Conifer sits in what the U.S. Forest Service has ranked among the ten highest-risk areas for catastrophic wildfire in the country. Dense lodgepole, long single-access driveways, subdivisions strung along the 285 corridor, and a watershed that supplies much of Denver's drinking water — southern Jefferson County carries more wildfire exposure than almost anywhere else in the United States. We're Colorado Wildfire Mitigation, a firefighter-owned company working across Conifer, Aspen Park, Pine Junction, Shaffers Crossing, and the surrounding 285 corridor. Our crews have worked firelines. We know how fire moves through this country, and we know what a fire engine can and can't reach.
Why southern Jefferson County ranks so high
Three things stack up here in a way they don't in most Front Range communities.
Continuous fuel. Lodgepole grows thick and even-aged, and much of the stand carries beetle-killed and suppressed timber that never got thinned. Crown fire moves through a stand like that without ever dropping to the ground.
Terrain that accelerates fire. Conifer's drainages run steep and narrow. Fire moves uphill fast, and a home sitting at the top of a drainage is sitting at the top of a chimney.
Limited access. Many Conifer subdivisions have one road in and one road out, and a lot of individual properties sit at the end of long, narrow driveways. That shapes both how fast people can leave and whether apparatus can get in.
The Lower North Fork Fire in March 2012 — an escaped prescribed burn on Denver Water land south of Conifer, on a Red Flag day — is what most residents think of. It cost lives and homes, and it happened in March, which is worth remembering every time someone says fire season starts in June.
Driveway and access work: the thing most Conifer properties fail
This is where Conifer differs most from other foothills communities, and it's the part homeowners think about least.
If a fire engine can't get up your driveway, can't turn around at the top, or can't clear the branches overhanging it, your home may not get defended — not because crews don't want to, but because committing an engine to a driveway it can't back out of is how firefighters get killed.
What we look at:
We do this work as part of a full mitigation, or on its own. Requirements vary by fire district, so confirm specifics with yours before you build to a number.
Defensible space on a Conifer property
The zones are the same everywhere. What changes is the emphasis.
0 to 5 feet
Nothing combustible against the structure. Most homes in Conifer lose here first —embers land in needle litter or gutters and the house lights itself hours after the fire front has passed.
5 to 30 feet
Crown spacing and ladder fuel removal. In dense lodgepole this is the zone that takes the most work and delivers the most benefit.
0 to 100+ feet, and further downslope
On Conifer's steeper lots this zone has to extend well past 100 feet on the downhill side. Fire runs uphill toward the structure, so the ground below your house matters more than the ground above it.
[H2] Jefferson County permits
Conifer sits above 6,400 feet, which places it in Jefferson County's Wildland-Urban Interface Overlay District. If you're building, replacing a structure, or adding on — decks included — you'll likely need a Defensible Space Permit, with inspections by a County-approved forester before your building permit and again before your Certificate of Occupancy.
What we do in Conifer
nsurance along the 285 corridor
Carriers have been raising rates and dropping policies across southern Jefferson County, and the risk rating that drives those decisions doesn't distinguish between a mitigated property and an unmitigated one unless you can prove the difference. Every Conifer project we complete comes with a documentation packet — ignition zone maps, before-and-after photos, and itemized receipts — so you have something to put in front of your agent.
Local programs worth using first
Conifer has some of the most active community wildfire programs in the state:
Start with the free assessment. Then call us for the work that needs a crew, equipment, or hauling.
Common questions from Conifer property owners
How much does fire mitigation cost in Conifer? Stand density and slope drive the number more than acreage does. A thinned, gently sloped lot is a fraction of the cost of steep, doghair lodgepole with a narrow driveway. We walk the property and give you a firm figure at no charge.
Will thinning hurt my property value? The opposite, generally. Buyers in the 285 corridor increasingly ask about mitigation and insurability before they make an offer, and a documented, mitigated property is easier to insure — which increasingly determines whether a sale closes at all.
Do I have to remove beetle-killed trees? Standing dead timber near the structure and along access routes should go. Away from the house it becomes a judgment call about fire behavior and hazard-tree risk, which is part of what the assessment covers.
We also serve Evergreen, Bailey, Golden, and Woodland Park.
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