January 1, 2015 VOLU M E 1 0 | I S SUE 31
ArvadaPress.com A publication of
J E F F E R S O N C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
Year marked by Gold Line development Arvada’s top news of 2014 in Arvada By Crystal Anderson
canderson@colorado communitymedia.com
F
rom the revitalization of Olde Town to the revelation of 20-acre parks and a new policing model, 2014 was a banner year for the City of Arvada. Here are our top 10 stories of the year in no particular order. Gold Line Stations In 2014, Arvada saw major development at three stops along the Gold Line. Construction on the “S” curved Moffat flyover bridge at the 60th Avenue and Sheridan station began and is expected to be completed early this year. In November, city council, RTD and Trammel Crow Company representatives broke ground on the Olde Town Transit Hub, the central hub of the Gold Line project. Initial groundwork has been done at all of the stations, with tracks being laid west of the Arvada Ridge station in Wheat Ridge. Construction crews are working east, grading the alignment, pouring ballast, an electrical current regulator, setting ties and laying the remainder of the Gold Line tracks. Construction is set to finish in early 2016, with opening day set for summer 2016. Hostage situation Connor Scott, 14, was held hostage Feb. 3 in his own home at the intersection of 60th Avenue and Gray Street, by Don
Pooley. Pooley fled to the residence, pulling a gun on the teen, making several threats to shoot and kill him over the course of an 18-hour standoff. Pooley was shot and killed by the Jeffco SWAT team when he came to the door seeking items he requested from police. The boy was rescued uninjured. Marijuana ban In March, city council unanimously passed an ordinance banning the operation of retail marijuana within city limits. Previously, the city was under a temporary moratorium that banned private marijuana clubs and the cultivation and processing of marijuana establishments until March 31, 2014. City staff spent that year researching the impacts of retail and private marijuana establishments on the city, finding those operations to be unwanted. Park Place construction Construction on the Park Place at Olde Town apartments, the newest residential addition to Olde Town, began early in the summer. Located adjacent McIlvoy Park, along Ralston Road, the new complex sits in the place of the former Masonic Lodge, which was torn down to develop the property. The 153 unit, five story multi-family apartment building will be complete and open for leasing in 2015. ISIS arrest In April, Shannon Conley was arrested by the FBI for was arrested for Conspiracy to Provide Materials to a Foreign Terrorist Organization while attempting to board a plane to Syria to join
Year continues on Page 2
Last fall, Arvada High School Sophomore Ivy Hendrix, Senior Tyrone G. Parks, and Junior Jeerod Balangan stand at the intersection of 66th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard, in protest of the Jeffco School Board’s September proposal to review the current AP U.S. History curriculum. Photos by Crystal Anderson
Gold Line construction continued throughout the city, laying the ground work for the Sheridan, Olde Town and Arvada Ridge stations.
In November, City Council and members of RTD and Trammel Crow Company break ground on the Olde Town Transit Oriented Development Station.