In April, residents were invited to a Neighborhood Cafe for a developer update. At this meeting the McWhinney team overseeing Kinston’s development shared a comprehensive community development update and answered resident questions. See the meeting highlights below.
Market conditions
McWhinney opened the meeting with a “10,000 ft view” of community development and recent economic impacts on the community.
In the second quarter of 2022, there were 1,119 lots under contract with builders in Kinston. By the second quarter of 2023, as a result of inflation and interest rate hikes, the number of builder lots under contract dropped to 70. (See the maps below. The areas in yellow represent lots under contract. Lots sold are dark gray.)
Sold lots are a critical part of the funding for new amenities, like the pool and fitness center.
Pool & fitness center
The construction of the pool was targeted to begin when 1600 lots had been sold to builders. Inflation and interest rate increases have significantly slowed the housing market and pushed out the timing of lot sales. As of April 24, 2024, there were 674 lots sold.
McWhinney, understanding how important a pool is to residents, is working to begin construction when 1500 lots are sold to help offset some of the market driven timing delay. This target assumes no additional significant changes in inflation/costs or other economic conditions impacting the project. If current lot sales forecasts materialize, pool construction would start prior to year-end 2026, for an anticipated opening 12-15 months thereafter. It is important to recognize that the dates could shift based on uncontrollable market factors.
Resident assessments do not currently include maintenance costs for the pool or fitness center and are not anticipated to include these costs until construction of these amenities are complete. When that time comes, having a higher resident population helps avoid a large spike in assessment fees to cover those maintenance costs.
Traditional playground
While the existing playgrounds were designed to encourage “nature play” on rocks, in sand, with water and on the grass, residents have expressed a need for more traditional playground equipment.
McWhinney is actively working on this and considering a location southeast of the splash pad. However, there is a process to follow. It will require revised drawings, approvals by the City of Loveland and Kinston’s Design Review Committee, and a public bid process. Further updates will be provided as the plans advance.
Dog parks
Dog parks are planned for future phases of development in Kinston. The first one has been designed, however, the lots in the area around the dog park must be sold to trigger construction of the dog park and infrastructure that serves it. Future timing updates will be provided.
Neighborhood school
Thompson School District (“TSD”) originally anticipated construction of a new school at Kinston starting sometime between 2025 and 2027. As of late-March, TSD has reported that a new school will not be needed in this area of the District until 2030, or potentially later.
Factors noted include:
- 250 available seats at High Plains PK-8 after recent renovation
- 300 available seats at Riverview PK-8.
- Demographics
- Record low birth rates
- People moving into the area not having school-aged children.
Once the need for the school is triggered, get ready to vote. A new school bond measure must be approved by voters in the school district one year prior to construction.
Cluster homes & street parking
General “No Parking” signs were required by the city in the trash collection areas adjacent to the cluster homes for the first phase of development to ensure these areas were accessible for trash/recycling carts and the city’s trash trucks. Since then, the city’s solid waste department determined that Wednesday is Kinston’s trash collection day. A request was made to the city to change out the signs to “No Parking Wednesday 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.” but the city rejected it noting a concern that residents of the area did not support the additional street parking.
If you live in one of the cluster homes, look for a parking survey in your inbox (sent May 28). Share your parking concerns through the survey so we may collect resident feedback to share with the city.
Traffic lights
The next phase of development that just started south of Elk River Drive triggers the installation of a traffic light at Elk River Dr. and Centerra Parkway. That light has been contracted and is expected to be operational late this year or early 2025. Similarly, the next area of development that happens off of Kinston Parkway will trigger the installation of a traffic light at Kinston Parkway & Centerra Parkway. That is projected to occur in 2025.