Metro Districts

If your property is adjacent to the former hospital campus, you may have recently received a letter about a Legacy Metropolitan District. The letter was confusing because it appeared to be from the City when it was actually from Intermountain Health. It included information about a metro district service plan, but it did not include explanatory detail. Below is information about metro districts in general and about the Legacy Metropolitan District that Intermountain Health has proposed.

The LLC Master Plan recommends the creation of a Metropolitan District (or "metro district") for the campus. This is a type of special district that can finance, build and maintain public infrastructure. At the former hospital campus, the existing roads are currently privately owned and maintained. A metro district would improve those roads, build new roads, maintain all roads, improve open space and maintain open space. It may also fund upgrades and expansions to drainage systems, water lines, and sanitary sewer lines.

In some ways a metro district is similar to an HOA in that it affects only owners within the HOA, and it raises money to fund and maintain improvements. Because a metro district is a type of special district, the process of creating a Metro District is dictated by state law:

• A service plan is written to describe the boundary of the district, the districts responsibilities, and the mill rate they can levy.
• City Council reviews the service plan.
• The property owners within the proposed district vote to create the district.
• Property owners and residents within a metro district pay an additional property tax to fund construction and maintenance of improvements within the district.

In the case of the former hospital campus, the current property owner (Intermountain Health) is initiating the creation of a metro district, and they sent letter notice of that intent in late January. Here’s what you should know:

• The metro district would only include property within the boundary of the Lutheran Legacy Campus Master Plan. No adjacent properties will be included in the district or subject to the district’s mill levy. See aerial photo marking the boundary in red below.
• The draft service plan will be presented to City Council in a study session on February 10 for comment.
• The service plan will be presented to City Council for approval at a public hearing on February 24.
• Properties within the metro district will vote in May to form the district.

The proposed service plan will be available for review on Wheat Ridge Speaks for the meeting dates noted above.