Overcoming Years of Community Opposition

The 5,600-acre Happy Canyon Ranch property is a highly-visible landmark in the greenbelt between Denver and Colorado Springs. After five failed efforts in just 8 years to entitle a new master-planned community at the site, virtually everyone in Douglas County had an opinion on the project — a negative opinion. By the time Happy Canyon Ranch Partners asked GCA to step in, just 13% of Douglas County voters approved of the proposed master planned community and no homeowner association in the county would allow the developer to attend any meeting.

GCA conducted opinion research and developed a full-scale consensus-building plan to create pro-project attitudes and mobilize pro-project action. When neighbors initially refused to negotiate with the developer, GCA formed a citizens advisory committee to provide political justification for project concessions identified as both persuasive and politically necessary. Coordinating with the client’s local representatives, GCA developed and implemented an outreach plan that included direct mail, recruitment phone banks, letter-writing campaigns, and more than 200 invitational and small group meetings.

The results: Twice as many supporters as opponents turned out at the final hearing for the Canyons, and the project ultimately gained the endorsement of the CAC and local newspapers. Both the Planning Commission and County Commission approved this New Urbanist community with 2,501 single-family and multi-family homes, 3 golf courses, an equestrian center, and a mixed-used town center.

GCA’s projects are successful projects. Check out Happy Canyons