Banning vote faces 4th delay by council

The start of construction on the Banning-Lewis Ranch project will have to wait again, because City Council members are unhappy with negotiations with the developer.

Council members say there still are too many unanswered questions, including whether Capital Pacific Holdings will pay for the growth it is bringing to the 24,000-acre site. The California company has not paid $715,000 in fees for services, has not agreed to sell land for a needed reservoir and hasn’t cut a deal to fund sewage plant upgrades.

The council will postpone a vote on the project for the fourth straight meeting today, several members said. Banning-Lewis Ranch Management Co. Vice President John Cassiani, who did not return a phone call Monday, has said he needs to get started promptly on construction.

Council members, who have long been excited about what is essentially the future of Colorado Springs, are growing aggravated. They say they want the landowners to clear up their debts and come to the table for a fresh start.

“I would say the relationship has not been as good as it could have been the past couple of years,” Councilman Jerry Heimlicher said. “As far as I’m concerned, the bills will have to be paid before we’ll proceed with anything.”

Annexed by the city in 1988, Banning-Lewis’ construction has been delayed by bankruptcies, sales and court proceedings. Owners have asked for approval of a plan to develop the northwest 394 acres of the ranch, but the council wants a few things first.

First, several members said, they want landowners to sign a deal on how to treat sewage coming from the first wave of homes. That deal, which has been in negotiations for more than a year, is close but not signed, Heimlicher said.

They also want Capital Pacific to honor an annexation agreement requiring it to pay for police and fire service and maintenance of 21 miles of road. That bill, totaling about $715,000 from 2002-04 and an unknown amount for 2005, is being contested, Assistant City Manager Mike Anderson said.

Capital Pacific is questioning the city’s methodology for calculating the payment, Anderson said. Officials, who have asked the company to pay three times, are trying to work the matter out “as expeditiously as possible,” he said.

Council members are more blunt, saying they won’t approve any development plan until Capital Pacific settles its tab. Richard Skorman compared it to the Woodmen/Academy overpass debacle, where the city lost millions of dollars in road help when it allowed development to begin on a parcel of land before signing a contract with its owners.

“It’s just important that as we go forward with the master planning process and all the zoning changes that we’re clear up front what all the expectations are,” the councilman said. “It’s too important not to do right and to not go into this as partners.”

The utility also is trying to buy land for a reservoir on the ranch — a move needed to supply water to the people who will live there.

But it has bought or received only about 800 acres for water storage, utility spokesman Steve Berry said. Negotiations are moving slowly on purchasing 1,900 more acres of needed land, he said.

“We need to be firm in every place that we can be firm with these guys,” citizen watchdog Dave Gardner said. “I darn sure expect my City Council to hold the developers’ toes to the fire.”

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