Page 88 - Littleton, CO Comprehensive Plan

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KEY ISSUES AND CONSIDERATIONS

• What is next for a renewed and active Downtown Littleton given real and perceived challenges involving parking,
housing turnover and affordability, retail mix and viability, and concerns about the scale and intensity of some recent
redevelopment activity.

• Opportunity for a more vibrant and walkable Littleton Boulevard corridor without sacrificing its “hometown” appeal and
historic assets.
• Desire to move beyond multiple South Platte River planning initiatives of the past, with limited implementation results,
to establish a consensus vision that leads to tangible actions involving both resource protection and future river-oriented
development.
• The urgent need to document community preferences and expectations for the future function, design and appearance
of Santa Fe Drive as an essential framework for pending Colorado Department of Transportation studies that will delve
into these very roadway corridor considerations.

• Spurring revitalization at and around the former Columbine Square retail site.
• The land use/transportation outlook for Broadway, especially if it continues to advance as a priority corridor in the
Regional Transportation District’s Regional Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Feasibility Study.

• The importance of Mineral Avenue (east of Santa Fe Drive) as a gateway to the distinctive SouthPark area, which is
both a leading economic asset and a location for varied, attractive housing options – all within a Suburban character
setting, and near rail transit.
FRAMEWORK FOR ACTION

GOALS

GOAL S&D 1: A downtown that continues to serve the entire community as a civic, historic, cultural, and economic
focal point.

GOAL S&D 2: A future Littleton Boulevard that accommodates local businesses and nearby attainable housing options
amid a more walkable setting of authentic neighborhoods and historic architecture.
GOAL S&D 3: An ecologically sound and exceptionally attractive South Platte River corridor, framed by sensitively
planned land uses, that continues to anchor the trail and open space networks.
GOAL S&D 4: Roadway corridors that fulfill their primary transportation functions for drivers, pedestrians, cyclists, and
public transit while advancing the community’s economic development, housing, and aesthetic
interests.
POLICIES

In making decisions that involve public resource allocation, regulatory matters, and physical improvements, among others,
Littleton will:
Policy S&D 1: Amid the many competing priorities of municipal government, pursue new special area planning efforts
only where there is commitment, including committed funding and other resources, to follow through on the resulting
action agenda.
Policy S&D 2: Evaluate investment and revitalization opportunities in special planning areas always with an eye toward
Littleton’s guiding principles of being Anchored, Authentic, Connected, Active, and Engaged, and the community
character framework established in the Land Use and Community Character section.
Policy S&D 3: Emphasize quality urban design and cultivation of Littleton’s image in all special area investments
involving both the public and private realms.
Policy S&D 4: Facilitate further dialogue when special area planning efforts reveal that community desires for land use
and development design differ from market-driven considerations of property owners/developers.

Adopted October 15, 2019