CLEAR CREEK COUNTY, Colo. — A private developer has submitted an application to build a gas station and convenience store at the bottom of the road leading up to two popular 14,000-foot peaks, a move that the Clear Creek County community and Alpine Rescue Team is closely monitoring.
The infrastructure would be constructed on a 4.37-acre property at the Bakerville exit, just off Interstate 70 at the start of County Road 321 (Stevens Gulch Road), which leads up to the trailhead for Grays Peak and Torreys Peak. Right now, it's an empty dirt lot with a freestanding chimney in the middle.
Denver7 learned about this proposal thanks to a viewer tip in early December.
One of our first questions was if this would impact — negatively or positively — the operations of the Alpine Rescue Team, a professional mountain rescue group that operates in Clear Creek, Jefferson and Gilpin counties. They respond to emergencies on Grays and Torreys several times a year and the numbers have been increasing the past couple years. Just this past summer, they were part of a massive response to rescue two people who had been struck by lightning on Torreys.
"It's a beautiful area, but it also can be a very tough area in certain situations," Dawn Wilson, Alpine Rescue Team's public information officer, told Denver7's Stephanie Butzer.
She explained that during responses to the two 14ers, many vehicles are involved. Plenty have trailers for snowmobiles or UTVs. About a dozen volunteer members will also bring their own vehicles.
"So, when we respond up there, we do use that entire parking lot, including all the other emergency agencies that are responding with us," Wilson said.
Having a gas station and convenience store at the location would impact their operations "significantly," Wilson said.
"But more importantly, it's going to impact those individuals that have an emergency because it will probably slow down our response to them, unfortunately," she said. "We hope that if this does go through, that the developers do talk with the emergency agencies in that area, including Alpine Rescue Team, of how we can work together to make sure we're not delayed and responding to someone having an emergency up in that area."
Often, these emergencies require a Flight for Life helicopter, which lands on the bridge or exit ramp over I-70 in Bakerville to pick up volunteer members and quickly bring them to the incident on the mountain, she said.
"So, if this project does go through, that will make it more difficult to close down that ramp, but there will be inconveniences to people from the highway — that it would have to be closed down, is my guess, to have the emergency access," Wilson said.
Traffic on I-70 has already increasingly become a problem for their operations and she said any more delays could have life-changing impacts.
"If we cannot get to people quick enough, sometimes people will lose a life or get into a worse situation," Wilson said.
"Our team leadership is very aware of what's going on, and we are paying attention because it will impact our team and our response significantly," she continued. "So, we are just playing it step by step, and keeping our ear open and making sure we're involved where we can be involved, and standing back and just listening when we need to just stand back and listen."
Planning commission continues discussion for 2026
The Clear Creek County Planning Commission was expected to take up this application on its Wednesday agenda and ask to continue it for a future meeting, but a power outage canceled the meeting altogether.
The commission posted online that they were seeking to postpone the proposal, titled Bakerville LLC Rezoning (RZ2025-03), until Jan. 21 — and likely beyond that — due to "a high level of public interest and engagement."
As of Wednesday, staff had received more than 200 comments "indicating a strong desire from the community to participate in and understand the proposal and review process," according to a commission memo about the proposal.
That meeting never ended up happening as the building lost power in the strong winds Wednesday.
Staff plan to re-open the public comment period.
And the community is ready for it.
Torn opinions on what is best for Bakerville
Social media posts and comments have started to pick up speed in the past month, with people split on the issue.
"No truck stop in Bakerville. More than enough options for gas along I-70. Hard no."
"Good idea. I’m all for it. Clear Creek County needs the tax revenue."
"It’s going to ruin the beauty of the surrounding area and it’s too close to the creek in case of a fuel spill. I’m against it."
"It is needed, has been needed, for years."
"Growth in Bakerville does not stop with a gas station. Today it’s fuel pumps; tomorrow it becomes apartments."
"Build it. We can't keep making excuses to avoid economic development for the sake of nostalgia."
Eric Brown, who lives on the Front Range and recreates often in Clear Creek County, said he learned about the proposal on Instagram and it immediately caught his attention. He plans to participate in the public comment period and hopes residents in the area do too.
He understands the lack of rest stops on I-70 between Silverthorne and Georgetown and that drivers need gasoline to explore up and down the corridor.
But he is concerned about the proposed transition, since the Bakerville exit has been used as a recreation hotspot for a long time.
"It's not a pristine area, but you've got to think about folks that are going there to escape the mumbo-jumbo of the city life," he said. "Not rolling into an asphalt kingdom of diesel pumps and everything else. Beef jerky and Red Bulls."
He said this sort of move could be a slippery slope leading to more possible development at the exit.
"Having a Buc-ee's, or whatever the hell it's going to be at Bakerville between Georgetown and Silverthorne — I've heard worse ideas, for sure," he said. "But I've also heard much, much better ideas."
Denver7's Adria Ireheta went to a gas station in Georgetown on Saturday to talk with drivers about the proposal. While nobody wanted to interview on camera, truck drivers did say a truck stop at Bakerville would be helpful during closures at the Eisenhower Tunnel, which is about six miles west. One truck driver also mentioned a truck stop with more parking spots would be welcomed.
