Colorado town's gate proposal sparks safety, public access dispute with Denver and Littleton

A proposal to add gates at entrances to the Town of Bow Mar is drawing pushback from Denver and Littleton leaders. Residents say the plan is about protecting children and families from speeding cut-through traffic.

Bow Mar, a small town of about 950 people, sits between Denver and Littleton. Town leaders say the community has become a shortcut for drivers using local streets. 

A town traffic study found about 1,200 vehicles come through Bow Mar each day and the majority of those drivers do not live there. Residents say the issue has become dangerous in a community with more than 100 children, as well as many retirees and seniors.

"This is not about gating off the community," said Liz Manning, a longtime Bow Mar resident and member of the town board of trustees. "This is purely a public safety issue."

Manning said Bow Mar has tried several traffic calming measures over the years, including speed bumps, roundabouts, striping, additional stop signs, "kids at play" signs and lowering the speed limit to 20 mph.

The current proposal would add controlled access gates at two of the town's three main entrances. A smaller entrance near Tufts Avenue would be closed permanently. Town officials said the roads would remain public and emergency responders would still have access.

Bow Mar resident Chip Mower said his family has changed how they move around the neighborhood because of speeding drivers.

"We don't ride bikes on certain streets anymore. We don't walk our dogs on certain streets," Mower said. 

Mower said one car ended up in his neighbor's yard, and other vehicles have crashed into walls and medians nearby.

"At the end of the day, we're just parents trying to protect our children," he said.

Denver and Littleton leaders are pushing back.

In a June 1 letter to Bow Mar Mayor Bryan Sperry, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Littleton Mayor Kyle Schlachter requested a pause on the proposal. They wrote that the gates would "fundamentally and permanently change" public right-of-way access for Denver and Littleton residents.

The letter goes on to say, "Bow Mar undoubtedly expects its residents to have reasonable access to Denver and Littleton

roads and rights-of-way. Denver and Littleton expect the same in turn."

The mayors also raised concerns that people living near Bow Mar could lose access to a signalized intersection used to turn left onto westbound Quincy Avenue, creating disruption and safety concerns.

Denver City Councilman Kevin Flynn, who represents constituents nearby, said Bow Mar residents may have traffic concerns, but he believes the current proposal would create new problems for Denver residents.

"I don't believe any of their safety concerns are being dismissed," Flynn said. "I think what they're proposing is exacerbating our safety concerns by cutting off access to a public right of way to our residents."

Flynn said residents in his district could be denied access to the traffic signal at Quincy Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard and instead be forced to turn onto Quincy from nearby streets controlled by stop signs.

"That's not acceptable for us, for Bow Mar to be creating a significant traffic hazard for us in the course of resolving theirs," Flynn said.

Flynn said he is sympathetic to Bow Mar's concerns because Denver residents nearby also deal with speeding, crashes and cut-through traffic.

"Our little kids have the same concerns as theirs, and they're no less precious," Flynn said.

Flynn also said Bow Mar has not implemented all of the traffic calming measures recommended in a 2024 study, including additional speed-calming designs such as chicanes.

"If Bow Mar wants to become a private gated community, they can do that," Flynn said. "But there's a proper way to do that. They're trying to do it halfway by closing off public access at Sheridan Boulevard."

Manning said Bow Mar wants to continue working with neighboring communities but believes the town must act before someone is seriously hurt.

"Our residents are strongly urging us to act before we have a fatality," Manning said.

Flynn said Denver wants Bow Mar to pause the proposal and work with Denver and Littleton on a different solution.

"I'd ask them not to do this, to pause as the mayors of Littleton and Denver have asked, and sit down genuinely and authentically with us and look at other solutions," Flynn said. "Because closing off a public street is not the solution."

Town officials said the proposal is still in the design and engineering phase and would require additional coordination with police and emergency services. If they move forward with the gate, implementation could take many months or longer.