Open house will show Highway 287 options

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

If Glade Reservoir is built northwest of LaPorte, a seven-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 287 will become a roadway for bottom-dwelling fish. That's why the Colorado Department of Transportation is now looking at options for relocating the highway.

On March 30, the public will have a chance to see those options when CDOT and the Army Corps of Engineers, the permitting agency for Glade, hold a public open house to discuss possible highway realignments. The meeting is set for 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the American Legion in LaPorte. According to Dave Martinez, resident engineer for CDOT, the purpose of the meeting is to get public feedback on all of the possible alternatives.

"We go out to the public first to see what they prefer," Martinez said. "We want to do what's right for the taxpayer."

Martinez noted that CDOT would not be looking at a new alignment for Highway 287 if it weren't for the Glade project. "We don't want to put a whole lot of work into the project at this time," he said, "but we want to be ready with some alternatives when they decide."

Glade Reservoir is part of the Northern Integrated Supply Project, which is being coordinated by the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District. The project also calls for a new Galeton Reservoir northeast of Greeley. Seventeen water districts and towns have partnered to work on the project, and they will bear all costs for constructing the reservoirs and building a new Highway 287, if the Corps of Engineers grants a permit.

By the end of 2005, NCWCD hopes to complete an environmental impact statement for the NISP project. The document will look at all alternatives for improving water supplies and will identify preferred alternatives. The EIS will also analyze project impacts on both human and natural environments.

If Glade remains as one of the recommendations, then the district and CDOT will work together to identify the best alternatives for a Highway 287 realignment. CDOT and the Federal Highway Administration must approve the final choice for a realignment. After the open house, Martinez said, CDOT will put the highway realignment project "on hold" until the EIS is completed.

As envisioned, the south end of Glade Reservoir would be about 1 mile north of Ted's Place. The reservoir, five miles long and 260 feet deep, would have a capacity of 177,000 acre-feet, somewhat larger than Horsetooth Reservoir. NCWCD hopes to have a permit in hand by the end of 2006 and wants to finish the NISP project by 2012.