A DIFFERING VIEW: Beltway is a boondoggle
The Rocky has editorialized (“A good deal for the public,” Sept. 4) in favor of a transportation project that would do little to improve congestion and would negatively affect local communities.
We all want long-term transportation solutions that protect the quality of life in Colorado. However, the proposed Northwest Parkway sale is a misguided mistake all around.
The Colorado Department of Transportation is considering a proposal to expand the toll road through the C-470/E-470 beltway around Denver with a western piece connecting Broomfield and Golden.
Recently, Broomfield agreed to work with Brisa/CCR, a consortium of foreign companies, which has offered to bail out the failed Northwest Parkway authority and put another $60 million on the table to extend the toll road south to C-470. It sweetened the deal with a $40 million commission to Broomfield if officials there convince other communities to allow the extension.
As a state representative, I am committed to spending our precious transportation budget on projects that solve transportation problems and ease congestion, not the other way around.
I have heard the mantra of economic development over and over at the planning meetings for this beltway. When companies move into a community and bring jobs and increase municipal revenues and improve the quality of life — as in Belmar or downtown Golden — that’s economic development.
But a billion-dollar boondoggle that hurts consumers, does nothing for commuters, and helps only developers and foreign companies is not economic development. It’s nothing more than a vanity project that will destroy lovely parks and towns in the process of padding developers’ pockets.
Gwyn Green, a Democrat from Golden, represents House District 23 in the Colorado General Assembly.
Why is it Gwyn Green gets her postings printed in letters to the RMN every time they are submitted ? If she is so highly regarded by the Rocky why don't you make her a columnist and save space for those who represent the publics view points in the comments section. Not only that, you are giving an elected official a special privilege forum to state Her ideas while not granting other politicians the fairness of rebuttal on an equal repetitive basis. Why is her standing in your paper considered in higher regard than any other of her ilk? Is she somehow related to the owners of this paper or perhaps the edititor? Seems unfair to me, no matter why, that her postings are always accepted while the rest of us serfs are not so considered.
Posted by Allen Campbell on September 10, 2007 04:05 AMBefore Golden complains too fiercely about their precious parks and open spaces, they might want to consider the absolute sprawl that they've openly allowed up and down Highway 93 in the past few years. Golden hasn't got a leg to stand on in this matter, they're just behaving like a bunch of NIMBY jerks.
Downtown Golden looks great. Too bad the rest of town is no better than Highlands Ranch or SE Aurora...
Aaron
gwyn is the perfect duocrat to look out for her home. right now c 470 goes to golden and stops. sometimes you need to look for a benefit to the project gwyn instead of listening to a few who cry NIMBY. what if the peope of golden didnt have to go through downtown denver to get to north bound I25, as they can now with c470 getting to south bound i25.
these same wore out comments were made when E470 was being built and how it would be so bad and never used. well that has all been proven wrong. I avoid I25 when ever possible and use c470 or e470 just to stay out of the mess of I25 going through denver is.
06:19 AM anonymous,
If E-470 is so wonderful, and has done so much for everyone, why is it bankrupt?
Why did it have to sell out to a European Consortium to keep itself open?
And this, with toll booths spaced so regularly that it costs more to travel this one useless section of road a few miles than it does to use some of the East Cost Throughways almost all the way across the State.
One gouge after the other, and exits that leave one way off any main route to get to one's destination certinly aren't recommendations for further construction.
Posted by Old Grouch on September 10, 2007 10:27 AMMr. Campbell...you could always run for office.
Posted by Golden on September 11, 2007 09:37 AM