To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Ceila Rethamel, PE, Acting Director, Public Works & Development
Prepared By:
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James Katzer, PE, Transportation Division Manager, Public Works & Development
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presenter
Presenter: James Katzer, PE, Transportation Division Manager, Public Works & Development
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Subject:
title
2:30 PM *C17-07, C22-15 - I70/Monaghan Interchange Project and Interchange Impact Fee IGA
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Purpose and Request:
recommended action
Staff will be providing the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) project progress update and a discussion on the various intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) needed to implement the I-70/Monaghan Interchange Project and the Interchange Impact Fee. Staff is seeking:
1. Support from the BOCC to enter into an IGA with the associated Metro Districts of Sky Ranch and Eastgate.
2. Support to move forward with the development of future IGAs with Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the Metro Districts associated with the I-70/Airpark (Monaghan) Interchange Project.
3. Support to implement the Interchange Impact Fee.
Public Works and Development Staff recommend that the BOCC approve moving forward with the various IGA activities needed to design and construct the I-70/Airpark (Monaghan) Interchange project and implement the Interchange Impact Fee.
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Alignment with Strategic Plan: Sustainable Growth and Infrastructure - Implement smart growth policies to align housing, transportation, open spaces and economic development.
Background and Discussion: In collaboration with the Metro Districts of Sky Ranch and Eastgate, the County is completing a CDOT 1601 interchange approval process to obtain the approvals and permits necessary to construct improvements needed at the I-70/Airpark (Monaghan) interchange. It has been determined that planned development south of the existing interchange will create a need for capacity and safety improvements to the existing I-70/Airpark interchange, as the interchange was designed to accommodate lower, rural levels of traffic. In addition to Sky Ranch and Eastgate developments, future developments within the unincorporated County, and the City of Aurora will continue to put demands on the existing interchange.
Public Works and Development (PWD) received support to move forward with the implementation of the Interchange Impact Fee during an August 5, 2025, study session. To implement the impact fee two items surfaced during and after the study session that required PWD to solidify before the Interchange Impact Fee was brought back to the BOCC for formal approval.
1. Distribution of the Interchange Impact Fee revenue to the party(ies) that fund the construction.
2. Ensure that the short-term project cost for design and construction along with the long-term costs for maintenance of the interchange were born by development.
To address these items, PWD staff along with the Attorney’s Office worked closely with CDOT and the Metro Districts of Sky Ranch and Eastgate.
Per the Colorado Revised Statutes, the County is required to utilize the Interchange Impact Fee revenue to pay for the cost to design and construct the interchange and therefore, the distribution of the collected impact fee was to be distributed to the party(ies) funding the project. After several meetings with the Metro Districts, a negotiated IGA was completed and the “final form” of the agreement was included in Legistar. The highlights of the agreement are as follows; three party IGA between the Metro Districts and the County, revenue directly distributed to those funding the improvements, and frequency and timing of revenue distribution. Once the Interchange Impact Fee is adopted by the BOCC, the Interchange Impact Fee disbursement IGA will be brought to the BOCC as a consent agenda item for approval.
To ensure that development is responsible for the short-term and long-term costs of the new interchange improvements, the County has negotiated a position with the Metro Districts for the responsibility for the construction and the County’s share of the maintenance to fall on the Metro Districts. This will be accomplished through three IGAs as described below.
As part of the 1601 approval process, CDOT requires the interchange project to complete and sign a final IGA that covers the interchange construction, maintenance, and transportation demand management. At the request of the County, CDOT has agreed to replace the final IGA with two IGAs that allow the County to ensure that development pays for the interchange. The first IGA will be between CDOT and the Metro District(s) for the construction of the interchange. The second IGA will be between CDOT and the County for the maintenance and transportation demand management components of the interchange. The County’s maintenance requirements will be negotiated with CDOT during the final design phase. Both IGAs will be initiated and completed once the project enters into the final design phase anticipated to start in 2027.
Note: to date, the cost for the interchange design has been funded by the Sky Ranch Metro District.
The remaining IGAs will be between the County and the Metro Districts that will assign maintenance responsibility determined in the design phase to the Metro District(s). The Metro Districts have agreed to fulfill the maintenance requirements of the interchange.
These IGAs are anticipated to be brought back to the BOCC for approval in late 2027 or early 2028.
Interchange Impact Fee adoption
The Interchange Impact Fee is planned to be brought to the BOCC in a public meeting in November for a short presentation and adoption. The draft Interchange Impact Fee resolution has been included in Legistar and is summarized as:
• Based on the Interchange Impact Fee Study completed in June 2025 by FHU
• Impact fee area is defined and is tied to those that receive a benefit from the interchange project
• Equitable impact fee structure based on land use and cost per trip
• Cost of the interchange improvement project have been estimated to be about $68 million - construction and financing charges.
The Interchange Impact Fee schedule can be found in the resolution and the presentation. The high-level project cost estimate and project impact fee revenues will be presented in the study session.
Brief project update
The project team recently obtained support from CDOT Staff to submit the project’s System Level Study for approval which took a significant amount of time and effort. The majority of the effort and time centered on the required transportation demand management component of the requirements and the project team met with CDOT several times to resolve comments. This additional time delayed the completion of the preliminary design plans.
It is anticipated that the project team will submit the 30% design level documents and the System Level Study to CDOT in the fall of 2026. Once these are approved by CDOT, the project will enter into the final design phase and IGA negotiations for maintenance in 2027.
Alternatives: The County could pursue the no-build alternative, which would not provide any improvements at the interchange in the immediate future and the County will need to continue to restrict the Sky Ranch, Eastgate, and other developments. In a few years, the existing interchange will be at or over capacity with developments in the County and in other jurisdictions.
Fiscal Impact: The County has signed a funding agreement with the Sky Ranch Developer, which the Developer is obligated for $923,765 cost to complete the CDOT 1601 Interchange Approval Process, including the calculations for an impact fee to fund the interchange improvements. Previously, the Sky Ranch Metro District has funded $500,000 of the Watkins/ Airpark Interchange Study and has funded approximately $500,000 in improvements to the existing Airpark interchange. Because the 1601 process must be initiated and completed by a local jurisdiction, the work is being managed by the Public Works and Development Department; however, the County will see no fiscal impact with the exception of Staff time needed to provide project management activities to ensure the project is completed.
The Sky Ranch and Eastgate Metro Districts will issue bonds for construction of the interchange, with pledged revenue from the Interchange Impact Fee and Regional Improvement Mills (RIMs). The County will collect the impact fees and remit to the Metro Districts for expenses related to the project construction including financing. The Metro Districts indebtedness will be, and remain, their own.
There is no funding action required with this study session agenda.
Alignment with Strategic Implementation Strategies: The attached framework helps Arapahoe County institutionalize values-based, transparent decision-making, documenting how we make decisions and carry out actions to achieve the county’s strategic plan.
Staff Recommendation: PWD staff recommends that the County move forward with approval of the Interchange Impact Fee disbursement IGA and with the adoption of the Interchange Impact Fee to help fund the improvements at the I-70/Airpark (Monaghan) interchange. PWD staff also recommends moving forward with the creation of the necessary IGAs to ensure that development carries the long-term costs of the new interchange project.
Concurrence: The Sky Ranch and Eastgate Metro Districts and CDOT concur with these requests.