Editor:
Two items in the February issue caught my eye. ?The first one was the side bar on county road numbers and the reference to the Fremont County system. ?The other was the article about the Alma, Granby, and Aspen “rampage”.
My family predecessors owned 40 acres in Cotopaxi since 1894. Lots along Plum Street (CO RD 51) were sold off years ago. ?My grandmother sold lots to Fremont County and CDOT in 1948. ?Both must pass through family property to get to their property. ?Both have right-of-way agreements on a long established road to do this. The remaining property, nearly 30 acres, has been in my name for several years. ?In looking at a Fremont County map of the Cotopaxi area several years ago, I noticed that that road was marked as CO RD 50. ?
After meeting with the District Three Commissioner numerous times, letters, and emails, over a period of two years, he insists that it is a county road and refuses to delete it from their road inventory and maps. ?This, even though the county did not go through a due process procedure to take a person’s property as required by the Colorado Constitution and the Constitution of the United States. ?The road inventory indicates the length of the road at almost two tenth of a mile although the road continues somewhat further into my property. ?The county and CDOT use only about 200 feet of the road. ?A branch of the road, that they are not claiming as county property, is the only entry into county property.
I am quite frustrated and have lost many hours of sleep worrying over this situation. ?I assume that those fellows at Alma, Granby, and Aspen were treated with courtesy, respect etc. and their requests may have been unlawful or not feasible etc., it does make one wonder what finally got to them.
Gerald “Moon” Mullins
Colorado City, CO
Possibly also of interest to you, I was born in Cotopaxi (1934) in the same house my mother was born in (1892).
