Economy & Economic Development  July 25, 2016

Officials urge public input on Estes Park Loop

ESTES PARK — The town of Estes Park is seeking public comments through Aug. 5 on the federal environmental assessment of the proposed Estes Park Loop, a controversial $17 million plan to turn several streets in the mountain resort village into one-way arteries to ease traffic congestion.

Since the release of the assessment was issued July 5, an informational session was held July 14, followed by a July 20 public hearing at the Estes Park Event Center that was attended by 72 people — a turnout town officials found disappointing given the heated debate about the plan that has raged for several years. The project team is encouraging area residents and business owners to submit comments even if they have done so previously.

The project website — www.downtownestesloop.com — includes the presentations from the hearing, an electronic version of the environmental assessment, an animated depiction of projected traffic impacts from both the “proposed action” and “no action” options, and ways for the public to comment.

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Once the public comment period ends, Central Federal Lands, the Colorado Department of Transportation and the town will review the public input and work toward a decision document in September. Town Administrator Frank Lancaster told BizWest earlier this month that the Town Board at that point will have several options: “They could accept the EA as it is, they could decide they don’t want to participate, or they also could just vote to affirm support and submit it to a public referendum. A couple people on the board would like to do that,” Lancaster said, noting that Mayor Todd Jirsa campaigned to put the Loop to a public vote when he ran for office in the April municipal election.

The idea to turn downtown Estes Park streets into a one-way couplet to ease summer traffic jams has triggered fierce debate and division among residents, business owners and town officials. Besides easing tourist-traffic gridlock, Loop proponents have said federal money for the project would pay for replacement of three of five bridges damaged during the flooding of 2013. If the bridges aren’t replaced, they said, the next federal floodplain designation could be expanded to include much of the downtown area, raising property owners’ insurance rates.

Loop opponents have countered that the plan would hurt their businesses by steering eastbound traffic leaving Rocky Mountain National Park along the designated route of U.S. Highway 36 away from the shops along East Elkhorn Avenue, the main downtown commercial street, and disturbing the peace of homes and rental cottages along a parallel street to the south under the Loop plan. Some opponents say improving parking options and crosswalks downtown are better solutions, and have posted signs in their businesses to enlist tourists in their anti-Loop campaign.

The town in 2013 applied for $13 million in Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) funding for the project because the project was seen as a way to improve access to the national park, which has entrances just west of Estes Park on U.S. Highways 36 and 34 and draws more than 3 million visitors a year. Federal officials had said the Loop option was the only acceptable alternative to receive the FLAP money, despite a report last year that said the project cost could be much higher because of a need to raise the level of some bridges and conduct river-channel work to meet floodplain requirements.

The town already has $4.2 million in hand through a grant from CDOT’s Responsible Acceleration of Maintenance and Partnerships (RAMP) program.

The FLAP grant tentatively has been awarded as well, but acceptance by the town was pending the final environmental assessment as part of a National Environmental Policy Act study, a process that’s triggered when a federal agency develops a proposal such as the Loop to fund. The assessment was to study the impacts to the community if the one-way couplet plan were to move forward or if no action is taken.

If the town board or Estes Park voters decide against going ahead with the Loop, Lancaster said, the town would lose out on the FLAP grant and also have to reimburse the feds for the costs associated with studying the project thus far — probably around $600,000.

ESTES PARK — The town of Estes Park is seeking public comments through Aug. 5 on the federal environmental assessment of the proposed Estes Park Loop, a controversial $17 million plan to turn several streets in the mountain resort village into one-way arteries to ease traffic congestion.

Since the release of the assessment was issued July 5, an informational session was held July 14, followed by a July 20 public hearing at the Estes Park Event Center that was attended by 72 people — a turnout town officials found disappointing given the heated debate about the plan that has raged for…

Dallas Heltzell
With BizWest since 2012 and in Colorado since 1979, Dallas worked at the Longmont Times-Call, Colorado Springs Gazette, Denver Post and Public News Service. A Missouri native and Mizzou School of Journalism grad, Dallas started as a sports writer and outdoor columnist at the St. Charles (Mo.) Banner-News, then went to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch before fleeing the heat and humidity for the Rockies. He especially loves covering our mountain communities.
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