A vacant lot at College Drive and Camino del Rio near downtown Durango has been the canvas for many community ideas: condominiums, a parking garage, a conference center, an entertainment center – and the list goes on. Now, the city is preparing to sell the lot back to its former owner for $4 million.
The prospective buyer is none other than the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, which currently leases the parking lot from the city. The city’s asking price is $4,375,000.
The lot in question is a prime piece of real estate on the southeast corner of College Drive and Camino del Rio.
If the sale goes through, the city may yet see development of the lot along similar lines of ideas pitched last year by prospective developers. But it is uncertain when more substantial development would be realized.
The city agreed to sell the lot on the condition D&SNG performs landscaping and displays a welcome sign that is “mutually agreeable” to both parties, according to the city’s sale conditions in its Tuesday agenda documents.
The railroad would also be responsible for developing “retail, food and beverage, entertainment, office space and/or long-term condo rentals,” the documents said.
D&SNG owner Al Harper said whatever developments occur on the parking lot, they’ll have to consider the approximately 350 spaces the railroad currently has there.
He said there are no hard-and-fast plans for specific development at this point, except to strike when the market is right and it is feasible to build a parking structure, apartments, condos or anything else.
“That’s going to be the challenge,” he said. “When the value is so great that you can afford to put all that parking in, and still makes economic sense to do a lot of additional development.”
City Council is scheduled to conduct a first reading of an ordinance authorizing the lot’s sale at its next meeting Tuesday.
Early last year, the city’s focus was on identifying developments that would enhance the parking lot, which the Durango Business Improvement District called a major western gateway into downtown Durango.
But considerations were called off in April 2023 after one proposal was found to have been modified after it had already been submitted for review.
Former Interim City Attorney Bill Tuthill said it would be unfair to consider the modified proposal from Reynolds Ash + Associates without giving other developers the chance to modify their submittals.
Reynolds Ash + Associates changed its proposal by removing a proposed parking garage after a December 2022 parking study by the city concluded adjustable meter rates, signage and parking programs are more cost-effective options for redistributing parking downtown.
Another factor the city had to keep in mind was that D&SNG holds a first right of refusal on the lot.
Harper told The Durango Herald then the first right of refusal gave the railroad first dibs on purchasing the property ahead of any other buyers.
He said the railroad would likely do just that.
At a City Council budget retreat last month, councilors and staff talked about selling the lot back to the railroad and using the revenues to help fund Durango Transit, which faces a budget deficit by the end of 2026.
City Manager José Madrigal said D&SNG appears ready to have purchasing funds “eminently” available by the end of the year.
D&SNG started leasing the parking lot for train operations the same year the city bought it from the railroad for $2.5 million in 2002 when the railroad was experiencing a financial crisis.
Today, the lot is valued at $4,971,940, according to La Plata County Assessor Carrie Woodson.
At the first City Council meeting this month, councilors approved the introduction of an ordinance authorizing the sale of the property to the railroad in a 4-1 vote.
Councilor Olivier Bosmans objected to the proposed sale, arguing the city has enough money in its coffers already and the lot offers a significant development opportunity the city would miss if it sold the lot.
“This property could be used for a convention center, a mixed-use farmers market and many more types that benefit our community,” he said.
He acknowledged D&SNG could use the lot in a great way. But if the city sells the lot, it loses a strong asset.
“If this property would be sold, the city would have lost a great opportunity in assets with the only reason that I can see is to have the extra money on top of the over $100 million in fund balance,” he said.
cburney@durangoherald.com
