Louisville commission recommends 135-unit Delo Boom project for approval

The Louisville Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval with conditions July 30 for the proposed Delo Boom mixed-use development, sending the 135-unit project to City Council for final consideration. The commission’s resolution says the recommendation covers a final planned unit development, final plat and two special-review uses.

The project would redevelop about 4.386 acres at 1326–1398 Cannon Street and 1307 Courtesy Road, at the southeast corner of Cannon Street and Griffith Street. Plans call for 99 multifamily apartments, 36 townhomes and about 2,100 square feet of ground-floor commercial space on a site now occupied by commercial and industrial buildings and paved parking areas.

The special reviews are needed for ground-floor multifamily housing and a mixed-use building with a footprint larger than 10,000 square feet, the adopted resolution says. The proposal also seeks waivers from standards covering density, height, building coverage, frontage, building and block length, parking, and ground-floor transparency or openings. City staff said the project remains generally consistent with the city’s comprehensive, housing and transportation plans and mixed-use design standards.

Affordable housing and fee in lieu

The applicant proposes to meet Louisville’s inclusionary-housing requirement by paying a fee rather than providing qualifying affordable units onsite, the staff report says. Staff estimated the fee at $535,635.04, based on a $4.72-per-square-foot rate and 113,482 square feet of proposed for-rent residential floor area.

Louisville’s 2021 ordinance requires 12% of new residential units to be permanently affordable, split between households earning at or below 60% and 80% of area median income. The city is considering changes that would retain the requirement while offering incentives intended to make onsite units more feasible.

Under the proposed changes, projects with onsite affordable units could receive up to 20% more residential density and lot coverage. Projects made up entirely of qualifying affordable rental housing could receive up to a 30% density bonus. The City Council also could approve up to one additional story or 15 feet of height, whichever is less, subject to adopted plans and policies. The height increase would not apply in the Old Town Overlay District or Downtown Louisville Core Area.

Qualifying projects would not have minimum vehicle-parking requirements for residential uses and could receive waivers of zoning-related development-review fees. Developers could still choose the fee-in-lieu option. The proposed ownership fee would increase from $9.24 to $19.08 per square foot, while the rental fee would change from $4.72 to $4.73.

The proposal is described as an interim step before a broader development-code and inclusionary-housing review expected in 2026. Staff materials identify the 36-unit East Street Village development as one project subject to the current rules; in October 2024, the council approved that project’s fee-in-lieu option.

Traffic and remaining review

Public testimony was mixed. Supporters cited redevelopment of an underused site, attainable housing and support for downtown businesses. Opponents raised concerns about traffic, parking, noise, environmental effects and congestion, the public-comment packet shows.

A traffic study projected 1,072 weekday vehicle trips, including 62 morning peak-hour trips and 86 afternoon peak-hour trips. Most nearby intersections were projected to operate acceptably through 2045, but the study identified Griffith Street and SH-42 as a longer-term issue. Without proposed Future42 improvements, the intersection is projected to fail under stop control and meet a four-hour signal warrant by 2045, the study says. The record does not show that those improvements have been completed.

The study says a Colorado Department of Transportation access permit is not anticipated for the Griffith Street/SH-42 intersection. Permits are likely required for the Short Street/SH-42 connection and the existing right-in/right-out SH-42 access because projected increases exceed the study’s 20% threshold. Those requirements are part of the project’s technical review, not completed approvals.

The resolution requires the applicant to address remaining technical staff comments before City Council approval, as long as the changes do not materially alter the project. The final PUD also must be revised to show the approved waivers for minimum building height and maximum block length. The resolution does not set a City Council hearing date; the project remains subject to council action on the final PUD, final plat and special-review uses.