 | Oh, Yea of Little Faith Who Thought This Day Would Not Arrive!
Rejoice!
The Opening of Harlan Street (6000 West) & 13th Ave.
Occurred on Tuesday, July 10, 2012
In Lakewood, Colorado
|
|
|
THE BACK FENCE NEWSLETTER
The Newsletter Featuring Livable Community Items That Readers Value and Highlights of Happenings Along the West Corridor on the RTD West Rail Line Serving Golden, Lakewood & Denver. |
|
The "W" Line Opens in
289 Days.
 |
|
|
Hi Everyone! This is Bill Spriggs and I have found several news articles, links and blogs that I wanted to share along THE BACK FENCE & beyond in this Wednesday Edition, July 11, 2012. |
Stay Tuned to This Block for Future Details About The Tour de FasTracks -
West Rail Line Bike Event hosted by RTD to be held, Saturday,
September 15, 2012 - 9am - 1pm |
 | In response to our photo and commentary in the Sunday, July 8th Edition, Lakewood Colorado City Traffic Engineer, David A. Baskett informed us that Pierce Street (on the left) will be scraped and relaid later this year, and that plans for the striping and signage for bike lanes have been completed.
Our Response: A Big Thank You to the City Street Department for the continued effort to make Lakewood, Colorado a "Gold Standard" Bicycle Friendly City, and a super-big thanks to all the street crews out there working in this extremely hot summer. Thank you for your service.
|
|
|
West Corridor, Denver & Region
| |
TheDenverPost.com
RTD Gets Green Light on I-225 Light Rail at Public Hearing
By Ryan Parker, Jul 11, 2012
Before the RTD board makes its final decision on which, if any, private company is to complete a vital section of light rail track in Aurora, it heard from the public. And the public was unanimous: full speed ahead.
RTD Federal Grants
By Ryan Mulligan, Jul 10, 2012 Sometime later this month, RTD will hear back on seven competitive Federal grant applications through the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) totaling $79,256,775.39. This money would be used on projects across the District from reconstructing a 3-block portion of the 16th Street Mall to purchasing advanced zero emission buses for use in Boulder to purchasing new transit buses to be used throughout the metro area.
READ MORE...
VoiceOfAmericaNews.com
One-Day Facelift Enlivens Neglected US Community
By Shelley Schlender, Jul 09, 2012 DENVER, Colorado - When communities work to improve run-down neighborhoods, they often rely on architects' drawings and written documents to describe the changes they propose to residents. But a non-profit organization uses one-day facelifts to show the public a full-scale, working model of planned improvements for neglected streets with big upgrade potential.
>Denver @ Lakewood's edge, Friday, July 13, 2012, West End Flats, 5000 West Colfax Ave, entrance at West Colfax Ave & Zenobia. West Colfax Business Improvement District's celebration scheduled for this Friday July 13, from 4-6 PM will now take place indoors at the West End Flats. Please join us for a celebratory Friday afternoon with music, food, and libations, as we pay tribute to Rick Garcia and the champions of West Colfax Avenue's revitalization. Objective: have fun with Rick Garcia, Jim Hannifin and others responsible for recent activity and investment on West Colfax.
TheAtlanticCities.com
America's Leading Creative Class Metros (Boulder is #4)
By Richard Florida, Jul 09, 2012 The map below charts the creative class across U.S. cities and metro regions. Nationwide, the creative class totals more than 40 million workers, more than a third of the total workforce, including professionals in the fields of science and technology, design and architecture, arts, entertainment and media, and healthcare, law, management and education.
|
|
National
| TheAtlanticCities.com
Race, Class, and the Stigma of Riding the Bus in America
By Amanda Hess, Jul 10, 2012 In 2009, Jacqueline Carr's public transit experience was limited to bus lines of the "party" variety. Then, Carr lost her talent agency gig, sold her Jetta, and charted out a route to her new job-and yoga class-on the Los Angeles city bus system.
READ MORE...
BillingsGazette.com
We All Pay for Sprawl Beyond Urban Fringes By George Wuerthner, Helena, Jul 06, 2012
As wildfires spread across the West, there has been too little discussion of the human decisions that have led to the rising costs in both dollars and loss of lives associated with firefighting activities.
LaTimes.com/Op-Ed
L.A. -- Transit's Promised Land By Taras Grescoe, Jul 07, 2012
Which major U.S. city is at the cutting edge of forward-thinking transportation planning? Surprise: It's Los Angeles.
READ MORE...
