287 widening project ready for review

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

For those who travel Highway 287 north of Fort Collins, there's big news ahead: The road widening project set for U.S. 287 between State Highway 1 and the LaPorte bypass is finally moving forward. The proposed route would involve 32 to 42 relocations of homes and businesses.

The environmental assessment will be ready for public review Nov. 10, and a public hearing on the project is set for Dec. 2. The hearing will be at Grace Fellowship Church, 1201 N. College Ave., from 4 to 7 p.m., with a presentation at 5:30 p.m.

While completion of the EA is a definite sign of progress, the project won't see its first bulldozer anytime soon.

"With the current funding situation, construction is not scheduled before 2010," said Carol Parr, project manager for the Colorado Department of Transportation.

When it's completed, the new section of highway will have four lanes all the way to the bypass, with a 16-foot continuous left turn lane in the middle. Now, the road narrows to two lanes just west of the intersection with Highway 1, producing treacherous conditions for through traffic and those entering and exiting the roadway.

"It's an extremely dangerous road," said Parr. "With widening and shoulders, plus curbs and sidewalks, it will be much safer." Plans call for the new, 2-mile section to have a bike lane and a 10-foot shoulder, plus sidewalks along the entire stretch. Total cost of the project is estimated at $20.7 million.

Getting to this point has been a long road indeed. Work on the project started six years ago, and since that time both federal regulations and CDOT personnel have changed. Government agencies are now placing more emphasis on the socio-economic effects of projects, Parr explained, so considerable time was spent in analyzing those impacts.

And there will be impacts. The section of highway goes through a highly developed area, and three mobile home parks will be affected. Two relocations are anticipated at Poudre Valley Mobile Home Park, seven to 11 at Blue Spruce and five to 10 at Terry Lake. In addition, four or five single-family residences, six apartments and eight businesses will have to relocate.

Even with all the expected relocations, Parr said the preferred route was chosen because it produced fewer impacts than other options. The alternative, called A4, is called a "meandering" route, taking some of the added width from the north right-of-way and some from the south. Many other alignment possibilities were considered during the environmental review process. At one point, CDOT even considered relocating Terry Lake Dam or rerouting Highway 287 further south.

Property owners along the route will be compensated for having to relocate, Parr said. Other mitigations will be put in place to minimize impacts such as noise. To make sure all the affected parties had their say about the project, CDOT went door to door in the corridor to be widened, asking people how the project would impact them. In addition, the agency held the customary open houses to explain the project.

What's next?

Copies of the environmental assessment will be available Nov. 10 at the Fort Collins Main Library, Poudre Valley Mobile Home Park, the Larimer County Planning Office (200 W. Oak St.), Fort Collins Transportation Planning (215 N. Mason St.) and the North Front Range Transportation and Air Quality Planning Council (235 Mathews St.).

CDOT will accept comments about the road widening plan until Dec. 17.