No cars on Lookout Mountain Road at night? Commissioners in Colorado's Jefferson County give their consent to plan
On Tuesday Jefferson County commissioners gave their consent to continue work on a plan to close Lookout Mountain Road at night.
The idea was first floated in December. At that time officials from the Jefferson County Open Space Department said they had no timeline for the changes. Now they're looking at this summer as the possible implementation time.
The proposal comes as the community in Golden has been raising concerns about increased illegal activity after dark.
"Alcohol, drugs sex and the gunfire from time to time is 'what's going on here,'" Tom Pool said.
Pool has called the Beverly Heights neighborhood at the bottom of the mountain home for 35 years.
"I think it's a dangerous place at night," he said.
According to data from the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and Golden Police Department, authorities responded to 879 calls in the Lookout Mountain area last year and more than 204 so far this year.
The closure would be an hour after sunset and an hour before sunrise using electronic gates at the top and bottom of the mountain.
Jefferson County Open Space spokeswoman Mary Ann Bonnell said in December it was a discussion year in the making.
"We've tried signage. When you go up to patrol it is a fool's errand. There's a constant stream of new people coming in," she said.
After gathering community input and support from key players like the fire department and law enforcement, county leaders gave the okay for the work to keep moving forward.
"Because of the community coming to us and saying 'Not only do we want this, we want this now,' we are actually looking at moving up the timeline," Jefferson County commissioner Andy Kerr said.
Still, there are concerns from some of those living at the top of the mountain that those unwanted visitors will just move into their backyard. Kerr says it's an issue they've discussed with law enforcement.
"Yes, people who are going to do bad things are going to go somewhere, but we don't think they will necessarily move 100 yards down the road," he added.
For those in support, like Pool, the question is why wait?
"I don't see any reason to delay it," he said.
The bottom gate would likely be located near the bottom of the Chimney Gulch Trailhead. Open space officials say those electronic gates could be opened remotely if needed in an emergency and first responders would have access as well. They also stressed that there are several steps to go before the changes are officially approved.
