Land swap will support new research center, expand natural area

Colorado State University and the city of Fort Collins exchanged land in November in an agreement that will allow the University to develop a prime research center at the city’s gateway and the city to expand a premier foothills natural area.

The transaction will provide CSU a 143-acre parcel at the southwest corner of Prospect Road and I-25. In exchange, the city's Natural Areas Program will receive 267 acres at the northern end of CSU’s Foothills Campus to expand the Reservoir Ridge Natural Area.

CSU President Larry Edward Penley said the land trade and the research center are ways to speed University-developed technology to the marketplace, helping to create jobs in the region while solving some of the world's most overwhelming problems.

Economic-growth potential

"As a knowledge economy, we are highly dependent on the fundamental products of higher education. This is a tremendous opportunity to further the University's mission as an engine for economic growth throughout the region and the state," Penley said.

The trade conserves additional land for the city’s Natural Areas Program and fits with the city's economic goals, said City Manager Darin Atteberry. After this exchange, Reservoir Ridge Natural Area will become one of the city's largest local natural areas at 748 acres.

CSU’s Superclusters – alliances that speed research to the global marketplace – and expanded investment in University research also will benefit from a centralized research center.

"This is what higher education can do for residents of Colorado and for economic development," said Penley. "Colorado State University is one of the nation's top research institutions with nearly $300 million annual research expenditures. We make significant contributions to the region's economic health."

Renewable-energy focus

The University will use the I-25 land to develop a CSU office and research center with a focus on renewable energy companies. Negotiations are underway for AVA Solar, a CSU-founded start-up assisted by the CSU Office of Economic Development and the Northern Colorado Economic Development Corp., to be the center’s anchor tenant with groundbreaking in early 2008.

AVA Solar – whose pioneering, patented technology was developed at Colorado State – plans to build a factory to manufacture low-cost, high-efficiency solar panels. This is one of many examples of successful regional partnerships, Penley said.

Development of the I-25-Prospect intersection will establish Prospect Road as the gateway to CSU. The transaction for CSU is being facilitated by the Colorado State University Research Foundation, which aids the University with intellectual property patenting and licensing management; University start-ups; equipment leasing and municipal-lease administration; financing of equipment, real estate, and buildings through mortgage-debt obligations; and land acquisition, development, and management.