GO Bond Funding for Enhanced Colfax Crossings

From a number of planning processes and surveys, most notably at during Re-imagine design demonstration, WCBID has heard many times that crossing Colfax is a major issue.  Beginning in 2016,  we turned to developing designs to show how the infrastructure on Colfax be improved. Working with a local engineering firm HDR and the City, we completed concepts for enhanced crossings near the center of the district. We are pleased to say that with the support of Denver Public Works, nearly 1800 petitioners and City Council, Mayor Hancock approved $500,000 in capital improvement project funding for 2017 to develop the design for concepts in all four Colfax BIDs in Denver. With broad public and Council support, this summer $20,000,000 in funding this project was included in the Mayor’s GO Bond funding package. The funding includes the WCBID and Colfax, Bluebird and Mayfair Colfax BIDs that make up the Colfax Collaborative.

With Mayoral support and engineering in place, the Colfax Collaborative’s projects to construct the improvements to Colfax crossings will be part of the General Obligation (GO) funding vote this November. Here are our talking points on why Colfax projects deserve funding. Thanks to all of our supporters who were so instrumental in getting Colfax on the 2017 bond list!

Project Details

The representative sectional plan included here shows pedestrian bulbouts on the north and south side of Colfax Ave to assist with safe crossings and reduce crossing distance, widen the sidewalk and provide additional visibility for pedestrians and vehicles. This also shows on-street parking across the entire study area from Tennyson to Osceola almost tripling from 18 to 45 spaces. The median islands will offer pedestrians a safe refuge midway through crossings, while not impeding business access. Pedestrian crossing signals will be enhanced to include a leading pedestrian interval and pedestrian crossing countdown timer. All of these elements together create a safe pedestrian crossing experience while not unnecessarily stopping the flow of traffic.