Longmont’s centuries-old Great Western Sugar Mill is under contract for a proposed sale along with two other parcels that make up the 125-acre site, according to city officials.
The mill has been shuttered since 1977 and since then known and unknown environmental hazards have accumulated at the stie, according to a Urban Land Institute report on the site.
“Friable asbestos — a known carcinogen — has been identified in the buildings, with significant amounts believed to have been released over time … environmental conditions relative to the soils and water in the area have not yet been determined,” the report states.
The report outlined the hurdles the city faces in redoing the sugar mill for redevelopment, which stands as a giant, rusty sentry over Longmont’s eastern entrance. Still, the institute study states the plant could be an important agri-business hub that could revitalize the eastern edge of the city.
“You can do this and you should do this … take advantage of this site,” Jocelyn Hitte, of the Urban Land Institute, or ULI, Colorado, told council members in March.
Ownership issues in and around the sugar mill site have been a long-term and consistent road block to any redevelopment efforts, the ULI report said.
Tony Chacon, Longmont’s head of redevelopment, told the city council, Friday, that the Sugar Mill Partnership parcel is under contract as well as the North 119 holdings and Clean Energy (Dick Thomas) parcels. The Clean Energy site includes the sugar mill.
The EPA is also currently conducting an environmental assessment of the Clean Energy property and buildings with permission from owner Dick Thomas, according to a city report.
The city is starting a study for construction of a new sanitary main through the area to serve the eastern section of the city while a consultant has also been selected to prepare a sub-area development plan for the area, the city report states.
