1-Color
June 12, 2014 Douglas County, Colorado Volume 13, Issue 21
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Pedestrian bridge plan takes steps
CHEERS!
LEFT: Deb Still, of Lone Tree, tries her hand at painting while enjoying a glass ofwi ne. BELOW: Erik Nielsen from Aurorabased Wine Cru pours a “Seven Deadly Sins” riesling for Parker resident Maddie Stanforth at The Wildlife Experience’s annual Art & Wine event June 6.
More than 500 people attended The Wildlife Experience’s 2nd Annual Art Sale and Wine Tasting June 6. Amateur artists tried their hand at painting in one room, while professional artists sculpted from live animal models and created life-like flowers with a few brushstrokes in another. The museum’s Great Hall hosted the majority of the tastings; visitors sampled more than 200 varieties of wine from around the world and food from local restaurants. With wine glasses in hand, they browsed through featured art exhibits called “America’s Parks II” and “Wild Music: Sounds & Songs of Life.”
PHOTOS BY CHRIS MICHLEWICZ
CU seeks ideas from businesses School opening campus in south metro area By Jane Reuter
jreuter@coloradocommunitymedia.com University of Colorado officials want to hear from south metro businesses about what they’d like to see offered at the school’s future hub. CU will begin offering classes and labs on the second floor and in the basement of Parker’s Wildlife Experience this fall. While those classes are set, future possibilities remain open. “We’re just starting,” Don Elliman, chancellor of the CU-Denver and Anschutz Medical campuses, said at the June 5 Denver South Economic Development Partnership breakfast. “We have no idea other than the fact that we’re committed to build these programs exactly what direction we’re going to go in. I look at that as a positive and not a negative. “We want to have your counsel and advice in designing program that meet your needs,” he said. “We’re here to meet your needs, not the other way around. Our goal is to partner with you to build programs that benefit you (and) your labor force.” Except for the nursing courses, classes will be held at night. The museum will continue its normal daytime operations. Fall offerings include a range of undergraduate and graduate-level courses in business, addiction counseling, computer forensics, nursing and engineering. Fields of study were based on the industries most represented in Douglas and Arapahoe counties. Construction is under way to convert
Signs posted inside the Wildlife Experience herald the University of Colorado’s fall 2014 launch of classes at the Parker museum. Classroom construction is under way on the second floor and in the basement. Photo by Jane Reuter more than 7,400 square feet of exhibit space on the museum’s second floor to two 48-seat classrooms and a large computer lab, and to turn nearly 4,000 square feet in the basement into a simulation lab for nursing students. The 23 nursing program slots already were filled three weeks after registration opened. That’s no surprise to Elliman, who said CU’s initial market study of the area’s higher-education options showed it’s underserved. “We found there appeared to be a significant demand for services south in the metro area that simply weren’t being met today,” he said. “The barrier of moving south of Hampden, which some people called the Berlin Wall, was formidable.” Elliman said CU might someday offer
courses at its south campus to help those who never completed their degrees. “There are so many people who’ve gotten two to three years into a four-year degree” and never finished, he said. That’s among many options still on the table. “We’re really excited about the opportunity and frankly, I don’t think we or the Wildlife Experience knows where it’s going to lead us,” Elliman said. CU isn’t the only university breaking through the so-called Berlin Wall of Hampden Avenue. Colorado State University plans a future campus on Lone Tree’s undeveloped property in the RidgeGate development, east of Interstate 25 and south of Lincoln Avenue. Any construction there is still a few years away.
City working to buy land for construction By Jane Reuter
jreuter @coloradocommunitymedia.com Encouraged by citizen demand, the Lone Tree City Council is taking the first steps toward building a pedestrian bridge over Lincoln Avenue. The council approved a resolution during its June 3 meeting authorizing staff to negotiate the purchase of land needed for the construction. The overpass will provide a non-vehicular connection between the city’s north and south sides, and a seamless link for the Willow Creek Trail. The 1.8-acre property the city wants is north of Lincoln Avenue between buildings that house Bank of the West and Chipotle. It is owned by a couple from Golden, and has an assessed value of $362,000, according to the Douglas County assessor. City officials for years have pondered sites on which to build a Lincoln Avenue overpass or underpass. During recent discussions about the new Lone Tree library planned in RidgeGate near the Lone Tree Arts Center, several residents said it’s time to move forward with a bridge. “This starts the process,” City Attorney Neil Rutledge told the council. “It shows the city council is committed to going forward with this kind of a project.” Staff will determine how much of the land it needs for the bridge, assess the property’s value and report back to council about negotiations. The land needed for the bridge’s southern end is owned by the Rampart Range Metropolitan District, the entity responsible for infrastructure within the RidgeGate development. Mayor Jim Gunning said Lone Tree already has discussed the project with district leaders and doesn’t anticipate a similar negotiation process for the property on that side of Lincoln. The city doesn’t yet have detailed information on funding for the bridge’s construction, but anticipates it will involve several partners. “We don’t see this as a long-term project,” Gunning said. “I think we see this as being done in the next two to three years.” In the last few years, the city has studied several different spots along Lincoln for potential underpass or overpass construction. Underground utilities and other problems eliminated those other sites. The city’s voters rejected the idea of an underpass in 2008, in large part due to the projected $3 million price tag.
INSIDE: For in-depth coverage of candidates facing off in the June 24 primary elections, see pages 4, 5; 13, 14.
Printed on recycled newsprint. Please recycle this copy.