Luring in Business

It is no surprise to anyone who has lived in Erie in the past few years that there is a lot lacking by way of commercial enterprises within the town limit. I drive over five miles to get to the nearest grocery store and hardly ever eat out in town. As I drive outside the city limits to do shopping, I pass by many empty buildings and vacant prime commercial lots.

So what is it about Erie that has developers (other than Residential!) so weary? According to this Daily Camera article, it has a lot to do with the application process which takes nearly two years!

Nickerson, based in Arvada, issued a preliminary report earlier this month stating that the nearly two years it takes for Erie to approve a commercial development application is too long. The firm recommended that the town reduce the fees it charges developers and shorten the time frame for approving projects.

"Major retailers do not plan much more than a three-year horizon on store development," the report noted. "If they were looking at almost two years in processing in Erie, they might look elsewhere."

With a town of 18,500 + people, it seems as if we could support some more commercial development within our own borders, while at the same time drawing people in from surrounding communities who are also underserved (Anthem in Broomfield, parts of Frederick, Dacono, North Thornton, etc...). I believe part of the issues is access to the town. While I certainly appreciate the open space and farm land surrounding the town, it takes a while to get to the heart of Erie ("Four Corners" area) if you don't know where you are going. Not to mention we've got two lane roads coming in and out of town from I-25 and 287 with no visual cues to where the town actually lies. So what to do?

First of all, the trustees need to get on board with Mayor Wilson and plans for growth. It seems like there the New Town/Old Town faction going on. Let's look forward to more development and smart growth in the areas that will easily be accessed by current, and future residential neighborhoods.

Lower taxes and/or offer incentives for specific locations within the town. Everyone likes a hand out... and the incentives pay back exponentially with sales tax revenue. Let's make our town attractive to business!

Lower fees and streamline application process. As the consultant mentioned, it's too daunting of a task. Let's make it easy while at the same time maintaing the town's goals and the overall development plan (as an aside... I know I'm mentioning we need to ease the rules, but let's keep the town looking good. I'm not a huge fan of some of the architecture going up).

So let's do this, Erie. The more business that come in, the more apt people will be to moving here as well. The biggest complaint I get when talking to people about Erie is that we are so far from everything. Bring the business in, and we won't have to leave town. I for one would much rather have those tax dollars spent in my back yard.