Los Angeles-based KB Home plans to build a $100 million residential community just south of a $50 million retail project Panattoni Development Co. is developing in Longmont.
KB’s 450-unit community, called Harvest Junction, will be on 106 acres near Colorado 119 and U.S. 287 that it purchased from Panattoni in July. Panattoni’s development will include 650,000 square feet of retail space.
Harvest Junction will include townhouses, duplexes and single-family homes priced from the high $100,000s to $250,000. Ten percent of the project will be affordable housing.
“That requires a significant investment on the part of the builder,” said Barry Grant, president of KB Home Colorado. “That was one of the significant financial impacts we had to weigh when we made this acquisition.”
As part of the project, KB will expand the Lefthand Greenway trail system. It also is selling 4.5 acres it acquired from Panattoni to a company that’s planning an independent-living rental pro ject. Grant declined to identify the company.
The first phase of Panattoni’s project includes a Lowe’s Home Improvement store, scheduled to open in November. Other tenants that have signed leases are Petco, Michael’s, Panera Bread Co. and TGI Friday’s.
Panattoni, based in Irvine, Calif., launched its retail division in February as a means to expand its business, which emphasizes industrial projects, said Jeff Pintar, director of the division. The Longmont project is among the first big projects the company has under development.
“There’s enough people to justify the retail, but the retailers haven’t focused on those communities yet,” Pintar said. “When KB builds out, it’s just going to help support what we’re doing.”
The Longmont project is the first of several Panattoni is planning for Colorado. The company is looking at a number of sites along the Front Range, said Pintar, who declined to identify specific locations.
Staff writer Margaret Jackson can be reached at 303-820-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com.
