Landscaping in Timnath, CO

TIMNATH, Colo. — In-N-Out Burger would like to build another restaurant in northern Colorado.

The California-based fast food chain has filed development plans for a new location in Timnath, near Fort Collins and Interstate 25.

The proposed 3,860-square-foot burger restaurant would be located at the Ladera subdivision along the I-25 Frontage Road.

Concept plans for the restaurant were filed with the Town of Timnath in May 2023 and a site development plan was submitted last month.

The site development plan includes plans for a restaurant, drive thru, 52 proposed parking spaces, and other site improvements. The restaurant is expected to take about eight months to build if plans are approved.

"Our team continues to make progress on a proposed site in Timnath. At this stage, we are in the development application review phase, so it’s still too early to say when, or even if, we will be able to open a restaurant there," said In-N-Out Burger's Vice President of Store Development Mike Abbate. "Once we do begin construction on a new location, it usually takes us eight to nine months to build a restaurant and open it for business."

"We know the Timnath area is a wonderful community, and we are excited about the prospect of opening a new location there to better serve our customers in the near future."

The new In-N-Out Burger would be the second in northern Colorado following a Loveland restaurant that opened in November.

In-N-Out Burger opened its first Colorado locations in Aurora and Colorado Springs in November 2020.

Since then, Colorado restaurants have also opened in Denver, Lone Tree, Lakewood, Thornton, Castle Rock and Loveland. It also has a 97,900-square-foot distribution facility in Colorado Springs.

In-N-Out has a restaurant under construction in Arvada, has proposed a location in Parker and proposed a third restaurant in Colorado Springs.

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Credit: Outlets at Castle Rock

In-N-Out Burger at Outlets at Castle Rock.

In-N-Out Burger previously launched a Cookout Truck in Colorado that will bring burgers and side items to your private event as a catering option.

In addition to serving parts of Denver and Colorado Springs, In-N-Out has launched the Cookout Truck in parts of Los Angeles including parts of Ventura, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties in California as well as Dallas, Texas.

In-N-Out said the trucks are fully self-contained units, equipped with generators and operated and staffed completely by In-N-Out Burger workers. The trucks serve the Double-Double, cheeseburger, hamburger, grilled cheese, chips and fountain drinks. The burger chain notes that french fries and shakes cannot be prepared on the trucks.

In-N-Out Burger is known for its double-double burger and animal-style fries. In-N-Out Burger currently has more than 330 fast-food locations throughout several western states including California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Texas and Oregon.

In-N-Out was founded by Harry and Esther Snyder and is still owned and operated by the Snyder family and none of its locations are franchised.

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Bill Jenkins has been an outspoken member of Guide Our Growth, which successfully challenged the Ladera subdivision's proposed Topgolf east of Interstate 25. He has not held elected office before.

The Coloradoan sent all Timnath candidates questions to learn more about their priorities and why they're running for office.

Three candidates are vying for two seats on the five-member council that includes four council members and the mayor. The two top vote-getters will win the seats. The other candidates are Lisa Laake and Jeramie Holt. The election is April 2.

More:With 2 council seats up for grabs in Timnath, here's what candidates said about key issues

Current council member Robert Axmacher is running unopposed for the mayor's seat being vacated by Mark Soukup.

Below are Jenkins' answers, which have been edited for AP style, length and clarity. Learn more about Jenkins at www.voteforbill.org.

Question: What makes you qualified to hold a town board seat in Timnath?

Answer: As a highly engaged Timnath resident, I am well informed about the issues and opportunities before the town. I was the founding president of Guide Our Growth, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, which won an overwhelming victory at the ballot box for Timnath residents in 2023.

I have extensive entrepreneurial and business leadership skills, which will transfer to the public sector. I co-founded Scientific Learning and grew it from a startup with a few employees to being listed on the NASDAQ. I have served on multiple HOA boards and was a Larimer County CASA volunteer for children involved with dependency and neglect cases.

Q: What are your top three priorities if elected and why?

A:

Q: What are the top three challenges facing Timnath and how would you address them?

A:

Lack of businesses primarily serving people who live in Timnath vs. those driving through Timnath. A grocery store, sit-down restaurants and entertainment venues for all age groups are at the top of the list. I will advocate for hiring an economic development director in the next budget cycle. This staff position would also be the primary liaison with existing businesses and would manage the town’s partnership with the Colorado Mainstreet Program.

High-volume traffic and lack of adequate ongoing planning to address traffic growth and impacts (i.e., the transportation plan needs to be dynamic). Timnath should increase its use of technology to actively adjust traffic lights. The town will soon adopt an updated transportation plan. The new plan has many positive proposals and contains several possible actions to improve traffic. While the draft plan points out the lack of public transit services within Timnath, it doesn’t offer any firm fixes. I want to actively explore public transit solutions for Timnath. Timnath should also be partnering with Larimer County on key regional transportation issues. Larimer County can help with grant writing to obtain funding from the federal bipartisan infrastructure law, among other possible funding sources.

