A long-planned school site near the Meridian Village community is now on track to become housing for the people who keep Douglas County running. The Douglas County School Board voted 6-0 on Tuesday to declare the parcel surplus, clearing the way for possible multifamily affordable housing aimed at teachers and other county employees and moving the land out of long-term district holding.
The unanimous decision followed a presentation from developers and county staff. Director Brad Geiger told fellow board members the district “doesn’t want to be a land bank” and cast the move as a strategy to help retain workers who serve local schools and public agencies, according to Denver7. The vote both declared the tract surplus and authorized the next round of talks between the district, the county and potential developers.
What developers are proposing
Shea Properties has already floated a plan for the site, telling the district it could build roughly 125 apartments on what the company describes as about 9.33 acres. The concept targets public-school employees and county workers for priority access, with income limits set according to household size, CBS Colorado reported. Company representatives also said they need to submit an application soon to qualify for certain federal affordable-housing incentives and pointed to a recent state law that allows housing preferences for public-school employees.
Site history and previous proposals
The Meridian Village parcel is not new to district planners. It has surfaced in earlier discussions about where to locate new schools, and other small tracts in the district have stirred debate when officials moved to label them surplus. Past surplus moves in Douglas County have drawn resistance from nearby residents, according to Colorado Community Media. That outlet also noted that Shea Properties had previously proposed development on district-owned land in Meridian Village and that board members signaled interest in creative approaches to keeping teachers in the community.
Neighbors and developer claims
Not everyone in Meridian Village is opposed to trading a future school for housing. Some neighbors say they would welcome apartments aimed at educators, and Denver7 reports that one resident spoke in favor of teacher housing at the board meeting. Denver7 also notes that Shea says about 28% of its Colorado apartments rent at affordable levels and that a company spokesperson declined to be interviewed about the Meridian Village concept.
Next steps and timeline
Any project on the site would still have to clear some procedural hurdles. Development would likely require amendments to the Meridian Village planned development or other approvals. The county told CBS Colorado that such amendments might be handled administratively or could be sent to a public hearing before the Douglas County Board of Commissioners, depending on how extensive the changes are. For now, county staff and the school district will coordinate on next steps while the developer seeks permission to proceed and races the clock for time-sensitive tax credits and incentives.
