Transportation Orientated Robbery (TOR) Goldline

As many of you know RTD is going to be putting FAStracks through Arvada along the current railroad line that runs along Grandview. Here is what FAStracks has to say about this line;


 "The Gold Line is an 11.2-mile electric commuter rail corridor that will run from Denver Union Station to Wheat Ridge, passing through northwest Denver, Adams County and Arvada along the way. The line will have seven stations, located at 41st Avenue, Pecos, Federal, Sheridan, Olde Town, Arvada Ridge and Ward Road. As part of the voter-approved FasTracks program, the Gold Line will provide high-quality, reliable transit service for the area while improving travel times and enhancing access to jobs, recreation and entertainment.

The Gold Line was issued a Record of Decision (ROD) by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) on November 2, 2009, marking the end of the project'sEnvironmental Impact Statement (EIS) process. The Gold Line is scheduled to open to the public by 2016."  -- http://www.rtd-fastracks.com/gl_1

This is great! This public transit system which will eventually connect many cities throughout the Denver metro area will be a wonderful addition to the Arvada Community and business of the Old Town Arvada Area. There are however a few questions regarding the project. To start with here is another map of interest to look at. (clicking this map will take you to a larger image of the map). 
There are several points to make when viewing this map which is the Urban Renewal plan related to the Goldline Station in Old Town Arvada. Firstly, in the northeast corner of subarea 3 (red) there is a private gun club. The Arvada Rifle and Pistol Club (ARPC) was started in 1948 and had a hundred year lease from the city which the club sits on. This club is comprised of independent private citizens. RTD tried to force the club out when the Park and Ride was built because they wanted the space for more parking space. Clearly, they were unsuccessful in this. The City of Arvada plans on building a multilevel parking structure into the side of the hill at this location. Question, how is the City of Arvada going to get the land currently leased by ARCP to build their multi-million dollar parking structure to service both ridership for the line and the community/business of Old Town Arvada? Are they planning on "blighting" land they in fact own, and would that nullify an existing lease the gun club holds for roughly 40 more years? It is hard to say. 


Secondly, many citizens are familiar with the establishment Brooklyn's a billiard hall that was opened just west of subarea 3 (red) and south of the future gold line. That space now sits vacant. Anything and everything that has opened in that space has failed so far. So what should be done with this vacant space? Well Arvada Urban Renewal Authority (AURA) would like to see a hotel built there. The last we heard it was going to in fact be a Sheraton Hotel. The problem is that with buildings such as hotels there are strict requirements on space and parking. So once the hotel was built there would not be enough space for the mandated parking requirements. Sounds like a mess, what to do? Look at that map again and one will find that the theater Olde Towne 14 is found smack dab in sub area 3 (red) on the Urban Renewal map. The plan was to build the hotel on the Brooklyn's site where there was ample space and use eminent domain and blight conditions to take the theater and hand it over to the hotel so that the parking requirement could be met. Unfortunately, that theater was recently purchased by AMC Theaters, who unlike their predecessors have the financial and legal capabilities to fight eminent domain procedures from taking place. So will the city still make a play for the theater? Unlikely, but that would have been said about the Shrine of St. Anne Catholic Church a few years ago to, we will know when we see it.

Thirdly, and this is almost a separate issue entirely. Most citizens are familiar with McIlvoy Park. It is a beautiful park where many events and concerts are held throughout the year. Bordering this park is the Arvada Historical Society and the Arvada Chamber of Commerce. Along the side of the park is the Arvada Lions Club a vacant building for sale and some rental apartment type properties. 
Many may not know that the park was donated to the City of Arvada by Dennis & Clemency McIlvoy with the provision that no alcohol ever be served in the park. 



What would happen if the City of Arvada ripped out this historic park and all the building around it? Then built sky-rise apartments and condominiums and called it "Park View". Here is a map of the plan and if you look closely at the map you will see all of the buildings next to the park, zoned mix use which can be 6 stories high according to the map. (click map for larger image)