A lack of a meaningful engagement between the citizens of Timnath and town officials and staff. I will advocate for the following changes:

Q: Traffic is constantly raised as an issue in Timnath. In addition to the Weitzel Road expansion, what should Timnath be doing to deal with traffic?

A: See priority 2 above.

Q: Town residents have successfully placed two initiatives on the ballot last year (Topgolf) and again this year (annexation). What do you think that says about a disconnect between town council and the electorate?

The ballot initiatives clearly demonstrate the inadequacy of the current limited opportunities for meaningful civic engagement and citizens’ belief that their issues are not heard or taken seriously by elected and appointed officials or town staff. Timnath’s town charter needs to be updated. Timnath’s town charter has no requirements for public input, and that’s why we’re getting the bare minimum now. As a councilmember, I will push for an independent charter review and suggest amendments to require more opportunities for meaningful civic engagement.

Q: Old Town residents often express they don’t feel heard or listened to. What steps would you take to engage with Old Town residents?

A: It’s not just Old Town residents, it is business owners and people throughout the community that think Timnath needs a distinctive downtown core to unite the newer neighborhoods. I believe the town should create neighborhood advisory groups that are chartered and supported by the town to allow each of the town’s districts to have a mechanism for gathering information and issues specific to that neighborhood.

Last year, Together for Timnath facilitated a new agreement between the town and the Colorado Mainstreet Program. As a councilmember, I will make sure Timnath takes full advantage of the funding, technical assistance, and other opportunities offered through this state-funded program.

Q: Other items you’d like to discuss that weren’t mentioned in the questionnaire?

A: Timnath residents are active people and love their parks and trails. I will continue to support recreation opportunities that are plentiful and well maintained. Now that the town has a full-time parks and recreation director, I want to explore the feasibility of building and operating a town-owned recreation center as soon as possible.

In-N-Out Burger is eying the Ladera subdivision in Timnath for its second Northern Colorado drive-thru restaurant.

The company filed a conceptual plan with the town's planning department in late May for a parcel at the northeast corner of Interstate 25 Frontage Road along Weitzel Street in Timnath. According to the application, the site is currently a portion of the Frontage Road right-of-way, which is proposed to be vacated.

According to planning documents, In-N-Out hopes to develop a 3,860-square-foot building with drive-thru and 1,440 square feet of outdoor patio seating to accommodate 134 customers.

The conceptual plan is currently being reviewed by Timnath planners.

If plans come to fruition, the popular burger chain would be the second in Northern Colorado. In-N-Out purchased a building at 1450 Fall River Drive in Loveland, formerly Mimi's Cafe, in February to make its foray into the region.

In-N-Out had previously showed interest in building its first Northern Colorado location in Midtown Fort Collins at 1700 S. College Ave. It ultimately abandoned that idea in late 2020, paving the way for local Dave's Hot Chicken franchisee Jason Beld to take over the spot for the chicken chain's first Fort Collins location.

When the California burger chain opened in Aurora two years ago, some customers waited in line nearly 14 hours to be among the first to sink their teeth into In-N-Out's popular burgers and fries.

According to planning documents, the business would be house in a single-story, Spanish-Mediterranean style building and be open 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. It is expected to employ between 10 and 12 workers per shift, with three shifts per day.

Construction is expected to take about six months.

In-N-Out would be part of the larger 240-acre Ladera sudivision proposed by Connell LLC, which is currently wrapping up its mining operations on the site.

More:Fort Collins-area restaurants: Coffee, sweets shops reopen while chicken chains make plans

Several phases of the project, including annexation of 184 acres, rezoning a portion of the site, and a preliminary plat to create 12 commercial lots and two tracts on approximately 60 acres for future commercial development are working their way through the town's development process.

The overall plan includes hundreds of homes and commercial development. A Floor & Decor opened just south of Costco late last year. A dual-branded hotel, fitness center and Topgolf are currently planned.

Timnath voters are voting June 27 on whether to ban permanent fences 65 feet or taller. A "yes" vote would all but eliminate the development of Topgolf.

Coloradoan reporter Erin Udell contributed to this report.

Longtime property owners of 16 acres on the northwest corner of Harmony Road and Main Street are suing Timnath for $4.5 million after Town Council denied a commercial development, citing issues with the traffic access into the site.

The lawsuit was filed in Larimer County District Court on April 10 on behalf of property owners Robert and Sandra Flockhart and Verdad Real Estate Inc. It alleges the town ignored previously approved development plans that granted full access to their property from Harmony Road and Main Street.

Town Council on March 14 denied Verdad's minor subdivision application to create five lots on the Flockhart site, two of which would remain undeveloped.

Developers wanted eastbound traffic on Harmony Road to be able to turn left into the site, which the town was reluctant to approve on a road that is so heavily traveled and with the site's close proximity to the busy Harmony Road-Larimer County Road 5 intersection.

