An 18-space parking lot for recreationists accessing Horse Gulch at the end of east Third Street is ready for cars. A new trailhead also has been completed.
Other improvements include landscaping, trailhead signs and storm-drainage improvements.
“There’s still some touch-up work to do,” Kevin Hall, the city of Durango’s assistant community development director, said Monday afternoon. “Generally speaking, it’s good to go.”
There is no toilet facility at the trailhead, but a space was left for a portable toilet near a new gate at the head of the parking area. A decision on whether to put a portable toilet there, and when, has not been made, Hall said.
The property for the parking lot, located at the east end of Third Street a block from East Eighth Avenue, was purchased by the city of Durango in January 2013. SET Engineering provided the site design and engineering for the city project, and F&M Construction completed the construction, the city said in a news release Monday.
Construction began June 16, and the new parking lot opened Saturday. Previously, parking was haphazard and affected the operations of nearby businesses.
The parking area is directly east of the Horse Gulch Health Campus, which sold the land to the city.
The trailhead was built to accommodate a planned extension to connect Horse Gulch with the Animas River Trail at the bridge over the river just east of Santa Rita Park. Another connector is planned from Horse Gulch trailhead to Goeglein Gulch Road. Both connectors are in the city’s long-range plan.
johnp@durangoherald.com
