Northwest Parkway Toll Road Closes Concession Agreement with Brisa/CCR
November 20, 2007
Russell W. Dykstra, in concert with New York counsel, closed a 99-year, $603 million leasing concession agreement between the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority and client Brisa Auto-Estradas of Portugal. Grimshaw & Harring holds a unique position as a leader in providing legal advisory services in public/private partnership (P3) transactions to the development and transportation infrastructure industry, which allowed us to secure the first concession agreement of its kind in Colorado. The agreement includes retiring about $503 million in bond debt on the toll road, another $40 million to cover parkway debts owed to local government entities and $60 million to be spent extending the parkway 2.3 miles west, to Colorado 128 in Broomfield. The plan is only part of the $1 billion goal to ultimately extend the highway to C-470 and I-70, thus completing a beltway around the entire Denver metro area. Ownership and operation of the toll road is retained by the Northwest Parkway Authority.

Former Colorado Governor Bill Owens attended the closing, and said the nation should expect to see more P3 deals like this, which bring additional resources for public infrastructure needs. Owens is now a vice chairman with RBS Greenwich Capital, an affiliate of The Royal Bank of Scotland, anticipated to aid in financing this Brisa/CCR’s transaction.

“Best Lawyers 2007/2008″
Law Week Colorado, Vol. 5 / No. 44 and Vol. 4 / No. 42
November 12, 2007
For a second year, Jody Harper Alderman is named as one of the Best Lawyers in the area of Eminent Domain and Condemnation. Since 1983, Woodward/White, Inc. has published an attorney referral guide listing the best of the best in up to 78 specialty practice areas. Highly regarded among law firms, large corporations, media and the public, its unique nomination process renders it an unbiased resource, so unlike other publications, included lawyers are listed solely based on merit and recommendations.

November 6, 2007, Election Day
Newly Formed Special Districts and Business Improvement Districts

• City Center West Commercial Metro District (Weld County)
• City Center West Residential Metro District (Weld County)
• Shining Mountain Metro District – City of Woodland Park (Teller County)
• Waterfront at Foster Lake Metro District Nos. 1-3 (Weld County)

An Evening with the Governor
October 18, 2007
Paul F. Wisor, former Grimshaw & Harring associate and Board member of the Rocky Mountain Multiple Sclerosis Center, presided over an evening with Governor Bill Ritter and a distinguished panel of guests as they addressed healthcare policy concerns in Colorado.

Colorado has approximately 792,000 uninsured residents with nearly 180,000 of them children, and public opinion polls show concern about health care as the top issue for Americans. Coloradans are anxious for solutions to the rising cost of health care and the growing number of people who cannot afford health insurance or who do not have adequate coverage. In 2006 the Colorado Legislature created The Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform (the “208 Commission”) to make recommendations for comprehensive health care reform with the goal of increasing health care coverage and decreasing costs for Colorado residents. Particular emphasis is placed on the issues of the uninsured, underinsured, and those at risk of financial hardship due to the rising costs of medical care. This was one of many forums held across the state inviting public input, prior to the Commission making final recommendations for comprehensive health care reform to the General Assembly in January.

Grimshaw & Harring, P.C. Welcomes Lindsay S. Smith
August, 2007
Lindsay S. Smith has joined the firm’s Special District and Municipal Law practice as a highly credentialed new associate. A Colorado native, Lindsay comes to us by way of the University of Oklahoma, where she received both her B.A. (magna cum laude, with distinction), and her J.D. (with honors). She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Sigma Pi, has received American Jurisprudence Awards in International Trade Law and Water Law, and was the Articles Development Editor of the American Indian Law Review for two years.

U.S. P3 Infrastructure Finance Forum
June 29, 2007
Russell W. Dykstra attended the US P3 Infrastructure Finance Forum in New York at the end of June as the only delegate from the Colorado legal community. The Forum was attended by 400 select delegates from around the world who are active in the emerging field of public private partnership transactions and finance (P3), an area in which Grimshaw & Harring is leading Colorado. The Forum focused on upcoming P3 projects in the United States, financing issues and political considerations in this expanding area of infrastructure finance. Alternatives for private partnering in public infrastructure such as transportation, schools and hospitals were presented by the top international practitioners in the field.

