Singletrack Sidewalks (STS)

I was wondering if the STS will be marked for only biking. As a runner, I prefer to run in the grassy or dirt area next to the trail and that would no longer be allowed if designated specifically for biking. If specifically for biking, then I would need to find somewhere else to run or be forced to run on the pavement. I agree that there is not necessarily a need for the STS as there are plenty of beginner trails all over the state- why encroach more on the animals habitats? I really don't feel there is a need for more trails.......... especially for bikes.... what about us walkers? When i'm running i'm always afraid of bikes whizzing around corners already... perhaps we should create laws about bells and yelling out your position instead of almost hitting a walker/runner... and I am VERY cautious when running!

I support the proposal to add more natural surface single track sidewalks to the area. As with all trail areas proper design, signage, and education will be important to make them safe for all users. I have small children and there are not beginner trails that are rideable from our neighborhood so this would be a great addition to the local community.

The concerns about encroaching on habitat are, to be honest, pretty ridiculous considering the amount of habitat that has been wiped out with our homes and lawns in this neighborhood.

I am opposed.
1) There are already very nice well-maintained trails in all of the areas.
2) Some proposed dirt trails are not STS's as they deviate significantly from the existing trail bed and right-of-way.
3) They are not "kid friendly" being too steep, contain switchbacks, or other features for advanced riders only.
4) Dirt trails take constant maintenance.
Will money be committed by the city for this? I don't think so.
5) The route traverses wildlife habitat.
Some like Kinney Run are on a unique elk migration route.
6) I fear that the real purpose is to provide a large loop around Golden for a race. GoldenGiddyup sponsors such a race already which has a pro class. Definitely not for kids.

I strongly support the STS project. A natural surface trail will promote the growth of mountain biking among the community's youth while alleviating traffic on the cement path. As a resident, parent, and cyclist I think this plan is going to foster an environment enjoyable for all users.

STS is great for all aspects of our community, the kids learning skills, the youth involved in NICA, adults enjoying exercise and staying healthy and those who don't want more bike traffic as they walk. Let's do this!

I fully support the SingleTrack Sidewalks in Golden. Singletrack Sidewalks have shown to be very successful in other communities and bring value to those communities. Thank you GiddyUp!

I am in full support of this proposal. The residents using paved paths and those using dirt paths are all out for the same goals: exercise and the enjoyment of our beautiful state. However, creating alternative paths to reduce interaction between these two groups will provide a greater state of enjoyment for everyone. Let's do this, Giddyup!

I fully support the project. Providing alternate routes will decrease the number of times a biker passes a walker on a downhill segment of pavement and may actually enhance a walker’s experience on the trail. Golden has many excellent trails but not enough that are readily accesible for kids at an appropriate level. Golden is an outdoorsy community that includes bikers, hiker, kayakers, paragliders and the list goes on. Makin the most of our resources makes sense.

I think this is a great plan that helps foster a new generation of outdoor enthusiasts and safe, enjoyable transportation around town. Outdoor hobbyists are clearly a major contributor to the Golden economy. In addition, people who gain an appreciation for the outdoors, are more likely to be good stewards for the environment whether it is picking up trash, being conscious of their footprint on global warming, preventing forest fires, and so on. I only see this program having positive impacts on the community.

I cannot believe that the City of Golden would even consider entertaining this cockamamie idea. I live in Stonebridge and my home backs up to the open space, which is the reason I moved to this beautiful neighborhood 15 years ago. It is quiet and peaceful here. These trails, one of which would literally be inches behind my backyard, would severely impact my quality of life, taking away my privacy, adding noise, creating dust, displacing the wildlife that use the area so that they can avoid contact with the users of the paved trails, and cause erosion. All so that this special interest group of mountain bikers can have more trails. What makes this group of individuals more important than the residents who live here? Golden Giddyup claiming that this is a kid-friendly endeavor is ludicrous. We all see how mountain bikers come screaming down our trail systems, do you really think they are going to slow down on a 2-way dirt trail where beginners are in their way? We are happy to share the existing multi-use paved trails with them, but apparently they do not want to share the trails with other users because it slows them down. I fully support the idea of creating areas where children and novices can learn to mountain bike on easy terrain, but not in residential neighborhoods in areas that would negatively impact the residents. This proposal seems like it is geared more towards connecting to mountain bike trails like Apex, so that they do not have to use the multi-use trail, and not for beginners. The idea that this group would maintain the trails is also not feasible, especially long-term, and the burden would ultimately fall on the city.

This is a quiet and peaceful residential neighborhood, and my home is my sanctuary, not a rec center. This proposal would detrimentally affect our lifestyle and the value of our homes. I find this proposal the be the extremely selfish efforts of one group of recreational enthusiasts.

I see that none of the City Counsil members backyards would be affected by this proposal like mine would be, and I would be happy to invite any of you to come over to my home to see what this would look like from this resident's perspective, as the aerial photos do not do it justice.

I am in full support of the Singletrack Sidewalk. Singletrack sidewalks have been very successful in other communities and a valuable asset to those communities. It is something that is needed throughout Golden. With this proposal being kid/beginner friendly it is going to be a great way to get kids to put the phones and games down and get outside and play. It will also help reduce hiker/biker conflict along the current paved path. Not to mention a fun/safe environment for kids to get to and from school.

I am opposed to adding a "single track sidewalk" trail from Apex Park to Golden, and my concerns are the same as many stated re erosion, protecting habitat and wildlife, problems with maintenance and supervision and issues with children/people going even more off track. The corridor from Apex to Hwy 6 is a lovely area for walking (as well as biking) and in my mind bicycles off trail would contribute to the destruction to what we might have of a quiet, nature experience. Nature is important to me.

