By Gary Massaro
Gregg Stone
GREENWOOD VILLAGE – Kuni Lexus of Littleton could become Kuni Lexus of Greenwood Village if all the parts fit together for a deal.
Gregg Stone, president and general manager of the Littleton and Colorado Springs dealerships, approached City Council Aug. 2 with a proposal to buy property at the corner of South Quebec Street and East Belleview Avenue and move the business out of Littleton.
“Greenwood Village is very enticing for us,” Stone said.
Council members were quick to note that they didn’t raid Littleton for an existing business.
“He came knocking on our door. We didn’t knock on his,” said Mayor Pro Tem Ron Rakowsky.
At the current site on the east side of Quebec are two dead businesses, a former Grease Monkey station on the corner and the former Ramada Inn just to the south.
Stone said the Ramada property – about 6 acres – is under contract.
He is attempting to negotiate for the former Grease Monkey site – about a half-acre – directly on the corner, but it’s not critical.
“We don’t need it. It’s not in the plan right now,” Stone said. “We can proceed without it.”
The area isn’t zoned for a car business, however.
Council would have to approve a change for the business to be located at that specific area.
Council gave city staff the go-ahead to work on special criteria that could be placed on the business – for example, limiting the business to be a one-brand dealer only, not a dealership offering multiple brands of vehicles.
City staff will put together a draft ordinance allowing a car dealership in a B-4 zoning district as a special use. The city has one B-4 zoning district, which is at Quebec and Belleview. B-4 is called the Service Business District, which doesn’t currently allow the sale of new or used motor vehicles.
Kuni needs more room than it currently has in Littleton to do business, Stone said.
“We’re too landlocked,” he said.
The Littleton store sits on roughly 3.75 acres.
If Kuni buys both parcels at Quebec and Belleview, it would have about 6 and one-half acres, a bit more than six for the Ramada property and about a-half acre for the Grease Monkey site.
Council members said the dealership could boost the city’s lagging tax revenues by collecting sales tax on car parts.
Some members of the Planning and Zoning Commission, who sat in on the study session, expressed concerns about lighting.
Stone said the business cranks down its lighting after hours, but still must have lighting for safety – so after-hours lookers don’t trip over anything.
Councilman Gary Kleeman downplayed concerns about lighting.
“The lighting on I-25 is much brighter and it’s 24-7,” Kleeman said. “You’ve got lighting all over the place. I don’t see it as an issue.”
Some commission and Council members said they were concerned about increased traffic in an area that Councilwoman Bette Todd called “a gateway to Greenwood Village.”
Stone said the dealership would employ 120 people, who have staggered start and quit times. He said the service department currently services about 120 vehicles a day, which also are scheduled at various times.
Someone asked about test-driving patterns, wondering if they would meander through residential areas. And Stone said a route would be planned out, and could be something like this: out of the dealership, onto Belleview, south onto I-25 to around Dry Creek and back. He said most test drivers don’t like to go through residential areas and would rather open a car up on the highway.
“I’m not sure this is the best economic use of the area,” Todd said. “In some respects, this brings something to the Village that we don’t have. I want to hear from the public.”
The proposal can’t move forward without Council’s approval. And Lexus and Kuni corporate must sign off on any design plans as well, Stone said.
“We all have the same, common goal,” Stone said. “We all want to create a gem for the city.”
If the site-specific proposal is approved and the dealership moves in, the city would collect revenue from sales and use tax on parts as well as a head tax, which the city calls the Occupational Privilege Tax.
