The annexation of Southwest Plaza mall into the town of Bow Mar will not happen as soon as originally thought.
Mall owner General Growth Properties — which also owns Park Meadows mall — is seeking more time to negotiate with both Bow Mar and Jefferson County.
“Based on feedback and discussions with the community, Jefferson County and the town of Bow Mar, Southwest Plaza recognizes more time is necessary for annexation efforts,” General Growth Properties senior general manager Greg Sims said in a statement. “Southwest Plaza remains committed to pursuing the annexation, and the additional time allows for feedback to be comprehensively addressed in upcoming conversations with stakeholders.”
Bow Mar Mayor Rick Pilgrim said he received a formal request Friday from General Growth Properties to request more time to negotiate the annexation.
The town would have to have an election to approve a sales tax. The last scheduled meeting for the town board of trustees to put a tax on this year’s ballot is the Aug. 25 meeting, as the deadline to get an item on the ballot is Sept. 5.
A vote on sales tax has to be held during a general election, so the next opportunity will not be until November 2015.
“This is a postponement on our part. So we’re not working toward an election in 2014,” Pilgrim said. “We’ll see what the county and GGP wants to do in 2015.”
There are a number of things that need to be worked on, Pilgrim said, and the town board is still interested in exploring the process of annexing the mall .
The annexation has been a source of controversy both within the town and with residents of unincorporated Jefferson County. Town residents worry that Bow Mar won’t see enough benefit from the annexation and sales tax, rumored to be around 3 percent, with proceeds to be split between General Growth Properties and the town.
Bow Mar has a population of just under 1,000 split between Jefferson and Arapahoe counties. Original discussions proposed a flagpole annexation, meaning Bow Mar would acquire the portion of Bowles between its border and the mall.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office would still patrol the mall area. Bow Mar shares a police department with the neighboring town of Columbine Valley.
Southwest Plaza Mall is currently undergoing $75 million to $80 million in renovations.
Joe Vaccarelli: 303-954-2396, jvaccarelli@denverpost.com or twitter.com/joe_vacc