UPDATE: Northwest Parkway Toll Road
June 1, 2007
Russell W. Dykstra is local counsel to a consortium of Brisa – Auto-Estrades de Portugal, S.A. and Companhia de Concessões Rodoviárias (Brisa/CCR), in negotiating a 99-year, $603 million leasing concession agreement between the two parties. When officially completed, the agreement will include retiring all outstanding bonds, providing funds for Authority members, allow for payment on other pre-existing obligations and transfer all financial and operational responsibility associated with the toll road to Brisa/CCR. The final agreement will also provide committed funding for a potential 2.3 mile extension of the toll road to State Highway 128 in Broomfield. Operation of the toll road will revert back to the Northwest Parkway Authority (Broomfield, Lafayette and Weld County) after the 99-year concession term expires.

Steve Hogan, executive director of the Parkway Authority, stated, “This agreement represents a landmark achievement for the Northwest Parkway Authority and our members. As a recent ‘start-up’ toll road, we are entering into a unique public/private partnership that is innovative for the United States and North America.”

Brisa is based in Lisbon, Portugal, and its partner agency, CCR, is based in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Insurance Coverage for Environmental Claims
May 31, 2007
William J. Brady authored a chapter on insurance coverage for environmental claims for a new treatise titled, Environmental Regulation of Colorado Real Property, published by Bradford Publications. The chapter emphasizes, among other things, key Colorado, precedent-setting decisions widely followed nationally. Bill successfully secured coverage in several of these cases for Colorado and out-of-state policyholders, including mining companies and municipalities, a real estate developer, an aircraft manufacturer and individuals exposed to potentially catastrophic liability. The chapter also discusses newer, specialized, environmental liability insurance products available for existing and prospective purchasers of contaminated properties, such as pollution legal liability insurance, remediation stop/loss or cost cap coverage, and secured creditor impaired property policies.

Adjunct Professors – Sturm College of Law, University of Denver
April 30, 2007
Todd R. Seelman has been invited to teach antitrust law as an adjunct professor at the Sturm School of Law at the University of Denver beginning January 2008. Todd joins Grimshaw & Harring attorneys Gilbert F. McNeish, who has taught Zoning and Land Planning at the Graduate School of Architecture and Planning, University of Colorado at Denver since 1972, and William J. Brady, who has taught Environmental Protection Law at the University of Denver in the University College Graduate Environmental Policy and Management Program since 2000.

U.S. Department of Labor Overturns 2004 Ruling
March 26, 2007
Client H. Charles Wolf, a former federal nuclear weapons project manager diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer, glioblastoma multiforme, emerged victorious from an appellate hearing before the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”), in part thanks to Grimshaw & Harring partner William J. Brady. In 2004 the National Institute of Safety and Health (“NIOSH”) found that Mr. Wolf’s terminal tumor was not caused by his work-related activities at U.S. Department of Energy facilities, and thus denied his claim for EEOICPA benefits. Mr. Wolf worked in the U.S. Government’s nuclear weapons program from 1981 through 2000, at the Savannah River, Fernald and Rocky Flats facilities, where he managed plutonium-238 in support of the Department of Energy’s Office of Space Systems.

After years of frustration, massive paperwork, and trying to find someone to acknowledge that NIOSH was relying on inaccurate, incomplete and otherwise erroneous dose reconstruction information finally came to an end. New evidence and accompanying expert testimony from Mr. Wolf’s neuro-oncologist and an epidemiologist professor from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, resulted in reversal of the prior NIOSH denial of benefits. The DOL agreed the evidence and testimony demonstrated that Mr. Wolf’s on-the-job radiation exposures were “at least as likely as not” to have caused his cancer. The decision rated Mr. Wolf as 100% disabled, thus qualifying him for compensation and reimbursement of all of his medical bills since diagnosis.

