Midtown Corridor Improvement Projects

The City of Fort Collins and the Midtown Business Improvement District are partnering to reimagine S. College Avenue in Midtown (between Drake and Boardwalk) as a unique corridor that is accessible and safe for all. This means we are exploring how to best accommodate pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles while ensuring that immediately adjacent neighborhoods can easily access all the amenities and services in the corridor.

What is The Midtown Business Improvement District (BID)?Simplified map of the BID area.

The BID is a special tax district established in 2017 to support Midtown commercial property owners and businesses in collectively planning, funding and implementing projects and programs.

Where is the BID and who is involved?

The BID boundaries include all commercial properties fronting College Ave. from Drake Rd. to Boardwalk Rd., as well as Foothills Mall parcels fronting Foothills Parkway. The BID is administered by a board of directors comprised of property and business owners along S. College Ave., who are partnering with the City to conceptualize public works and infrastructure improvements along South College between Drake Road and Boardwalk Drive.

What work has already been done, and what improvements are being considered?

The Midtown Master Plan (2013) and Midtown in Motion Study (2014), which were developed with input from businesses along the corridor and the wider community, identifed several possible improvements:

• Convert frontage roads along S. College to one-way where practical;
• Widen sidewalks and paths on both sides of the street for pedestrians and cyclists;
• Upgrade and landscape medians, improving intersections at Thunderbird Drive, Harvard Street, Swallow Road, Foothills Parkway, Monroe, Bockman Drive and Boardwalk;
• Improve the trail underpass connecting both sides of South College;
• Improve placemaking areas including branded Midtown signage and wayfinding, creating urban parks and plazas, adding public art, plantings, lighting, streetscaping and street furniture.

Visit the midtownfc.org to view conceptual design documents that were shared at a Community Open House in May, 2023.

What are the next steps?

$200,000 from the BID and $300,00 from the City have been committed to support conceptual design for the project.The partnership is working to secure additional funding including state and federal grants to support implementation. As the project develops, the City and partners will be engaging with residents, businesses and organizations within the BID corridor— as well as adjacent areas and the broader community— to gather thoughts about design improvements and project proposals.