Environmentalists sometimes criticize clearing trees and using water for sports fields in otherwise untrammeled open space. However, soccer pitches on a former landfill are hard to complain about.
Several years after initiating plans for sports fields on top of the Rooney Road landfill, the fields are getting closer to kickoff and the plan has drawn few hecklers.
The first phase includes five to seven sports fields, a dog park and open space at the north end of C-470. Jefferson County, Golden and Table Mountain Soccer Association have signed agreements regarding the project’s improvement costs and usage, and construction may begin this year.
The city will be responsible for the field’s improvements, such as general upkeep and peeling back the synthetic turf to add materials if settling occurs.
Jefferson County, which owns the property, would bear the cost of a catastrophic failure, such as replacing the landfill’s cap.
“We don’t anticipate catastrophic failures initially,” Parks and Recreation Director Rod Tarullo said. “Us pulling the fields up and adding dirt — there’s more likelihood of that.”
A Littleton sports field was build on top of a landfill three years ago. There has been some settling on a nearby road, but none has occurred on the field, Tarullo said.
Because of drainage underneath the field and a methane gas collection system, no utilities will be available at the field complex. Smoking will also be strictly prohibited because of the methane gas still buried in the landfill, even though Tarullo said escaping gas wouldn’t be a safety concern.
The fields will be geared toward youth sports — mainly soccer, but also lacrosse and football. When no games are scheduled, the public will be allowed access.
The Table Mountain Soccer Association secured a $500,000 Gates Foundation grant to cover construction and maintenance costs. Jefferson County Open Space also gave the city $3 million for the project.
“The whole idea is to make this something that is feasible for all the youth sports organizations and benefit kids of the greater Golden area,” said Scott Albertson, spokesman for the Table Mountain Soccer Association.
Golden youth sports are the top priority, followed by Jefferson County R-1 District sports teams, camps and other groups.