Aurora opens applications for East Colfax DDA board.

The City of Aurora is accepting applications through Feb. 28 for the inaugural Downtown Development Authority (DDA) board to guide East Colfax Avenue revitalization; eligible applicants must be 18+ and live in, own property in, or operate a business within the DDA boundaries.

The City of Aurora is accepting applications for the inaugural Downtown Development Authority (DDA) board for East Colfax Avenue. The voter-approved special district is intended to guide long-term revitalization of the corridor. Applications are open through Feb. 28 and applicants must be at least 18 and live in, own property in, or operate a business within the DDA boundaries. The DDA area runs from Yosemite Street east to the Fitzsimons Urban Renewal Area, with East 16th Avenue to the north and East 14th Avenue to the south. Key details: - Applications will be accepted through Feb. 28. - Eligibility requires applicants to be 18 or older and to reside in, own property within, or operate a business in the DDA boundaries. - The Downtown Development Authority was approved by voters Nov. 4 and is a quasi-governmental entity separate from the city. - Under state statute, a DDA can use tax increment financing to reinvest future growth in property and sales tax revenues into economic development, infrastructure improvements and community enhancement projects within the district. - A city-appointed nomination committee will interview candidates in March, and Mayor Mike Coffman will nominate six individuals for Aurora City Council consideration at a public hearing in April; the six confirmed members will join at-large Council member Alli Jackson to form a seven-member board. - The board’s first major responsibility will be to refine and adopt the Colfax Community Vision and Action Plan as the authority’s legally required plan of development, and meetings are expected to begin later in the spring. The draft plan was informed by more than 870 attendees at 24 public events and input from over 100 residents, business owners, property owners and organizations, and the authority is expected to work alongside a proposed nonprofit Community Development Corporation to pursue additional funding and broader initiatives. Summary: The new DDA board will shape how reinvested tax revenues and other efforts are used to improve public spaces, support small businesses and guide long-term work along East Colfax. The nomination and interview process is scheduled for March, followed by mayoral nominations and a City Council public hearing in April, with board meetings expected later in the spring.