As of May 1, the town had not filed its response to the lawsuit.

Verdad said a left turn could be accommodated with some modifications to the Harmony Road bridge over the Poudre River. Traffic engineer Martina WIlkinson, hired by Timnath to study the traffic plan, said a left turn off Harmony in that location was a "huge concern."

According to the lawsuit filed by the Denver law firm Steptoe & Johnson, the Flockharts got approval for previous plans that recognized "there would be full access to their property from Harmony Road and Main Street." That access was "never reduced or compromised by any Timnath official action."

Harmony Road today is much different than Harmony Road in 2009-10, when the Flockharts first started down the development path. The town approved construction of the Walmart Supercenter, made modifications to the bridge over the Poudre River west of the Flockhart property boundary, widened Harmony Road and installed a median "that blocked the existing full access to Harmony Road for the Flockhart property by preventing eastbound traffic from turning in and out," according to the complaint.

Still, "Timnath promised that future uses of the Flockhart Property would retain full access onto Main Street and Harmony Road (including left turn in from eastbound lanes) to mitigate damage to the property by the median," the lawsuit contends.

As Harmony continued to grow, the town approved more development, including Costco and surrounding retailers, all with the Flockharts' approval, according to the lawsuit, "and in exchange promised to keep the Flockhart property zoned C-2 (commercial) with access on par with Walmart and Costco."

The property was the subject of a 2014 settlement between the town and property owner, which required the zoning to remain as C2.

The plaintiffs, who called the town's action "arbitrary and capricious," ask the court to overturn the council decision or pay $4.5 million in damages plus court costs. They have asked for a jury trial on the damages complaint.

The ballot initiative bans fences and nets above 65 feet, much shorter than what's needed for a Top Golf.

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TIMNATH, Colo. — When a group of people in northern Colorado wanted to stop Top Golf from moving in, they got an initiative on the ballot to ban something the driving range needs just as much as golf balls: really tall nets.

"You can’t ban Top Golf from coming here?" 9NEWS reporter Marc Sallinger asked Bill Jenkins, a leader with the Guide Our Growth Timnath group that got the measure on the ballot.

"Absolutely not," he responded.

"But you can ban the nets?"

"Correct," he said.

People can’t vote on whether to allow a private business to build on the vacant piece of land. So instead, Jenkins' group led a push to get a ballot initiative banning nets and fences at that height.

Results are not yet considered final, though an overwhelming amount of votes were cast in support of the initiative -- 2,300 ballots in favor compared to 1,000 opposed -- that bans all fencing and nets higher than 65 feet.

The nets at the Top Golf in Thornton are much taller than that.

"My understanding is Top Golf requires nets at least 156 feet tall," Jenkins said. "That would preclude them from installing their 156-foot-tall nets and 175-feet-tall poles."

Jenkins points to environmental concerns of birds and bats getting trapped in the tall nets of the driving range. He says bald eagles and blue herons have nests nearby along the Poudre River.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) released a report on the environmental impact of the Top Golf in Timnath. It concluded that CPW was “very concerned that this project may negatively impact a variety of species in this area.”

Credit: KUSA

"The concern is the nets could entrap different wildlife, specifically the Great Blue Heron, American Bald Eagle," Jenkins said. "Also, there was concern at night time about bats being caught in the lights because they would feed off the bugs attracted to the lights."

On Tuesday afternoon, Jenkins hoped that he has knocked on enough doors and sent enough mailers out to get support to pass the ballot initiative.

Based on a statement Wednesday, it would seem he had.

In an email to 9NEWS, a Top Golf spokesperson said the company won't be moving forward with their plans in Timnath they are actively looking for alternative sites.

The business would have been a part of a larger housing and commercial development in the area. Ladera, the company behind the mixed-use plan, said in a statement on Tuesday night that they will respect the voters' choice.

"The Ladera team will abide by the vote and proceed with developing this unique project," the statement said. "The team at Ladera will continue to work to bring a best-in-class development to Timnath. Our belief in this project has not changed."

Credit: KUSA

The vote will come as a disappointment to some members of the community.

"I just thought it would be a great addition to our community. To have something that people could do that was fun," said Al Lucas as he dropped off his ballot. He voted in favor of the Top Golf development coming to Timnath.

"I’ve been to a lot of Top Golfs in my life and I love them. They’re a nice place for families to go," Lucas said. "It’s more of a family oriented deal. You can go hit some golf balls and have some fun with people and it’s really pretty enjoyable."

For others like Jenkins, it's a win.

"Not only would Top Golf be the tallest building in Timnath, it would be the tallest structure north of the Top Golf facility in Thornton probably all the way to the Canadian border," Jenkins said before the vote.

If you shoot straight up north from Timnath, that statement is indeed true. There would be nothing taller between the top golf in Timnath and the Canadian border, passing through towns like Cheyenne and Gillette, Wyo. In fact, the 175-foot-tall poles would be taller than any building in the state of Wyoming.