Highlands Ranch ropes retail giants: Town Center adds park, commercial space to suburb.

• Author: Titus, Stephen
• Position: Who Owns Colorado?

The name Highlands Ranch conjures images of urban sprawl like no other development project--and not just locally.

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National Geographic put Highlands Ranch rooftops on its magazine cover and depicted the area as an example of all that is wrong with unchecked development.

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Twenty years have passed since the first shovel of dirt was moved on land where, if you look back far enough, potato farming and cattle ranching once flourished. And Shea Homes, the developer of Highlands Ranch since 1997, now is signing leases on the final phase of its massive project: Town Center.

The 20 acres of open space so far have been a development doughnut-hole surrounded by homes and highways and south of the growing Highlands Ranch Business Park.

But all that is changing. Since the opening of The Home Depot late last year, other retailers have shown an interest in the area and put the Town Center project into high gear.

"We traveled all over the country, and every successful town center had an anchor that wasn't a small specialty shop," said David Goldberg, director of development for Shea. "Home Depot has been a valuable asset in the marketing of this project. For some of the larger national users like Bed Bath & Beyond, it was really important."

Besides Bed Bath & Beyond, Shea representatives were tightlipped about what "large national" retailers are expected to join The Home Depot, saying only that several leases were in the works. Shea is leasing all of the new buildings, as opposed to selling them, with the exception of The Home Depot--and in that case the retailer has leased the land.

Douglas County planners say that since the opening of The Home Depot, Shea has filed three submittals for additions to the project, including a two-story parking garage for 300 cars, and plans for at least 1,000 spaces overall.

The retail complex will offer 10 buildings for lease to various service-oriented clients. Shea is also planning more than 300 brownstone-style residential units and nearly 600 apartments to match the more urban feel of the area.

Despite the tight lips at Shea, members of the community are excited about the project and see it as a necessity to rounding out Highlands Ranch.

"I think everyone, especially as we get more dense and urban, is looking for a place to call home and feel more at home; to have a cup of coffee or a beer," said South Metro Chamber President John Brackney. "In suburbs where...