Reconstruction work on a portion of the Animas River Trail between the DoubleTree Hotel and Santa Rita Park will take longer than expected because of heavy October rains and unstable soil conditions, according to a news release from the city of Durango.
Construction began in March to improve safety, drainage and user experience, according to the release. The new trail will be 10 to 12 feet wide with a smoother surface, better lighting and new railings, the release said.
Construction was expected to finish in November but is now projected to wrap up in early December. Unforeseen circumstances delayed progress, city spokesman Tom Sluis wrote in a series of Facebook comments responding to community concerns about the delay.
“Seems like every time the ground in Durango is disturbed for a project, some new problem arises because no one really knows exactly what lies underneath,” Sluis said.
Sluis said that in addition to the large amount of material workers had to remove, pylons needed to be installed beneath the path just south of the U.S. Highway 160 bridge, and the west side of the path was reinforced with rebar and concrete.
“It wasn’t simply a matter of scraping off the old asphalt and slapping down some new (but we sure wish it was),” Sluis said.
Going forward, the city plans to revise its approach to large construction projects to avoid lengthy delays, Sluis said. For example, the city will use “Construction Manager At Risk contracts” to help keep work on time and within budget.
“There was a contractor that recently did a 3D type of scan to see what’s underneath downtown Main Avenue regarding infrastructure,” Sluis said. “Additional scanning and exploratory holes are going to increasingly be part of construction projects moving forward to help detect problems and avoid delays.”
The city has already used one such contract for the city hall and police department consolidation project, which moves offices from both departments into the historic high school building and the former Big Picture High School building on 12th Street.
While the trail project is completed over the next few weeks, commuters on the trail are encouraged to continue using the detour route.
sedmondson@durangoherald.com
