That restriction is stipulated on the deed. Even though the Census Bureau links the two cities, officials in Fort Collins and Loveland are trying to establish as much of an open-space buffer between them. Otherwise, the sprawling pattern of development under way on U.S. 287 will make the two cities indistinguishable. Parks Fort Collins has a standard that requires that a neighborhood park be set aside for each square mile of new development. Those parks include ballparks, playgrounds and other spaces for public recreation.
Developers contribute a fee for parks each time they receive a building permit for a house.
Fort Collins also has its own Natural Resources Department, which manages more than 5,000 acres of city-owned natural areas. Hiking and fishing are among the activities allowed in those natural areas, which are set aside as islands of nature inside a fast-growing city. Colorado communities have tighter fiscal control over their destinies than Virginia localities because the tax systems are different. The revenue Virginia localities use to pay for public services, including schools, comes largely from real estate taxes. Homeowners pay that tax twice a year, but most homes in fast-growing localities do not generate enough tax dollars to cover even the costs they require.