Residents want Trinchera Trail improvements
Residents in the Mountain Park Home and Independence Heights subdivisions hope Jefferson County will improve Trinchera Trail so it is passable by vehicles, especially in a wildfire evacuation.
They have circulated a petition that is now signed by 445 people asking the county to upgrade the half-mile road, which provides a detour to downtown Evergreen from the south. Organizers of the effort have gotten community support and are meeting with Jeffco officials to see what can be done.
According to the petition, “Trinchera Trail is a primitive and narrow dirt road with very large ruts, rock formations and potholes caused by heavy equipment, erosion and the heavy traffic that gets diverted around downtown Evergreen.”
During the Evergreen Rodeo Parade, for example, those who didn’t want to wait in traffic or wanted to bypass the detour traveled from Highway 73 to Little Cub Creek Road to Mountain Park Road to Trinchera Trail and to South Independence Trail to get to the east end of downtown Evergreen.
Organizers say if a wildfire forced evacuations in the area, Trinchera Trail would be difficult for some vehicles to navigate and could cause devastating losses.
According to Doug Rothgeb, who is spearheading the effort, the issue is complicated because part of the road is on private property. It is not maintained or plowed by the county, he said.
To read the petition, which shows maps of the road and the south detour, visit https://chng.it/8zzHPv2F.
Residents concerned about rezoning proposal in El Rancho
Residents living near a five-acre lot in the El Rancho area have voiced concerns about a proposal to put homes there.
At a recent community meeting, a half-dozen residents were concerned about how many homes would be built on the property at 1053 Red Moon Road. They said rezoning the land from Agricultural-1 to Mountain Residential-3 would allow homes incompatible with the large lots of nearby houses.
Mike Kortendick with Landform Inc., who wants to develop the property, said he was considering single-family homes and duplexes, and he didn’t know how many would be on the property. He was still exploring options.
“I have spent a lot of time and money on redevelopment and rezoning unsuccessfully in the past,” Kortendick said. “I want to see what I’m allowed to do with regard to zoning before I move forward.”
Kortendick also is developing next-door Valley View Estates, which Jefferson County has approved for 18 lots on 10 acres. Neighbors were concerned that the two lots would have high-density residential development.
Neighbors asked that Jefferson County look at the five-acre parcel and Valley View Estates together as it considers the rezoning request. Residents also voiced concern over traffic, wildfire and evacuation issues.
Kortendick has not filed the formal rezoning request.
Other rezoning approvals:
- The Jefferson County Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the county commissioners approve rezoning a 1.88-acre parcel on Upper Bear Creek Road from Commercial-1 to Planned Development to allow two single-family homes on existing lots. The property is at 32214 Upper Bear Creek Road.
- The Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the county commissioners approve rezoning 11.32 acres at 31443 Upper Bear Creek Road from Agricultural-2 to Planned Development to allow for three rental cabins and to modify accessory-structure requirements on an existing single-family home.
