Sentinel
Lakewood 5-23-13
Lakewood
May 23, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourlakewoodnews.com
Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 89, Issue 41
Funding next step for beltway CDOT to weigh funding requests, Golden plan By Glenn Wallace
gwallace@ourcoloradonews.com Western Beltway Plan watchers have had a lot to look over this month with a major Colorado Department of Transportation agreement with the city of Golden, and state transportation funding is up for grabs. On May 9, the city of Golden ended more than 20 years of contention with CDOT by agreeing to a shared development vision for the U.S. Highway 6 and State Highway 93 corridor. That section of roadway was initially studied by CDOT as one of the last links in the 470 beltway design. Initial CDOT plans envisioned the corridor as being six lanes across, with an elevated freeway and speed limits as high as 70 mph. After years of negotiations, the leaderships of CDOT and Golden reached a joint agreement. The pact would keep speed limits within their current range of 45-55 mph, include better sound mitigation, and limit the corridor to four lanes until traffic reaches volume levels of at least 70,000 vehicles a day. The agreement does not address the broader issue of completing a regional beltway link. John Putnam, special counsel to the city of Golden, said he would anticipate CDOT officials signing the agreement in “months, but not many months.” He cautioned city officials that the agreement could be tossed out by future CDOT or Golden city councils. “The ultimate protection for the city is to put some of those items in place in plans and in concrete,” Putnam said. Golden has already taken two steps in that direction. The council approved $150,000 for preliminary design engineering on portions of the new plan. The city also applied for some of CDOT’s Responsible Acceleration of Maintenance and Partnership (RAMP) funding to help bring the agreed-upon plan into existence, beginning with improvements to the U.S. 6 and 19th Avenue intersection.
Beltway efforts
At the county level, meetings concerning the $750,000 Western Beltway study have continued. At the county’s May 14 meeting the three Jeffco commissioners talked with Western Beltway Study’s project manager Lee Kellar, who is with the firm Parsons Brinckerhoff. The beltway meeting included a review of initial RAMP applications, which contained requests for several sections of the planned beltway ramp. CDOT is scheduled to report back to Golden and Jeffco on May 31 about which projects had been narrowed down
Volunteer Mary Berrinn helps Angel Smith, 10, pick out a bike at the Project ReCycle event at Eiber Elementary on May 18. Photos by Clarke Reader
Riding into summer
Project ReCycle gives Eiber students bikes By Clarke Reader
creader@ourcoloradonews.com Riding a bike is one of those quintessential summer activities, but not all children are able to afford a bike. Students at Eiber Elementary, 1385 Independence St., won’t run into that problem thanks to the Project ReCycle program, which gave away 255 bikes on May 18. “We pick one school a year that has 50 percent or more free and reduced lunch and do this giveaway for the students,” said A.J. Stapleton, executive director of Project ReCycle. “We really want to make this an experience for the kids who get the bikes.” The event took on a carnival atmosphere with more than 100 volunteers on the scene — from both Project ReCycle and Eiber — helping students with everything from handing out water bottles and helmets to face painting, grilling
‘We really want to make this an experience for the kids who get the bikes.’ A.J. Stapleton burgers and popping popcorn. Principal Stacy Bedell said the event has been in the works since September. “All our kids who registered will receive bikes that have been donated and repaired so they’re safe,” Bedell said. “We had a raffle in our classes for who would win a brand new bike — but all students received a bike.” The event was created in 2008, sponsored by 3t Ministry, which still sponsors the annual event. This year was the first under the new name Project Recyle. “I was serving on a board for a health center and saw the need for children to have bikes,” Stapleton said. “It’s a fun way to exercise for the kids.”
Once each student picked out a bike they wanted, it was inspected by a group of technicians to make sure everything on it works properly, then students could take it to a decoration station where they could add pinwheels and other decorations to their bikes. For 10-year-old Angel Smith, the best part of the morning was getting her bike — something she said she had been looking forward to. Since exercise is a huge benefit of biking, groups of students were taken on rides along the nearby W Rail line so they could learn how to ride safely and get some exercise at the same time. “Taking the students on rides goes really well with the stuff we’re doing to keep our students healthy,” Bedell said. “Part of our healthy schools initiative is making sure the students stay active outside of school and make healthy choices.” Bedell added that the timing for the give away is perfect, as students will soon be heading off to summer break, and they’ll have bikes to use during their time off. For more information about Project ReCycle, visit www.projectrecycle.org.
Beltway continues on Page 21
Printed on recycled newsprint. Please recycle this copy.
Volunteers and Eiber Elementary staff help students select a bike to take home at the Project ReCycle event on May 18.