Steamboat Pilot & Today

Light industrial businesses vying for spots to build or expand their operations may have another real estate option later this year.

Developer Mike Kortas is one step closer to developing the Betterview Business Park on 13th Street in Steamboat Springs, and West Routt Properties is planning an industrial park in Hayden.

Betterview Business Park got a boost from the Steamboat Springs City Council earlier this month when it agreed to annex about nine acres of land into the city for the project.

"It met the future land use designation and was in the urban growth pattern for the city," City Planner Tom Leeson said.

Kortas wants to develop six lots varying in size from about 0.7 acres to 2 acres. The park is across from Weston Oil, and all the lots would border 13th Street (Twentymile Road) he said.

"There's definitely a need for small industrial lots," said Kortas, a mason contractor. "There's just not many out there, and being on a connector road, it's good exposure for small businesses."

The next step for Kortas is to submit a preliminary plat to the Steamboat Springs Planning Commission. That process will address exact lot sizes and other details, Leeson said.

The city's overall outlook on the project has been good, as long as it conforms to various requirements, such as 8-foot sidewalks along 2,000 feet of road frontage, Kortas said.

Wetlands and steep slopes are other issues to consider. Building areas within lots will range from about a half-acre to an acre to affect less than one acre of wetlands, he said.

Kortas hopes to have the city's approval for Betterview Business Park by the beginning of June. If that's the case, lots would be available around the beginning of September, he said.

Real estate investment opportunities for industrial businesses that want to be in or close to Steamboat Springs are scarce.

Only several lots remain in the fourth and final phase of the Copper Ridge Business Park on Elk River Road.

Other developers, recognizing the demand for light industrial lots, have proposed developing industrial parks in Hayden and offering lots for sale.

West Routt Properties wants to include an industrial park in the Lake Village subdivision south of town. The town of Hayden is considering that proposal, as well as developers' request to built the 41-lot Hayden 33 Industrial Park Subdivision near the Hayden Cemetery on Routt County Road 37.

-- To reach Tamera Manzanares call 871-4204 or e-mail tmanzanares@steamboatpilot.com