Long-envisioned plans for an interchange at C-470 and West Alameda Parkway have been dusted off by Lakewood and Jefferson County officials who have begun discussing the roadway’s design, funding and construction.
Solutions to traffic congestion in the area have been sought for more than a decade. Discussion about the interchange was renewed when Lakewood recently approved a 1,400-unit residential development in the adjacent Rooney Valley.
The Carma housing development is expected to bring utilities and water to the 2,000-acre Rooney Valley – bounded by C-470, Morrison Road and Green Mountain – and the prospect of commercial development.
County officials say the interchange would serve as a seed for such growth.
“We’ve seen the Rooney Valley as a primary job center,” Lakewood City Manager Mike Rock said Monday. Although the valley has residential zoning, “the primary purpose is commercial, a Tech Center West,” Rock added.
The interchange, which is estimated to cost about $8 million, would be paid for by Lakewood and Jefferson County.
With utilities coming on line, city and county officials said it’s time to move forward, and construction of the interchange could begin in two to three years.
An environmental assessment was completed in 1996 and a “finding of no significant impact” was issued in 1999, said Nanette Neelan, assistant county administrator.
“That would have to be updated and we would have to dust off what part is relevant, but it should be pretty streamlined,” Neelan said.
The interchange also is on the approved Denver Regional Council of Governments’ local projects list.
Rock said Jefferson County’s most helpful economic development strategy is transportation improvements.
In recent years, the county completed the U.S. 285 and South Simms Street interchange prior to development of Fehringer Ranch.
The county also contributed $10 million for improving the Interstate 70/Colorado 58 interchange for outdoor outfitter Cabela’s and other nearby development.
The C-470/Alameda interchange complements the county’s transportation and growth strategy, Rock said, adding, “This project is kind of the logical next step.”
Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
