursue pilot grant funding while phasing additional corridors with outreach by year-end.
Planning staff told the Fort Collins City Council that state transit-oriented-communities (TOC) legislation requires communities to set a zoning-capacity "housing opportunity goal" and designate transit centers with sufficient zoning capacity to meet that benchmark.
Ryan Mounts and Megan Keith explained the law (HB24-1313) and the practical implications for Fort Collins. Mounts said the city's calculation uses roughly 3,400 acres of eligible transit area (after exemptions for parks, government-owned land, schools, mobile-home parks and industrial areas) multiplied by the state-prescribed 40 dwelling units per acre, producing a zoning-capacity benchmark of roughly 135,000 units. Mounts said that historical delivery suggests actual construction averages about 10% of zoning capacity, yielding an estimated ~13,500 dwelling units likely to be built over time.
Staff emphasized that the housing-opportunity goal is a zoning-capacity benchmark, not a construction mandate. The state allows communities to exempt categories unlikely to redevelop for housing, which is why staff excluded government-owned property, parks, schools, mobile-home parks and industrial zones from the calculation.
Designation as a transit center carries two important local consequences: (1) qualifying multifamily and mixed-use projects meeting standard code criteria would be processed administratively (staff-level review rather than a required public hearing), and (2) designation can open eligibility for state TOC infrastructure grants and tax credits for affordable housing. Staff said pilot grants were available now and larger funding rounds were expected in 2027; staff applied for a pilot grant (about $800,000) tied to an affordable-housing project in Midtown and are awaiting results.
Megan Keith presented maps showing which zone districts are currently eligible under existing zoning. Staff recommended using the current TOD overlay as the city's first transit-center designation so the city could certify in spring and maximize eligibility for the pilot funding round, then phase in additional corridors (North College, Harmony, Old Town-High/OTC and pockets of West Elizabeth) with additional public engagement and any necessary code changes by the end of 2026.
Council asked about exemptions (mobile-home parks, government land), the risk of displacement and gentrification, how frequently designations can be added, whether the designation must be contiguous, and the procedural change to administrative review. Staff said designations can be amended after 2026 but late additions may not be recognized until the 2029 compliance report; noncontiguous designations are permitted. On displacement risk, staff said the designation itself does not in itself increase risk beyond already-planned transit and land-use changes, and noted existing anti-displacement policies and tools the city can deploy.
Council broadly supported a phased approach: first certify the TOD overlay area to pursue early pilot funding and then pursue additional corridors with deliberate engagement and any zoning updates needed.
Staff will finalize maps and draft land-use amendments for planning commission and council consideration and will prepare outreach materials explaining the administrative-review change and the timeline for phased designations.