Denver7 reached out to the American Trucking Associations and Colorado Motor Carriers Association about this proposal on Friday, but have not heard back as of publishing time. We will update this story if we do.
To learn about possible environmental concerns for a project of this size, Denver7 heard from Julia Kintsch, a senior ecologist and the founder of ECO-resolutions out of Salida. The Colorado Department of Transportation used her expertise in wildlife connectivity, wildlife corridors and crossings infrastructure as they planned and constructed the I-25 South Gap Project.
She explained that elk, mule deer, mountain goats, moose and other wildlife call the national forest in Clear Creek County home. The Bakerville area marks one of the few places Canada lynx, which were reintroduced in the late 1990s and early 2000s, have crossed I-70 to expand their range. She said the Bakerville exit bridge over I-70 isn't a wildlife crossing by any means — it's very much a paved road for cars — but because it currently sees little traffic, wildlife use it to safely cross the interstate.
About a decade ago, CDOT identified connectivity zones across the I-70 mountain corridor and this was one of them, because of the value of wildlife habitat on both sides, she said.
"And so it was an area also that was identified as being a barrier to wildlife movement, and wanting to minimize wildlife vehicle conflict and, in the future, be able to provide safe passages for wildlife," she said.
Traffic News
Largest wildlife overpass in North America opens in Douglas County
Kintsch said there are a lot of factors to consider with the gas station proposal, including much more human activity, light and noise in a forested area.
"I think people really do value our wildlife populations, and we want to see wild animals in the landscape," she said. "It's part of why we live here. It's part of why people come here to visit. We need to be very proactively and conscientiously working to preserve some of these areas and coexisting with wildlife, not just kind of thinking about it as an afterthought."
She acknowledged that the proposal is for just one gas station, but over time, projects like this end up making a bigger impact collectively.
"When we continue to pick at these (ecosystems) little by little, that's how things disappear, and then before you know it, it's gone," she said. "And then our wildlife populations are the ones that are really paying those consequences, but we all do."
The Bakerville Neighborhood's website has posted in opposition to the proposal and is asking its residents to write an objection letter.
It cites heavy truck use, general traffic volume, damage to trails and the natural environment, increased noise and general negative impacts to quality of life for residents.
The neighborhood's website added that there are three truck stops within 35 miles and three convenience stores within eight miles.
"A truck stop brings numerous nuisances including diesel fumes, bright lighting at all hours, litter, and the general industrial character that is antithetical to residential zoning," the website reads. "It would introduce constant noise from idling diesel engines, air brakes, refrigeration units running throughout the night, and the general commotion of 24-hour commercial operations. This facility would fundamentally alter the character of our neighborhood and negatively impact property values that residents have worked hard to maintain."
A deep dive into the details of the proposed gas station
Denver7 dove into the 80-page application to learn what the proposal exactly entails.
The application was submitted by Mandy Madrid and Nate Reeves of Reeve & Associates Inc. on behalf of Bakerville, LLC, on Sept. 22 to rezone the property from mountain residential to commercial - tourism/recreation (C-TR) to develop a Gold Gate Petroleum fueling station and convenience store. Legal notice was posted on Nov. 27. Signs were posted on the property on Dec. 3.
The area in question is currently a dirt parking lot typically used by people recreating in the area. There are a few homes nearby.
The applicant hopes to turn it into a gas station, truck stop and convenience store. Their application reads that changing the zoning on this property "is consistent with the overarching goals of the Clear Creek County Master Plan, which recognizes the critical importance of the I-70 corridor for both tourism and essential services."
It would create 16 regular vehicle fuel stations and eight large truck fuel stations, dozens of public parking spaces, and a single-story convenience store. It will have "dark-sky compliant" lighting, the application reads.
It reads that the current zoning as residential — specifically mountain residential — is "an erroneous designation that does not reflect the property's true character, location, or highest and best use" since it is not located in a residential neighborhood. The conditions there have "changed dramatically" since that original zoning was put in place, as recreational traffic has increased and created "a clear demand for traveler services at this interchange," it continues.
Rezoning it as C-TR use would better align with its location and the public's needs, the document reads.
"The purpose of the C-TR district is to accommodate and serve tourism and recreation, and there is no property more logically suited for this purpose than one located directly at a highway exit leading to those activities," the document reads.
It notes that this construction would provide fuel, food and restrooms along a stretch of highway that does not have that readily available. When Denver7 checked, we found the nearest gas stations were 17 miles west in Silverthorne and seven miles east in Georgetown. The nearest truck stop is in Downieville.
The applicant said they would prepare a report, soil analysis and design plans that would meet all Colorado Department Public Health and Environment and Clear Creek County Environmental Health standards.
Denver7 reached out to the applicant for comment.
You can read the full application in the below. Click here to open it in a new window.
Denver7 plans to follow this proposal whenever the Clear Creek County Planning Commission formally discusses it.
