CDOT outlines draft 10‑year plan updates; Adams County items split for transparency

Colorado Department of Transportation Region 1 staff told Adams County commissioners on Oct. 8 that CDOT is updating its 10-year plan and expects to take a draft to the CDOT commission in November with final action in December.

"We are in the process of updating our 10 year plan," said Jessica Mikkelbus, director for CDOT Region 1, as she opened the presentation. She said Region 1 gave a draft to CDOT's internal executive oversight committee and expects the commission to review the proposal in November and consider action in December.

The draft plan uses planning totals of $75 million per year for fiscal years 2027'30 (a $300 million subtotal), substantially less than the roughly $150 million-per-year planning total used in the previous plan, Mikkelbus said. The plan, she added, includes pre-allocated state funds such as a $30 million set-aside for the Floyd Hill project that was planned before COVID cost escalations.

Mikkelbus said CDOT restructured how it lists projects in the draft to give local officials more transparency. Large corridor entries such as the I-270 corridor improvements have been broken into smaller, trackable line items (maintenance, bridges, corridor mitigation and overall corridor improvements). "Breaking those out into smaller buckets gives you as commissioners and your local agency partners just more transparency about what's happening along the corridor," she said.

Region 1 staff emphasized continued reliance on enterprise financing in the draft plan. Mikkelbus said CDOT depends heavily on the Bridge and Tunnel Enterprise (BTE) for bridge and tunnel work and on the Colorado Tolling and Infrastructure Office (CTIO) for toll- or express-lane-linked loans; several large north-metro items including I-25 and I-270 segments would be "heavily reliant on CTIO funds."

Commissioners pressed CDOT staff on whether projects listed in the 10-year plan are actually funded. Mikkelbus answered that projects in the plan's near-term years (FY27'FY30) are those CDOT has relatively high confidence in funding; projects categorized as "FY31-plus" are less certain and may rely on CTIO loans or grants.

Commissioners also raised concerns about how projects in Denver or Boulder can "leapfrog" Adams County projects. Commissioner Julie Mullica asked CDOT to show how the plan looks for other jurisdictions; she said her priority is to guard against repeated reordering that pushes Adams projects later in the schedule.

Mikkelbus and staff asked for continued public comment and local presence at upcoming CDOT commission hearings and public meetings, and advised commissioners that three public meetings (for projects discussed in the presentation) are planned in the coming weeks.

The presentation listed 12 project line items affecting Adams County in the draft plan; Mikkelbus said some entries result from breaking larger items into parts to improve tracking rather than adding wholly new projects. She also said CDOT expects to add mitigation work on State Highway 224 as a discrete line item to show earlier commitment and draw down mitigation funds promptly.

Staff urged county support for the draft at commission hearings and for active local participation in public outreach. CDOT staff said the draft plan has had initial internal approval but still requires the commission's final sign-off.

What happens next: CDOT plans to present the draft plan to its commission in November, accept questions and clarifications, and return in December seeking commission action; meanwhile Region 1 staff will hold local public meetings and continue outreach.