Landscape changing dramatically on Highway C-470 as large-scale home developments go up along hogback

One of the most beautiful stretches of a highway in the Denver metro area is C-470 along the hogback in Jefferson County, but the beauty of nature is being rapidly replaced by large-scale home developments. 

Frank and Kaye Peterson have owned their hilltop home since 1970, but the Rooney Valley looked a lot different then. 

Frank recalled, "The turkey farm was next door to us, and that was about all that was a long here."

He said you could look across the expanse, and not see a  single house. Now take new subdivisions have appeared, seemingly overnight. 

Kaye Peterson called CBS News Colorado, "I don't like it. I like the peace and quiet and how green it is, and so nice."

Just down the hill is Red Rocks Ranch with some 1,200 new homes. Those who have moved in already like the attraction of being so close to the foothills calling it "exurbia." 

"You've got the city in the metro area and you got suburbia and then when you're out after that, it's exurbia." said one man on his balcony.

 A little further south along C-470 at Quincy work has begun on what will be the subdivision called Three Hills with hundreds of more homes coming.

Julia Stenadel a Jefferson County resident said, "Everybody that's been here says, 'You should've been here 30, 40 years ago it was completely different." 

With Bandimere Speedway closing after this season, even more C-470 development is likely to come.  

The Petersons, hope to remain in their home but are selling part of their land, which will make room for even more houses.