If you submit a comment online or in-person, we suggest you specify to which specific section in Lakewood's Zoning Code or Comprehensive Plan your comment is relevant.

Simply submitting a general comment without linking it to the Zoning Code or Comprehensive Plan may result in your comment being disregarded or misinterpreted.

If you can afford to hire an attorney to help formulate your concerns and possibly submit your concerns on your behalf, that would be excellent. 

This is a quasi-judicial hearing which closely resembles a court proceeding rather than a city council meeting.

You may also view the hearing and provide public comment at LakewoodSpeaks.Org

We do not know when Lakewood will start accepting comments but you may be able to submit online comments prior to May 7.

Please feel free to attend and comment.  

If you attend in-person, keep in mind a quasi-judicial proceeding is similar to a courtroom so applauding comments or cheering comments could get you removed from the chamber or other negative consequences could accrue. 

The hearing concerns whether the large housing project at 777 S Yarrow Street adjacent to Belmar Park in Lakewood, Colorado should be approved.

If the commission approves the major site plan, there could be a legal challenge to that decision raised in a court of law because some citizens have funded a charity that has retained an attorney and stated its intention to raise such a challenge if necessary.

Having comments submitted from informed citizens who explain how the major site plan fails to comply with the law could possibly be utilized in such an appeal, especially if such comments are researched in advance by your attorney in order to improve the legal impact and clarity of your citizen comments.

Because additional evidence will likely be rejected at the appeal level, it is important to get anything important into the hearing record on May 7.

You can rely on the fact that the developer will have top notch legal representation at the hearing.  It is up to the public to debunk the rosy presentation those attorneys may make on behalf of the developer.

Some developers find advocates that can make almost any project, even, as an example, a 24-hour concrete batch plant, sound like a vacation resort destination.  That could be what the public will be up against on May 7th.

And if you have a legal background or can afford to enlist legal support, please step up now to make your best argument.

May 7th at 7:00 PM at 480 S Alison Parkway, Lakewood, CO

Thanks for your support!  -Steve