In the late 1980s, officials in Broomfield, Colorado advocated for a new highway to serve Interlocken Office Park and FlatIron Crossing shopping mall. In 1998, local developers established the Northwest Parkway Non-Profit Corporation to advance the parkway project. With additional municipalities interested in the proposed toll road, the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority was created in 1999. The Authority was created under a 1987 state law giving cities and counties the power to enter into intergovernmental agreements to create public authorities and to finance, build and operate toll roads. The Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority consisted of the City and County of Broomfield, the City of Lafayette and Weld County. Its primary goal was to connect communities in the Northwest Denver metro area to I-25 and U.S. 36, providing better access to jobs and commercial centers.
With construction financed by $416 million in toll revenue bonds issued by the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority, the Northwest Parkway was built for $180 million under a design-build contract by Washington Group International and Kiewit Western. The Parkway opened to traffic on November 24, 2003. The $236 million in excess toll revenue bonds issued by the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority were intended to cover short-term operating expenses while allowing traffic to grow. Tolling began on the Northwest Parkway on January 1, 2004.
In 2005, traffic volumes on the Northwest Parkway averaged 11,400 vehicles per day, generating a total of $5.7 million in tolls collected for the year. This was only 54 percent of the forecasted $10.4 million in toll revenue. In 2006, revenue increased to nearly $8 million, nearly doubling initial toll receipts collected in 2004, yet still far below original forecasts.
With traffic volumes and revenue below forecasts during these first several years, the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority explored different strategies to refinance its debt. However, the cost of refinancing would be prohibitive. Then in 2006, the Authority received an unsolicited offer to lease the Northwest Parkway to a private sector highway operator, prompting it to pursue this option.