Dear Neighbors,

We would like to first extend our deep gratitude to over 200+ concerned neighbors who attended last Wednesday’s hearing, and another 65+ joined on Monday, (not to mention all of those online) all standing in strong support of responsible development in Jefferson County.  We would also like to extend our appreciation to the Board of Adjustments for its thoughtful questions and for listening to two days of powerful public testimony on March 5th and March 10th.

But what we learned yesterday left us stunned.

The developer shared—without any recent prior testing—that they are using soil from a former radioactive wastewater pond to construct a drinking water canal.

This revelation is alarming. Families read labels before feeding their children—shouldn’t we know what’s in the soil before it ends up in the water they drink?

The Board of Adjustments expressed unease about this issue but stated that their role was not to determine whether radioactive soil should be used in a drinking water canal. Instead, they ruled on whether the county had appropriately relied on a 1998 state decision that permits this practice—and they upheld it. The permit approval to reroute the canal will be upheld.

It is unacceptable to make public health decisions based on 30-year-old data. The Board ruled that outdated findings are sufficient justification, but we believe otherwise. Science has progressed. Experts tell us that geochemical reactions on this site are mobilizing uranium, increasing contamination in the soil. The developer’s surface radiation tests cannot detect this danger.

And yet, they’re using this soil to build the berms for the drinking water canal—without re-testing it to today’s standards—before excavating.

This community is more determined than ever to fight back against reckless development. The overwhelming reaction from our neighbors has been asking questions like: "They’re really digging up potentially contaminated soil without testing it first?"

We don’t want to breathe this in. We don’t want to drink this. And we sure as hell don’t want our kids exposed to it.

McIntyre Neighbors United will not stand by. We will continue organizing our neighborhoods, pursuing legal action, and working with county and state regulators to ensure public health is protected.

What We’re Doing Next

The overall Site Development Plan (SDP) has not yet been approved but is expected to move forward soon. MNU volunteers are working tirelessly to block the initial approval and are actively exploring appeal options.

We are expanding outreach efforts by personally connecting with every local Homeowner’s Association (HOA) to raise awareness and strengthen community support.

Given the latest revelations, it’s clear we need to step up monitoring efforts at the site. We are seeking additional support from experts and community members to ensure accountability.

How You Can Help Now

• Donate – Help fund our growing legal efforts.

• Spread the Word – Share this information with neighbors, HOAs, and local businesses—many people are STILL unaware.

• Join an MNU Team: 

  • Accountability Team – Environmental Watchdogs: Help monitor the site and hold the developer accountable. 

  • CO Environmental Engineers: Provide advisory support and expertise to our effort.

  • Fundraising Team: Contact Carmen Bay (mcintyreneighborsunited@gmail.com) to join in on our efforts to garner funds for our legal efforts.

  • Legal Support: We need attorneys and paralegals (regardless of specialty) who can help us be more conversant in legal language and "talk the talk" with our environmental lawyers to save time, money,  and help shape our legal strategy.

Our coalition is called ‘Neighbors’ United for a reason. We may not all be friends. We may not have met before. But as neighbors, we stand together for the safety of our community. Today, our well-being is at risk. Our children’s health is on the line. And that is a fight worth showing up for. 

We're in this together,

McIntyre Neighbors United

There are MANY issues that need to be addressed and the permit application will undergo a second round of reviews. Review the letter here.

A letter describing the findings from the County’s Planning Engineering department. You may read the letter here.

Nick has written an email answering some questions and providing some comments. You may review the PDF here and to respond we have another document outlining the steps for Agency comments.

The City of Arvada has submitted its comments regarding this project. You may review them here and please write to the Commissioners asking that they adopt these recommendations.

MNU, a grassroots organization of 18 HOAs, hosted a town hall meeting to provide the community with an overview of the Proposed Development.

We discussed environmental issues, with Mr. Fonda Apostolopoulos, P.E., Hazardous Materials & Waste Management Division, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Voluntary Cleanup Coordinator/ State Project Manager also attended.

If you missed the meeting, you may watch it on YouTube here

On July 19th, 2023, the developer submitted the site development plan. The case manager assigned is Nick Nelson and the engineer assigned is Ross Klopf. The current status of the project is in 1st Referral stage.

Deadlines for review by various parties are due by the end of August.

Both the Pre-Application and the Application details are inconsistent with the postcards and presentations sent/made by the owners and the developer. They are saying this is to be a business park, not a trucking distribution center, yet the application explicitly shows that it will be a warehouse distribution center.

The Jeffco County Commissioners rejected our second request to place a moratorium on permits for logistics distribution centers built too close to homes.

We disagree.

We are more determined than ever.

We have momentum.

We have our next steps ready to roll out so please stay tuned and check back on this website often.

What a great day! We had 21 people advocate for the moratorium, and 40-50 people attended the hearing in person.

This was quite an unusual Tuesday 8 a.m. Board of County Commissioners meeting. Typically the first six or so people provide public comments; the meeting lasts for an hour, and then the rest of the folks wishing to make public comments speak. However, this meeting took so long that MNU had to wait at least two hours before we could speak. But people stuck it out.

And the local CBS news team did a great, very long piece on our issue (please see the video).

Let’s keep the momentum going. Please follow up on today’s public comments at the Board of County Commissioner’s meeting and email the commissioners to ask them to put the moratorium on next week’s agenda for a vote. Our toolkit page has their contact info.

We are reaching out to commissioners to win their hearts and minds. If you have a relationship or know others who do and might be able to advocate the commissioners’ support for the moratorium, please let us know, and we can coordinate with you to reach out to them.

Community resubmits a more narrowly focused moratorium on approval of new permits for logistics distribution centers in-fill projects within 500 feet of established residential properties in text goes here.

The Jefferson County Commissioners table a community’s request for a moratorium on permits for logistics distribution centers within 3000 feet of residential homes. We are resubmitting a new moratorium citing 1000 feet of residential homes.

JeffCo grants conditional approval of land disturbance permit to relocate canal pending approval from Army Corps of Engineers.

The property owner submitted a land disturbance permit to relocate the Farmers High Line canal. Jefferson County will review that permit and decide during the next 40 to 70 days. The permit: Case Number: 22-124792GPA.

Preapplilcation filed with JeffCo for 3 logistics distribution centers.