Public speaks out to keep Happy Canyon Road open
By Terri Wiebold
The question as to whether or not to restrict access on Happy Canyon Road between US 85 and I-25 as part of the North Meadows Extension Project has been the subject of much debate recently. The people have spoken, and what they have said is they want to keep it open.
The public was invited to submit written comments following a presentation on Happy Canyon Road at an open house with Douglas County and the Town of Castle Rock in April.
Representatives from Douglas County and the project consultant, Felsburg Holt and Ullevig, were available during the open house to discuss the information related to Happy Canyon Road.
The results of the public comment submittals are in. As of May 31, 2009, three hundred forty-four (344) comment forms specifically related to the Happy Canyon Road information were submitted to either the Town of Castle Rock or Douglas County.
The majority of public comments (82 percent) supported keeping Happy Canyon Road open. Of the comments received, 64 percent supported keeping Happy Canyon Road open with no additional comments; 10 percent endorsed keeping Happy Canyon Road open while preserving its rural character (maintain the current two-lane rural section and not allowing the road to be widened to four lanes); and eight percent requested keeping Happy Canyon Road open with the provision that traffic calming measures be utilized to address current speeding and future congestion concerns.
Only 10 percent of the comments preferred restricting access or closing Happy Canyon Road to through traffic.
The remaining eight percent of the comments covered a variety of topics that included comments about funding sources and general comments regarding the open house meeting format and information pertaining to the two alternatives.
Of that eight percent, several expressed a desire to have the proposal to restrict access to Happy Canyon Road be a separate issue and not be combined as part of the North Meadows Extension to US 85 and I-25 Project.
As of press time, Douglas County had not received any formal request to close or restrict traffic on Happy Canyon Road.
Castle Pines Village Joint Task Force chariman, Joe Gschwendtner, has put together a comprehensive history and update, including options and recommendations for residents of Castle Pines Village. Go to www.castlepinesvillage.org and click on “CPV Joint Task Force” notice.
For more information on the history of this issue, visit the Douglas County website at www.douglas.co.us or the Town of Castle Rock website at www.crgov.org.
