Lance Maggart / lmaggart@skyhinews.com
A new mixed-use development will soon be coming to downtown Granby and the project’s developer hopes the new addition will add a little bit of character to the town’s highway corridor.
Called Granby Station the new construction project is being undertaken by Royal Oak, a firm that specializes in higher end and luxury residential construction. Steve and Helen Wilkie own Royal Oak and the company already has history in Grand County with their recent work on the Eagle Ridge development near Granby’s City Market store.
This summer Royal Oak is digging into a new construction project with Granby Station in the location previously occupied by Mad Munchies. Once completed Granby Station will broadly be broken down into two separate areas: a series of townhouses and a separate building butting up against US Highway 40 and Agate Avenue.
Wilkie said one of the main features of the project would be a very clearly defined pathway leading from the Granby railroad train station up to the Granby Station facility.
“We wanted to give a sense of arrival in Granby, either by train or driving,” Wilkie said, noting that Granby Station is thematically designed with traditional train stations in mind. “We are working with the town to create something really nice.”
Courtesy of Royal Oak
The project will see the construction of 12 separate three story luxury townhouses that will be constructed in sets of three on two tiers on the hillside above Railroad Avenue. Each luxury unit will include a private garage and a rooftop deck.
Additionally Royal Oak is planning to build a mixed use building right on Agate Avenue in front of the townhouse. The mixed use building will be three stories with half the building dedicated to an English style pub and the other half open for other uses including retail space, office space and luxury condos. A centerpiece for the entire development, and an homage to its thematic basis, will be a large clock tower that will be visible from all sides.
Wilkie said he anticipates selling the townhouse units for a price in the upper $400,000 range. Wilkie said he did not yet know what price the luxury condo units on the third floor of the building on Agate Avenue would sale for and said it would depend on whether or not they are constructed as four separate units, two larger units, or some combination thereof. Wilkie said he has no plans to offer any of the units for rent but noted owners of units will not be restricted from offering the units as rentals.
Physical work on the project got underway last week as work crews began demolishing the building where Mad Munchies was previously located. Wilkie said demolition work will continue this week as crews remove the old motel that sits on the property and other necessary infrastructure. Wilkie said construction will progress from Railroad Avenue north towards Agate Avenue and that the building containing the pub and other commercial and retail space would come after construction of the 12 townhouses.
Courtesy of Royal Oak
Wilkie was cautious to note that he has not obtained formal approval on the design and planning elements of his project, which he will still need to obtain from Granby before his project can be completed. Wilkie said he has found town staff to be supportive so far and believes he will be able to address any potential concerns that may arise during the planning process.
“We anticipate going before the town within the next 60 days,” he said. “Pending town approval, we would start building the residential townhomes later this year.”
Wilkie said he would plan to begin building “literally within days of approval”.
Wilkie hopes to have units available for sale by spring or summer next year with construction on the pub building and remainder of the development to begin in 2020.
“Our tagline is ‘luxury comes standard’,” Wilkie said. “We feel this is going to be something that the town can be proud of for many years to come.”