The city of Durango announced Friday afternoon that 32nd Street (County Road 251) has reopened to through traffic.
The stretch of road in northeast Durango has been closed for two construction seasons since reconstruction of county roads 250 and 251 began in 2024, but the second phase of the nearly $9 million project is nearing its end.
The second phase, which has consisted of improvements from East Animas Village Drive to East Animas Road (County Road 250), is expected to be completed this fall, the city said in a news release.
The first phase of the project consisted of improvements being made along County Road 251 from Holly Avenue to East Animas Village Drive.
Although 32nd Street has reopened to through traffic, road work and safety improvements continue.
The city of Durango and La Plata County agreed to contribute $4.4 million each to the project, which has been funded by the city and county joint sales tax.
County Road 250 and East Animas Village have been closed to through traffic with access to businesses remaining open. Stop signs were installed at the Holly Avenue and Florida Road intersection, where the speed limit was also reduced, for motorist and pedestrian safety.
In an online project description on Engage Durango, the city referenced increasing motor traffic volumes in addition to higher pedestrian and cycling travel along 32nd Street as the reason for reconstruction. 32nd Street is an arterial roadway connecting north Main Avenue to Durango’s northeastern city limits.
The redesigned road was built to resemble Florida Road and the project has included multimodal features such as bike lanes and sidewalks and stormwater infrastructure upgrades.
In May, City Council voted to annex County Road 251 past 32nd Street and part of County Road 250 as part of a city/county partnership to improve drainages, roadways and intersections in addition to adding multimodal features, according to the city.
cburney@durangoherald.com
