Scott Smith.

• Position: Brief Article

Oh, build me a home where the antelope roam.

Scott Smith, chief operating officer of La Plata Investments, will do more than that. He'll build you a self-contained community.

"I was raised on 10,000 acres east of Colorado Springs and spent my summers mending fences and looking after 500 head of cattle and 80 quarter horses. Now, I manage a company that will develop 10,000 acres when all is said and done. We're building a community complete with schools, parks, shopping and employment."

From six-foot wide sidewalks to wrought iron fences that won't obstruct views, the emphasis is on detail and cohesion. Strict architectural control ensures harmonious neighborhoods.

Briargate and its sister community, Pine Creek, located east of the Air Force Academy off Interstate 25 and Briargate Parkway, is the largest master-planned community in Colorado Springs. From apartments to custom-built homes on the fairways of Pine Creek Golf Course, these communities offer a range of housing choices. Boasting 15 schools, La Plata has dedicated a total of 75 acres for three schools to Academy School District #20 in the past five years alone, Coupled with a burgeoning business campus, residents can learn and work just minutes away.

Smith, who earned an accounting degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, has been associated with Briargate since 1982 when he was the controller.

"John Venezia, the original entrepreneur who put Briargate together in 1978, was my mentor," said Smith. John died tragically in 1992 of a heart attack, and the project was taken over...