TheAtlanticCities.com
Why U.S. Transit Systems Are Still So Far Away From Converting to Driverless Trains
By Stephen Smith, Jul 09, 2012 With Google priming Nevada to be the first state to allow driverless cars on its roads, transit fans could be forgiven for asking: Where are the driverless trains?READ MORE...UrbanIndy.com
A Bicycle Built for Transportation July 09, 2012 US cities have a long history of bicycling, and Indianapolis is no exception. However, much of the attention over the past few decades has focused on bicycles as recreation, instead of transportation. But if we look at the example set by cities where bikes are truly integrated into the transportation scheme, we see they have evolved quite differently from our own rolling stock
READ MORE...
Salon.com
Is That a Forest Downtown? Since 1979, Eddee Daniel has been hiking Milwaukee's Cambridge Woods, part of an 800-acre swath of wilderness now called the Milwaukee River Greenway. Back then, the forest, which cuts straight through Wisconsin's most crowded ZIP code, was largely shunned by the public. "There were vandals and drug dealers," says Daniel. "It's changed in a big way, and mostly in a healthy way." |
|
International (when available)
|
TheAtlanticCities.com London Creates Public Transportation Chaos on Purpose
By Feargus O'Sullivan, Jul 10, 2012 First came the billboards. Paid for by Olympic travel body Get Ahead of the Games, these have been warning Londoners that their city's transport network will be overstretched during the Olympics and that they should consider alternative travel routes. The subtext of these messages? - "Go away. Please go away."
READ MORE...
TheAtlanticCities.com
The Real Losers of Europe's Unemployment Crisis, Explained in One Chart By Derek Thompson, Jul 10, 2012 In March this year, for the first time on record, more than half of the young people in Spain and Greece were counted as unemployed by the OECD, which provided the chart above. Three months later, the situation is still getting worse.
|
| Sunday's Film (when available)
| YouTube.com
The Impossible Texting & Driving Test More and more traffic accidents are due to texting. If we want to reduce the 1.2 million traffic victims worldwide each year, we have to act. How do you convince youngsters not to text while driving? Prove them it is a very bad idea: oblige them to text while driving! See how Belgian learner drivers reacted when they were told they had to pass the mobile phone test in order to get their driver's license.
 | The impossible texting &
driving test |
|
 |
Things you need to know along the West Corridor
|
>Lakewood, Wednesday, July 11, 7:30-8:30am. Lakewood-West Colfax Business Improvement District Office, 7125 W. Colfax Ave.
Ward 2 Lakewood City Councilors Cindy Baroway and Scott Koop will meet with residents and considerate guests at their monthly outreach meeting. The future light rail line will traverse the NW section of their Ward.
>Lakewood, Thursday, July 12, 2012 6pm to 8? King Sooper's Plaza, 1645 Quail St. Ste 27. Neighborhood meeting for rezoning request. The applicant for a rezoning request at 11199 W. Colfax Ave. will meet with residents from the surrounding neighborhood. The rezoning proposal would allow for a bank with a drive-through facility to be built. For more information, contact Project Manager Paul Rice at (303) 987-7725 or pauric@lakewood.org.
>Denver, Friday, July 13, 2012, 4-6pm.
The West Colfax Business Improvement District is hosting a Sustainability Oasis & Celebration of Champions event to honor their champions, most notably Rick Garcia for project completed or underway made along West Colfax Ave (Denver).
The event will take place in conjunction with the opening of their summer public art project with the Rocky Mountain School of Art and Design: Sustainability Oasis. This temporary, interactive art project on the lot at Colfax and Vrain (4600 West) aims to green and activate a privately owned space for public purpose. All are invited. Lot located at Colfax Ave & Vrain St. (4500 West).
>Lakewood, Sat. July 14, 2012
Surfside Park Dedication
5330 West 9th Ave. Lakewood 80214
One of the most beneficial community "people oriented" gathering places to open in Lakewood since the Belmar Plaza will dedicate the opening on July 14, 2012. Since the dedication will include food and prizes, the City of Lakewood is requesting RSVP's. To RSVP by Wednesday, July 11 call (303) 987-7800. For more information, call (303) 987-7837.
>Denver Union Station Historic Summer Tours, July 12, & July 26, 2012 at 4:30pm - 5:30pm
The Denver Union Station Project Authority (DUSPA) will be conducting free guided tours of the Denver Union Station redevelopment site this summer. This guided tour will emphasis the early station history and famous travelers who visited Denver by Train. The tour will also tell visitors about all the exciting new features that will soon be part of, and surround, the historic station. The one-hour tour will start inside the Great Train Hall at the historic station, 1701 Wynkoop Street. Participation is limited to 35 people per tour. To reserve your spot, visit. RSVP here [Scroll down on left]
>Denver, Thursday, July 19th, 2012 9:30am to 11am Federal Boulevard Workshop
Rude Recreation Center, 2855 West Holden Pl. Denver Co. 80204
The City & County of Denver invites residents and considerate guests to a workshop to discuss transportation, walkability, land use, urban design, and economic development as these relate to Federal Blvd from 6th Avenue to 20th Avenue. There will be a walking tour of Federal Blvd between 6th Ave and Colfax Ave. Coffee and donuts will be served.
