EL PASO COUNTY- A new development is going up in eastern El Paso County and it’s getting some attention from people, but not necessarily because they’re averse to growth.
‘Old West Ranch’ makes up thousands of acres on the eastern part of the county.
The plan is to sell 17 ‘ranchettes’ that are about 35 acres in size and go for as low as $125,000.
Additionally, the development will include 3 larger ranches, more than 200 acres in size and costing in the millions.
Instead of a homeowner’s association (HOA), the development just comes with covenants.
It’s an idea that people in the neighborhood are warming up to- development, with the standard subdivision taking up parcels of land.
‘I mean if it’s going to happen it’s going to happen,’ said Brian Lewis, who works in the area off of Highway 24 and Judge Orr Road.
The developer, Dan Carless is eager to maintain the rural feel of the eastern parts of the county, while still creating a place for housing and growth.
‘We feel like we’ve created a commodity for something there was a high demand for but no existing inventory for,’ said Carless.
Still, there are some concerns- many of which were brought up in the planning stages of the development.
Traffic and water supply are just a couple of the challenges people feel could cause some challenges.
As space to grow in El Paso county really extends east, traffic is coming along with it off of Highway 24.
‘When I say traffic, we’re not talking Denver traffic, you’re going to have to wait at that light for 5-7 minutes,’ said Jody Heffner, a realtor for the Old West Ranch, and someone who’s lived in the area for decades.
There have been about a dozen car crashes since 2014 off of US 24 and Ellicott highway and US 24 and Judge Orr road.
Additionally, discussions are in the works when it comes to widening the roads in the eastern parts of El Paso county.
Heffner says for many neighbors, the response has been positive in that people are glad there’s not a subdivision popping up near their land.
‘I’d rather see the big plots of land than the cookie cutter houses out there,’ said Lewis.
One homeowner told News 5 ‘It’s their land, they can do what they want with it,’ adding she’s glad there’s not a big development coming in.
However, one concern- is the water supply and what it would look like with new homes being built.
According to Heffner, the property owners would have an acre of water rights on their property.
‘Water is a commodity, it’s basically like separate real estate in a sense if you own water rights,’ said Heffner adding that Colorado Springs’ water stops through parts of Falcon.
