Happy Canyon Road roundabout rendering provided by Castle Pines Metropolitan District

by Elizabeth Wood West

Nearly sixty people attended the Castle Pines Metropolitan District’s (CPMD) Happy Canyon Road roundabouts project open house in April. CPMD staff and board members discussed plans to construct two roundabouts along Happy Canyon Road as a means of providing better traffic flows and making the roadway safer. Attendees reviewed the project design and traffic data, and spoke with CPMD staff and Douglas County officials.

According to CPMD Engineer Jonathan Gray, the number of traffic-related violations and accidents reported along Happy Canyon Road is too high. “After reviewing the number of accidents that have occurred in the past few years along Happy Canyon Road, I believe the increasing potential for a fatality shouldn’t be ignored, especially since the funding is already in place,” said Gray. “When you consider the projected number of vehicles, potentially 20,000 plus or minus vehicles per day coming from The Meadows development and increasing new development on all sides of Happy Canyon Road, the need to pre-empt a potentially dangerous roadway not only justifies the project, but allows for a 24/7 self -enforcing device to continually slow traffic and improve safety,” he said.

CPMD President and Chairman Joe Gschwendtner explained the safety concerns and potential advantages of roundabouts to the crowd. Sedalia Fire Chief Roxanne Burns expressed concern that emergency response times might be slower because of the roundabouts, but CPMD and Douglas County staff both assured her that the project’s design would not be a factor in emergency response time and that it would accommodate large vehicles such as fire apparatus and larger semi trucks.

Part of the discussion focused on whether the roundabouts project would lead to the future privatization of Happy Canyon Road. Both Gschwendtner and Castle Pines Homes Association President Al Dugan addressed Castle Pines Village’s efforts last year to privatize and close off Happy Canyon Road (in response to the North Meadows Extension project), and gave assurances that this was not the intention of the roundabout project.

County Director of Engineering Fred Koch added that CPMD has stated they have no intention of petitioning Douglas County for the privatization of Happy Canyon Road. “The Commissioners are on record with their position, as follows, said Koch: ‘We want to assure the citizens of Douglas County that a proposal has not been submitted to the Douglas County Commissioners by Castle Pines Village proposing restricted access to Happy Canyon Road. No action would be taken to enter into such an agreement for restricted access to Happy Canyon Road without a significant public process, including solicitation of public input so that all points of view can be heard and considered.’ This continues to be the position of the Douglas County Commissioners,” Koch said.

According to Koch, the roundabouts are being proposed to improve safety at the two main entrances (intersections) into Castle Pines Village, and the complete cost of roundabout construction will be funded by CPMD. Douglas County will only provide oversight and approval for the project design and construction, as well as ongoing road maintenance. Construction is estimated to start mid to late summer and be completed in the fall.

As a requirement for the dedication of essential right-of-way for the project, there will be a public meeting (most likely in the June/July timeframe) where citizens will have the opportunity to provide input. As of press time, the meeting had not yet been scheduled. Check www.castlepinesmetro.com.

For more information, contact Douglas County Engineering at 303-660-7490 or e-mail or CPMD District Engineer Jon Gray at 303-688-8330 or contact by e-mail. .