Attorney celebrates 40 years in Castle Rock
FolkestadPosted: Friday, March 2, 2012 11:00 am
By Rhonda Moore | 0 comments
As Castle Rock attorney Jim Folkestad prepares to celebrate 40 years of practice in Douglas County, he is quick to point out: This is not a retirement party.
When Folkestad opened his practice, the county had about 7,000 residents. He began his law career as a part-time district attorney in the 18th Judicial District when the county courthouse was on Wilcox Street in downtown Castle Rock, across from the B&B Cafe. Those were they days when a person could walk into the county building and say “hello” to a county commissioner if they so desired, he said.
“You didn’t deal with the system so much in those days,” Folkestad said. “If you wanted to see the county treasurer or a commissioner, you usually ended up talking to that person.”
Folkestad remembers when the courthouse burned down in 1977; he remembers when Douglas County began growing in the early 1980s; and he remembers when the tables turned on development in Castle Rock and he never looked back.
By the time the Founders Village annexation came to Castle Rock, Folkestad had an “entirely different” practice than the one he began with, with land-use matters throughout Douglas County consuming most of the remainder of his career, he said.
Over the years, his law firm concentrated in the field of real estate and land use throughout Douglas County, specializing in subdivision applications, zoning and municipal annexation. Folkestad has had his hand in developments that stretch from Castle Rock to Parker and throughout unincorporated Douglas County. His experience and historical perspective have made him one of the more valuable legal minds when it comes to the myriad land-use matters throughout the county, according to those who work with him.
“(Folkestad) was around when many of those land-use decisions were made that have impacted our community,” said Charlie Crow, Pinery Water and Wastewater District. “Our board values his historical perspective and advice on how to proceed. He’s a wealth of knowledge of the last four decades that have impacted how Douglas County has come to look like it does.”
Folkestad will celebrate 40 years in practice from 5-7 p.m. March 14 at the Castle Rock Chamber of Commerce business after hours event at Folkestad, Fazekas, Barrick & Patoile PC, 18 S. Wilcox St. in Castle Rock. Folkestad issued an open invitation to the celebration, with the assurance that he still has things to do.
“When you think back on it, you just go day by day, but when you think about it, it’s been very dramatic and it’s not quite over,” he said. “When they talked about this 40th event, it’s not about retirement. I said don’t think about it as a retirement event, because it’s not.”
Reprinted from Castle Rock News Press/ Douglas County News Press
