The 1970s

1970

  • Construction of Interstate 70 between Ward Road and West Colfax Avenue - U.S 40 (4 miles) completed
  • Construction of Interstate 70 between State Highway 26 and Lookout Mountain Exit - Mount Vernon Canyon (2.8 miles) and between Lookout Mountain Exit and Genesee Mountain (2.4 miles) completed
  • Arvada's first public golf course, Indian Tree Golf Club, opens

January 15, 1970

Coors launches ’Cash for Cans’ aluminum recycling program

May 12, 1970

Denver is awarded the 1976 Winter Olympics. The organizing committee considers the Evergreen-Indian Hills area as a venue for the Nordic events. After public outcry over the costs and environmental impact, Denver officially withdraws on November 15, 1970, and the games are eventually awarded to Innsbruck, Austria.

1971

Heritage Square opens on the old site of Magic Mountain

June 10, 1971

Riot breaks out at Red Rocks Park before a Jethro Tull concert, resulting in the concert being cancelled and tear gas dropped on rioters from low-flying helicopters

1972

  • Jefferson County voters approve a one-half percent sales tax for Open Space, inaugurating the county’s award-winning Open Space Program
  • Construction of Interstate 70 through remainder of Jefferson County completed (between Genesee Mountain and El Rancho Exit (2 miles) and El Rancho Exit and Beaver Brook (4 miles)
  • NFL’s Baltimore Colts hold training camp at Colorado School of Mines
  • Lyle Fulkerson begins another Tiny Town restoration

1973

  • Colorado School of Mines celebrates its Centennial (100 years)
  • The Astor House in Golden listed on the National Register of Historic Places

May 30, 1973

Jefferson County Civil Defense Department (established in 1951) changes its name to Department of Emergency Preparedness

October 25, 1973

Jefferson County Historical Society established. Renamed Evergreen Mountain Area Historical Society in 2018.

1974

  • First woman, Joanne K. Paterson, elected as a Jefferson County commissioner; she serves 1975 to 1979
  • National Renewable Energy Laboratory established. Begins operating in 1977 as the Solar Energy Research Institute
  • National Earthquake Information Center moves to Colorado School of Mines in Golden
  • Casa Bonita restaurant opens in the JCRS Shopping Center on West Colfax Avenue in Lakewood. Awarded landmark status by the Lakewood Historical Society in 2015
  • Regional Transportation District (RTD) formed

June 20, 1974

Two small planes collide over Crown Hill Cemetery. One plane falls to the ground in the cemetery and burns, killing four. The other plane belly-lands in Sloan’s Lake; two men inside are able to get out before it sinks and are rescued by a boater.

July 22, 1974

Jefferson County Historical Commission established to guide the observances of the Centennial-Bicentennial year of 1976. The volunteer group now promotes the preservation and use of historical resources and sites around the county.

1975

Jeffco Housing Dept. created to provide adequate housing for low and moderate income families residing in the county.

1976

  • United States Marine Corps memorial erected at US 6 and Colfax - the only one outside of Washington, D.C.
  • Morrison Historical Sites listed on the National Register
  • Jeffco received national recognition for "progressive county development" by the National Association of Counties for two programs: the Jefferson County Conference and Nature Center and the Solid Waste Satellite Transfer Stations

July 3 & 4, 1976

The Festival of the West, a Centennial-Bicentennial project of the Jefferson County Historical Commission, is held at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds

July 4, 1976

New Christy Minstrels perform at the debut of the Arvada Center

August 1, 1976

Lakewood Heritage Center opens as Belmar Museum.

1977

  • Federal government imposes a 55 mph speed limit to save gas during the country's energy crisis
  • Coors Brewery workers strike
  • Arvada’s iconic water tower, built in 1910, is decommissioned
  • Jeffco Sheriff's Office opens their new communications center which operates by microwave

1978

Tiny Town closes and again falls into disrepair

August 9, 1978

Major protest at Rocky Flats plant. 60 protesters, including Beatnik poet Allen Ginsberg, are arrested for trespassing

November 4, 1978

Fire hits the Golden Transcript building at 1000 10th Street destroying its typesetting and layout equipment

1979

April 28 & 29, 1979

An estimated 15,000 people protest near Rocky Flats; 286 protesters are arrested for trespassing

August 2, 1979

Heritage Square Alpine Slide opens and operates for 37 years before closing for good in 2015