Gunbarrel's Early Development
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In 1961, Everett and George Williams traded a ranch they owned in Steamboat Springs for some vacant
land on Gunbarrel Hill, northeast of the City of Boulder, CO. They had moved to Boulder ten years
earlier and had made careers of developing large tracts of land and building affordable homes for families.
They each built homes for their own families in Gunbarrel, one south of Jay Road just west of 75th Street,
the other between the ditches just south of Lookout Road. They planned to retire from the development
business, settle down, and enjoy a quiet life in the country.
In 1962, City of Boulder Manager Bob Turner came to them with a proposition. The City was attempting to
implement its "Spokes of the Wheel" plan whereby it could control the expansion and development of its
boundaries along specific corridors or "spokes." Those spokes were North Broadway, the Longmont Diagonal,
Arapahoe Road, Baseline Road, and Marshall Road. The City had another objective as well. They shared the
golf course on Arapahoe Road with the Boulder Country Club. The course suffered from overuse and the
facilities could not easily be expanded to meet the needs of its growing clientele. The City wanted to
build a new golf course for the Boulder Country Club on Gunbarrel Hill.
The Williams brothers examined this idea with planners working for both the City of Boulder and Boulder
County. Then, they brought in experts in land planning and golf course design. It soon became apparent
that the costs of building and operating a new golf course would exceed its revenue for a long time making
the idea financially impractical. However, if the land surrounding the golf course were developed as lots
for residential construction, the revenue from the sale of those lots could offset the costs of developing
the golf course. Bob Turner endorsed the idea of a golf course surrounded by a residential community and
guaranteed the continued support of its development by the City of Boulder.
The key element of this support was the City's offer to furnish water and sewer service to the Gunbarrel area.
The Williams brothers formed the Boulder Valley Water and Sanitation District to accomplish this goal. They
financed the construction of water mains from Walnut Street to Gunbarrel Hill. Then, with the financial
support of the Williams brothers, the District was able to issue bonds for the construction of a water
treatment plant and a sewer system. With these developments underway, the Williams brothers began to plan
the golf course and the residential community surrounding it.
By 1963, the next step was to persuade the Boulder Country Club to move from Arapahoe Road to Gunbarrel Hill.
The Williams brothers would donate the land, the water rights, and money to build the clubhouse and a 27
hole golf course. The Country Club would own and operate the new golf course while the City of Boulder
would retain exclusive rights to the old course on Arapahoe Road. The country club agreed.
The Williams brothers were determined to create a residential community that would attract a broad spectrum
of the community with a diversity of housing types and prices. While all of Gunbarrel was still in Boulder
County at that time, the Williams brothers insisted that everything be built to City of Boulder standards
and be approved by City of Boulder inspectors. The Gunbarrel Green subdivision was approved by the Boulder
County Planning Board on May 10, 1963 and by the Boulder County Commissioners three weeks later. The plat
for Gunbarrel Green was recorded on May 29 and the covenants were recorded on July 11, 1963.
On March 3rd, 1965, IBM Chairman, Thomas Watson, Jr., announced in Boulder that IBM would develop a five
building complex, plant, and laboratory on a 640 acre site near Niwot. The ground breaking ceremony was
held at the site on June 28, 1965.
Editor's Credit - The material for this summary history was taken from a letter to Boulder City Council
Member Spenser Havlick from George Williams dated August 28, 1986.
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page updated 4/5/11
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