>Golden, Thursday, July 19, 2012, 4-7pm CDOT, 425 C Corporate Circle in Golden. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) Division of Transit & Rail recently kicked off an Interregional Connectivity Study (ICS), which will examine technology, alignment, finances and funding options for implementing high-speed rail along the Front Range. The project team...will determine the feasibility of an Advanced Guideway System (AGS) from Denver to Eagle through the Interstate 70 mountain corridor. Members of the public are invited to attend a public open house to learn more about this pioneering project and provide input to guide the team's work. Please call Tracey MacDonald at 303-757-9753 for any questions. 
2012 schedule of Ride to the Rockies Games Aug 05, & Sept 02. All games are Sunday Day games. Over the course of 20 games this season the Rockies along with media partners ROOT SPORTS, 850 KOA and The Denver Post will once again be enlisting players and fans toward making a positive impact on the environment through the 2012 Games of Green initiative. NEXT BIKE TO THE GAME! WHEN: Sunday, June 03, for the game against the SF Giants. Bike lot opens at 11:30 a.m. and closes 10 minutes after the game ends.
WHERE: Coors Field, the special Bike to the Game secure parking lot at 21st and Blake St., across from Gate C.
WHAT: Check in at the Bike to the Game Tent at the entrance to the bike lot at 21st and Blake to enter a drawing for great prizes, like a Rockies Batting Practice experience, Rockies tickets, autographed items and more. The very popular RTD West Corridor bus tours are back but ending soon!! All tours will be from 9am to 11am on the 3rd Friday of the month (July thru Sept). Each reservation that is made is for one seat only; please sign-up all attendees individually. You will receive e-mail confirmation within one week of your registration. Click here to register
AUGUST 20-26th, 2012
SEPTEMBER 21-23RD, 2012
Denver Union Station
Construction Cam
Golden Jeffco Station
Construction Cam
Wish You Could Find an Apartment/Condo near a Light Rail Station? As part of TBF's continuing efforts to bring TOD's to the West Corridor & elsewhere, this link from Walk Score.com will now be a permanent feature. Thanks. |
|
Commercial Real Estate Assemblages, Land or Buildings Available on The West Corridor
Please note: TBF does not
own or sell any real property.
Prices displayed may not be correct.
| |
>4917 West 11th Ave Assemblage
>10th Avenue Light Rail Assemblage
>1010 Sheridan Blvd TOD Site
>13th Avenue & Newland St., Light Rail Vacant Land
>5830 West Colfax Ave
>1025 Ammons Complex
>6990 West Colfax Ave Pad Site
THE BACK FENCE supports a corridor wide, regional vision, with individual nodes of unique "places" within that corridor. We hope that the listing of commercial properties available will help to speed this vision to fruition sooner. Learn more about this vision below from the Center for Transit-Oriented Development.
RTD West Rail Line video flyover (entire line from Union Station to the Golden Jeffco Station.
West Corridor Vision
|
|
Things You Need to Know Around the Region
|
THE TRANSIT ALLIANCE IS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE FALL 2012 AND SPRING 2013 ACADEMIES! Please note that the Academy application process is competitive as they only have 50 slots available and usually have 100 applicants or more. Applications must be submitted by 5 PM on August 24th to be considered for the Fall 2012 Academy. The Fall Academy (2012-02) will begin September 12 and end on October 24, 2012. Tour de FasTracks - West Rail Ride Bike Event Saturday, Sept 15, 2012 Calling all cyclists in Golden, Lakewood, west Denver, and the Denver Region. The RTD FasTracks West Rail Line which will serve our West Corridor will host a bike event on Saturday, September 08, 2012 to show off its magnificent bike path that parallels most of the future "W" line. The Back Fence, in the coming months, always a huge supporter of alternatives to the single occupier automobile, will advocate for the "final mile" and call for more and safer cycle access from the light rail stations. We also consider the bicycle as not only a recreational vehicle, but a tool of economic empowerment that helps our citizens stay healthy and keeps more expendable cash in their pockets in which to enhance our local businesses; and I won't bore you with lectures on sustainability, oil dependence and air quality. Although the Tour de FasTracks event is billed as a "leisurely ride" that will start at the future Oak Street Station parking area and end at the Decatur Federal Station, there also will be a stage for the intermediate and advanced cyclists that will start at the Jefferson County Government Center-Golden Station. Details will be forthcoming, but you can Click here to view the current RTD bike path.
|
|
|
|
|
| The opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of William A. Spriggs and no one else. |
|
|
|
|
|
