Super Slab still alive

Developer hires firm to navigate red tape

Kevin Flynn, Rocky Mountain News

Published August 4, 2006 at midnight

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It lives.

Super Slab, the private toll road project on the eastern Plains opposed mightily by thousands of rural residents, has hired a Halliburton subsidiary to help it navigate new and more restrictive laws governing its construction.

Despite the red tape, developer Ray Wells intends to build a 210-mile high-speed private toll road from north of Fort Collins to south of Pueblo.

And his opponents intend to keep fighting it.

"We never said that we weren't going to continue," said Kathy Oatis, a spokeswoman for Wells.

Robert Thomasson, of Elbert County, one of the many citizens who have helped organize opposition to Wells' Front Range Toll Road Co., said the groups will remain vigilant.

"We're not against roads," he said. "We're not against progress. But if you're going to build this road, you've got to be able to answer our questions about it, and we never could get Ray Wells to answer many of our questions."

Among the concerns is the potential for the north-south toll road to cut off east-west county roads. Emergency vehicles or school buses trying to get between the east and west sides of the highway might have to detour many miles to find an overpass.

Wells has hired Kellogg Brown & Root, an engineering and construction subsidiary of Halliburton, to gather names and addresses of certain property owners in the seven counties through which the toll road would pass.

That's an effort to comply with one of the new laws passed this spring in response to the huge outpouring of opposition to Wells' project. The law requires that all property owners in a three-mile- wide path within which the corridor would run must be notified of the project by certified mail.

Wells isn't seeking to acquire all land within the three-mile path. The road is to be 660 feet wide, and that is the only land he would purchase. But the footprint of the highway could be anywhere within the three- mile width.

Oatis said Wells intends to comply with all of the new requirements, including a potentially tricky political process of having his proposed toll road approved by regional transportation planners and the Colorado Department of Transportation before he can turn the first spade of dirt.

The legislation was intended to rein in the power of private companies to condemn private land and build toll roads simply after filing paperwork with the state.

After more than a year of pressure from ranchers, residents and farmers on the Plains, lawmakers and Gov. Bill Owens agreed to the package of Super Slab-inspired bills. Among other things, the laws require more open processes, a demonstration that such projects are actually needed and public approval of their construction.

The first deadline Wells faces is approaching. During the first week of September he must refile his corporate paperwork with the secretary of state and individually notify all affected property owners of his plans.

According to a count by a toll road opponent in Pueblo County, there are at least 274 landowners in the corridor in that county alone.

Kellogg Brown & Root employees have contacted assessors in all seven counties seeking contact information for owners. Oatis said not all of the names have yet been received from assessors.

While Wells lost the power to condemn land for his road, he can collaborate with CDOT for condemnation. Also, he has incorporated a railroad company that retains the power to condemn land for new tracks he plans alongside the highway.

Super Slab

• Developer: Front Range Toll Road Co. Inc.; Ray Wells, CEO and president

• Length: Approximately 210 miles

• North end: I-25 at Wellington, north of Fort Collins

• South end: I-25 at Stem Beach, south of Pueblo

7 counties affected: Larimer, Weld, Adams, Arapahoe, Elbert, El Paso, Pueblo

• Distance from Front Range cities: Varies; last public map showed it crossing I-70 between Watkins and Bennett, and passing east of Keenesburg, Kersey, Kiowa and Peyton.

• Estimated cost: $2 billion, privately financed

• Facilities: High-speed roadway, freight rail line, utility pipelines

flynnk@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-5247

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