Chronicle Parker 9-6-2013
Parker
Douglas County, Colorado • Volume 11, Issue 45
September 6, 2013
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourparkernews.com
Investors propose Stroh Rd. corridor Representative presenting plan to public officials By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ourcoloradonews.com
Todd Jilbert, owner of Golden Toad, Inc., flips sausage and shrimp kabobs during the Smokin’ Brew BBQ on Sept. 1.
Barbecue Blowout
The success of the fifth annual Smokin’ Brew BBQ Aug. 30-Sept. 1 caused some vendors to reduce their menu options, as they ran out of their most popular items on the final day. Thousands flocked to the Parker Station parking lot for barbecue delicacies, cooling drinks and plenty of entertainment. Children screamed with glee on the bungee jump trampoline, while others danced to live music or attempted to get more ice cream in their mouths than on their faces.
Photos by Chris MiChlewiCz
Bailey Saul, 6, giggles uncontrollably on the bungee jump trampoline at the Smokin’ Brew BBQ on Sept. 1 as her dad’s best friend, Larry Young, of Highlands Ranch, looks on.
Kids tinker with robotics, future Clubs lend edge to engineers, programmers of tomorrow By Chris Michlewicz
cmichlewicz@ourcolorado news.com Brian Dickman keeps a Commodore 64 on a shelf as a constant reminder of his computer science roots. The antiquated machine, now out of place among the modern electronics at Deep Space Workplace & Events Center, was a crucial component to Dickman’s future as a mechanical engineering and programming whiz. The Commodore 64 represented a fascinating world of possibilities when Dickman was 11 years old, and now he is sharing that passion with the next generation of programmers. “I want this to be a memorable point in their development, where they look back and have a sense of accomplishment,”
he says. “I want to help kids who … don’t have the resources or have not developed enough (knowledge).” When opening Deep Space Workplace, a business that provides a co-working environment that promotes collaboration, Dickman also had an idea to create clubs based on STEAM education — or science, technology, engineering, arts and math. The Deep Space Robotics Team, a 10-member group of boys and girls who gather each Thursday night, will spend the next three months preparing for a robotics competition for the Global LEGO League. They are in the process of using LEGO Mindstorm sets, which enable children to assemble robots and program them to accomplish tasks. Dickman says Robotics continues on Page 9
Where some people see an expanse of untouched land, others see economic opportunity. The renewed effort to connect Stroh Road to Interstate 25 could be gaining traction as a group of investors makes its case to turn the road into a commercial corridor. The investors say the development of Stroh Road could bring employment centers closer to the suburbs and alleviate traffic congestion on the southern edge of the metro area. The corridor could also provide an “economic windfall,” particularly for Parker, said Paul Weaver, a retired Air Force general turned consultant and lobbyist for Virginia-based PAW & Associates. Weaver is representing the dozen or so unnamed investors as he presents the plan to elected officials in Douglas County to secure letters of support. He spoke to Parker Town Council during a study session Aug. 26. “The first people you want to get on board are the government bodies,” Weaver said, before noting that landowners who would be affected by potential development have not yet been contacted. An alignment for Stroh Road was on the county’s transportation master plan for decades and was widely regarded as a crucial connection between Parker and I-25, but concerns from former Parker Water and Sanitation District Manager Frank Jaeger derailed the idea. Jaeger worried that bridging inlet channels into Rueter-Hess Reservoir would increase the likelihood of contaminants entering the water supply. Without approval from the water district, Douglas County was forced to instead build Hess Road on the north side of the reservoir at a higher cost. The Stroh Road alignment was previously approved by Douglas County and the Army Corps of Engineers, but an updated environmental impact study would be required. Weaver said although he can make no guarantees, there is a good chance of securing federal transportation funding in the form of TIGER Grants, or Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, to cover the cost of building “shovel-ready” Stroh Road, which now stands at $31 million. According to a financial impact study commissioned by PAW & Associates, commercial and residential development along the road could provide $7.2 billion in market value to the county, including $6.4 billion in real estate. Weaver’s next visit will be in front of the Douglas County commissioners. Stroh continues on Page 9
Brian Dickman, left, owner of Deep Space Workplace, instructs a 10-member robotics club at the business in the basement of the Victorian Peaks building in downtown Parker. Photo by Chris Michlewicz
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