Denver Celebrates “Connecting Auraria” with a New Bridge along Larimer
- forshman
- Nov 2, 2023
- 3 min read
Published in: Denver News
Denver Celebrates “Connecting Auraria” with a New Bridge and More Travel Options along Larimer Street
DENVER – Today Denver Mayor Michael Johnston gathered with representatives of the city, business community and Auraria Higher Education Center (AHEC) to celebrate replacement of the Larimer Street bridge and improvements between 14thStreet and Speer Boulevard that better support the many ways people travel along this stretch.
The project replaced the 64-year-old bridge over Cherry Creek and increased the amount of space dedicated to people who pedal, roll and stroll between downtown Denver and the Auraria Campus, adding a two-way protected bikeway, 12-foot-wide sidewalks, pedestrian lighting, more seating options, public art and trees. A single travel lane for cars was maintained. A ribbon was cut to officially open the new space.
“We want to make it easy for people to bike, walk and drive downtown,” said Mayor Mike Johnston. “The bridge contributes to our goal of getting more folks walking and rolling downtown. This project will make it easier and safer for Denverites to travel between the Auraria Campus and Downtown, two critical economic and entertainment centers for our city, while contributing to our goal of activating downtown with beautiful and accessible public spaces.”
“It’s amazing to see the transformation that has occurred along this stretch of Larimer Street,” said District 10 Denver City Councilman Chris Hinds. “We have a new bridge over Cherry Creek that will serve the area for decades to come and more room for people to walk and roll between downtown and the campus, making both locations more accessible to all.”
The $7M bridge replacement and streetscaping project links businesses and residences of the downtown area on one side, with three institutions of higher learning on the other – the Community College of Denver (CCD), Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver) and University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), located on Auraria Campus.
“We are thrilled that Connecting Auraria supports a space with a distinct identity as an urban campus with vital gateways, vibrant activations, and connections to its surrounding city,” said Colleen Walker, CEO of AHEC. “More than a beautiful new state-of-the-art bridge, the corridor improves the student experience and safety on Larimer Street, better integrates the Auraria Campus with downtown Denver, and will continue accelerating the merger of the two sides of the Cherry Creek.”
“Connecting Auraria is a powerful example of the importance of strengthening connections between downtown neighborhoods,” said Kourtny Garrett, President and CEO, Downtown Denver Partnership. “This bridge represents remarkable collaboration between DOTI and the community to bring to life a bold design that truly prioritizes pedestrian safety and active mobility while establishing a greater sense of place and fluidity between the central business district and AHEC.”
In addition to making travel improvements, new lighting, planters and benches make the space more vibrant and enjoyable and green infrastructure was added to support the city’s water quality efforts.
“The planters on the north side of Larimer Street receive stormwater off the street, cleaning it before it makes its way to Cherry Creek, and serve to cool the environment and mitigate urban heat,” said Adam Phipps, Executive Director of DOTI. “In addition, new lighting strung across the bridge will serve as a beacon to welcome people to this space, help them navigate at night and make the area safer.”
Denver contracted with Hamon Infrastructure to construct the new bridge and its amenities, completed over the course of less than one year.
News via denvergov.org
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