Supporting Civic Engagement in our Community
January 12, 2007
Grimshaw & Harring, P.C. sponsored the Agenda 2010 Summit: Educating for 21st Century Democracy. Julie Kronenberger and Jill Conrad, At-Large Denver Public School Board Member and former director of the Colorado Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, welcomed over 300 educators, policy makers, government officials, community members, business and youth leaders. They convened to contribute, discuss and vote on priorities that will ensure Colorado’s youth are prepared to grow up engaged in American democracy. The result is to provide a shape for Colorado’s civic future and outline what state and local leaders can do to make civic education a priority in local schools, including preparing and supporting them and the teachers for civic learning. “Civic learning is more than knowledge of history and government, it is also knowledge of behaviors and skills that overlap with workforce demands such as making ethical decisions, working in teams and solving complex problems. Civic learning increases students’ interest in the world around them and teaches them that their individual curiosities and personal efforts can solve problems in their local communities and beyond.” (Conrad) The event was also attended by Paul J. Hanley, a firm Director and former member of the Cherry Creek School Board.

Software Developer Recapitalization
January 2007
Paul J. Hanley assisted a software developer with a recapitalization that paved the way for a significant infusion of new capital. The recapitalization involved the creation of two series of common stock. After shareholder approval of the recapitalization, a new investor made a cash contribution and transferred certain business assets relating to a real estate forms software program, enhancing the prospects for business growth of the client.

December 15, 2006

Todd R. Seelman was retained by a window manufacturer as special class action counsel in a Colorado state court action. Plaintiffs alleged construction/design defects impacting thousands of homes throughout the State of Colorado and alleged over $100 million in class-wide damages. After significant motion practice, Mr. Seelman was successful in defeating the class certification.

Newly Formed Special Districts and Business Improvement Districts

November 7, 2006, Election Day

• Appletree Metropolitan District Nos. 1 and 2 (El Paso County)
• Homestead Metropolitan District (Weld County)
• Norris Ranch Metropolitan District Nos. 1 and 2 (El Paso County)
• Platte River Village Metropolitan District (Weld County)
• Westcreek Metropolitan District Nos. 1 and 2 (Douglas County)
• Norris/Appletree Business Improvement District (El Paso County)
• South Broadway/Englewood Business Improvement District (Arapahoe County)
• Grand Elk Ranch General Improvement District (Grand County)
• Park Meadows Business Improvement District (Douglas County)
• West Colfax Business Improvement District (Jefferson County)

Oil and Gas Drilling Company Financing Completed

November 2006

In connection with the burgeoning oil and gas industry in Colorado, Paul J. Hanley assisted with the closing of a $30 million credit facility on behalf of a Denver based oil and gas drilling company. The $30 million credit facility was secured by a wide variety of collateral and assets, including a number of drilling rigs.

Thomas T. Grimshaw Recognized in Rocky Mountain News, Commentary

November 18, 2006

Thomas T. Grimshaw, one of the founding partners of Grimshaw & Harring, P.C. (formerly Caulkins, Cramer, Grimshaw & Harring), was honored by cohort Walter A. “Buz” Koelbel, Jr. as one of only a few business leaders who shared their collective visions 25 years ago in an effort to tackle Denver’s transportation needs. Over the years Buz and Tom, together with George Wallace, Larry Beardsley, John Madden, Ray Wells, Ray Bullock and Walt Imhoff, helped guide the newly completed and well-executed T-REX project. Of this core group, Mr. Grimshaw is one of five who remain involved today. We appreciate the salute to the group’s “quiet leadership” and its profound impact on the entire Denver business community over the past 25 years.

Series of Commercial Real Estate Acquisitions Completed

September 2006

Paul J. Hanley assisted a client with a series of six commercial real estate acquisitions throughout the country as part of an IRC Section 1031 exchange program. After selling a commercial property in California, the client proceeded to acquire six income producing commercial properties located in Colorado and other parts of the country. Mr. Hanley assisted with each of the acquisitions by forming a separate limited liability company for each of the acquisitions and by working with the client’s broker and opposing counsel to consummate the real estate acquisitions in a timely manner so as to qualify as like-kind exchanges under Section 1031.