Landscaping work that has kept a section of the Animas River Trail at 32nd Street and East Second Avenue roped off to the public is scheduled to be completed by mid-July.
Durango Parks and Recreation Department held a neighborhood meeting Thursday to update residents about the status of the project and to field questions.
Residents asked officials about fencing, trees, grasses and amenities planned for that portion of the Animas River Trail.
Major construction and landscaping work is planned for the coming weeks, including concrete pouring, steel railings installation, boulder placement, and grass and trees planting, according to the Parks and Recreation Department. The city contracted F&M Construction to do the project.
Owen Tallmadge, project manager, said work near 32nd Street should be finished by mid-July assuming materials aren’t held up as a result of supply-chain issues.
He told residents that LED downcast lighting will be installed along and under the 32nd Street pedestrian bridge. Along the side of the Animas River Trail, 3-foot-tall bollards with downcast, dark sky-compliant lighting will be installed.
“Very low-profile lights but still enough to provide safety lighting and comfort at night,” Tallmadge said.
Fifteen different species of trees are planned to be planted along that section of the trail, Tallmadge said. They include two species of cottonwoods, Japanese tree lilac, spring snow crabapple and chanticleer pear trees, among others.
Some residents asked if benches would be installed along the trail at 32nd Street and East Second Avenue. Tallmadge said aside from a stone or rock bench and a potential sponsored bench, benches aren’t planned for that portion of trail. He said the Parks and Recreation Department is looking for a possible sponsor for a bench.
“There will be some rocks here and there intended for people to sit,” he said. “There’s a rock bench. It’s not a formal bench, but it’s something I think most people would feel comfortable having a seat and taking a break on.”
Parking at the location will be limited to on-street parking, Tallmadge said.
“The whole idea of thought behind the project was to get people off of the roads,” said Ture Nycum, Durango Parks and Recreation director. “That’s what this does create, is a connection so that you don’t have to cross the road.”
After work is completed at 32nd Street, the construction company will shift its focus to a trail-replacement project behind Durango High School. That project was delayed earlier this year to allow time to study an endangered species of jumping mouse and how trail work might affect the animals.
cburney@durangoherald.com