Sharing the existing trails works pretty well. I think that building another "dirt sidewalk" starts down the proverbial slippery slope. More specialized trails? Some for each group? I myself would prefer a dedicated dirt trail for walking/hiking without having to be cautious about bicycles whizzing by. Those are hard to find without driving some distance. Don't we have a bike park?

I have lived in this area for over 15 years, am familiar with the open spaces and use the paved trails almost daily. I have serious concerns about what is being proposed by this trail system. especially since there is an existing paved, erosion free solution. Below are points that need to be considered.

1. Segment 5 has known elk and deer calving areas. The proposed areas will intersect these areas and disrupt sensitive wildlife habitat. Other wildlife in the area that will be impacted include, bobcats, coyotes, skunks, snakes, rare birds, such as Lizuli Buntings, great horned owls, and swainson hawks. Has the Department of Wildlife evaluated these factors? I would be happy to show anyone interested where we have seen elk and deer calving.

2. The city documentation referenced additional, unanticipated costs the city had to incur when the bike park insurance situation changed. What analysis has been done to prevent that from happening again?

3. A plan to create a trail must also have a plan and commitment by golden giddyup to manage it and a commitment to return the landscape to its natural state if the program is discontinued or the organization can no longer manage it.

Please consider these factors before deciding to build trails through the sensitive area where segment 5 is proposed.

Thank You

I believe it is unwise to encourage mountain bike behavior in a residential corridor.

We have lived in the Stonebridge area for 15 years and walk the paved Kenney Run trail daily and ride our bikes occasionally. We have never had a problem sharing the paved trail with others. We don't believe another trail is necessary at all and those who say it's a great idea probably don't live here and realize how disruptive it will be to the great numbers of wildlife who make their homes here. Has anyone given consideration to the residents whose homes back up to the open space and who will be negatively affected by the additional bikers who will be coming to the area and the noise, dirt and dust that will result from it. Bikers riding a dirt trail next to the paved trail will also kick up dirt, unintentionally, and interfere with those using the paved trail as well as interfering with the beauty, peace and quiet of this pristine area. Why ruin it with an unneeded dirt trail when there are other trails designed for this purpose to be found in Golden, specifically the Apex trail. There is also a beginner bike trail in another part of Golden as well that is conducive for introducing young riders to this sport.
I would venture that most of us bought in this neighborhood because of the wildlife that share their home with us and the protection, peace, quiet and tranquility this area affords to them. This unnecessary trail will be an intrusion on a way of life that many of us treasure. It undermines the whole purpose of a well-established open space area.We invite city officials to come to the neighborhoods that will be affected and see the areas for themselves. Segment 5 of the proposed trail is of major concern to many of us.
We hope the Parks and Recreation Dept and City Council will give serious consideration to this proposal and how it will negatively impact the area at the expense of native wildlife, ecology and the residents using the trail. We also request city officials not bow to a small special interest group, GiddyupGolden, at the expense of our cherished open space and those of us who have the privilege of living here. Is a 1 mile dirt trail really worth all of the effort, expense and hard feelings that this proposal is generating?

I don’t see the need for another trail through residential and open space areas. In particular, Segment 5, is a known area for wildlife viewing. Many animals, birds use this area for dens, nests, hunting and birthing. I worry that adding mountain bike trails will disturb the natural habitat of the many animals that reside and roam there. I also, don’t appreciate that the public is informed of this and other proposals so late in the game. Not everyone is into mountain biking or street biking. But most people are into a quiet walk and observing the beauty of the landscape and the wildlife, birds and plants in the area.

The is absolutely no reason to allow a dirt trail to carrell the existing Kind Run concrete bike path in our neighborhood. The survey is unfairly biased to favoring the dirt trails.

It seems difficult to justify adding another trail next to the existing Kinney Run Trail just because yet another transport mode and recreation toy has been developed. I know that electric bikes go uphill considerably faster than manual bikes so will that fact justify a third trail for those vehicles? Shall there be separate trails or lanes for each mode?
The singletrack trail has some merit where it can divert most bike traffic away from the Heritage Dells playground. But, where there is already an adequate trail such as segments 2 and 3 why introduce bare earth and erosion to the nicely groomed lawn adjacent to the Kinney Trail that Golden has installed and maintains? Why can’t bikers ride on the concrete trail?
A bare earth trail immediately next to the existing paved trail would be unsightly but as such a trail gets very far from Kinney it becomes more problematic. Specifically, much of segment 5 is shown on the slope well above Kinney and will introduce erosion debris to that trail as well as fouling its drainage ditch.
Last but not least is the increasing human encroachment on wildlife. As segments 1 and 5 intrude on land separate from existing trails there is less and less room for the elk, deer and other critters to have their own space. And the justification for it is for human entertainment and to demonstrate our dominance over nature? Let’s share the existing paved trail in those places where the City can do so.
JJ Argo

This is awesome. I will definitely ride these trails with my kids. I also use the parks and would appreciate giving apex users space away from the playground. Now, if you could only connect through trip road without having to go in the street...

We’re a family of riders and hikers living in Stone Bridge. This proposal is appealing, but a plan must be implemented to support positive experiences for all trail users. These new routes won’t be one way only, and tense interactions between different trails users will flow over from Apex. We love the idea of Strider kids rocking these new trails, but the reality is that most slower speed users will be frightened and intimidated by high speed users. Our community needs to proactively address this issue with these proposed trails and in existing open spaces, so that we remain a positive, respectful, and cohesive community, all enjoying the outdoors. Additionally, several of the routes do impinge upon seasonal usage areas by elk and deer. An environmental impact assessment should be made.