To: Board of County Commissioners
Through: Gini Pingenot, Open Spaces Director
Prepared By:
prepared
Ray Winn, Open Spaces Planner II / County Bike and Pedestrian Planner
end
presenter
Presenter: Ray Winn, Open Spaces Planner II / County Bike and Pedestrian Planner
end
Subject:
title
2:15 PM *Funding for High Line Canal Underpass at Yale Avenue
end
Purpose and Request:
recommended action
Staff will present the High Line Canal (HLC) Underpass at Yale Ave. to obtain approval from the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) to expend $500,000.00 from the Open Spaces Acquisitions and Development Fund to the City and County of Denver for construction of an underpass on the High Line Canal under Yale Ave. Open Space and Trail Advisory Board (OSTAB) approved this request at the April 1, 2024, OSTAB meeting.
end
Background and Discussion: In 2014 OSTAB approved $300,000 for the HLC working group for design of this project and others. This crossing spans both jurisdictions and requires a joint project and funding. In 2014 Arapahoe County Open Spaces (OS) hired FHU and worked with the City and County of Denver to complete 30% design of 2 bridges and improve intersection crossing of the High Line Canal at Yale Ave. This at-grade intersection crossing improvement was agreed upon and decided as the most financially feasible safety improvement both jurisdictions could construct. The cost estimate for this project was $1,052,000.00 in 2014 dollars. Of which Open Spaces by IGA was approved to pay 50% or roughly $526,000. See attached funding memo from 2014.
Shortly after 30% was reached, the City of Denver changed course and decided that they desired to create an underpass not bridges over the canal and at grade improvements. Denver decided to place the funding on an upcoming bond measure. Open Spaces decided that this decision was not in-line with the High Line Canal crossing study findings and was too expensive. Since this was a bond measure, Denver was...
Click here for full text