Residents of the West Park Avenue neighborhood in Durango have been concerned about speeding and road rage for at least several years.
They will have an opportunity to recommend solutions to the city of Durango from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Tuesday at an open house at Fassbinder Park on West Park Avenue.
In 2021 and 2022, the city of Durango made West Park Avenue a priority for improvements, according to the city.
Earlier this year, Durango City Council approved a design budget of $300,000 for West Park Avenue improvements. The project is funded by the city’s 2015 half-cent sales tax.
West Park Avenue is a short street just north of Schneider Park that veers northeast from an intersection with Roosa Avenue, El Paso Street and West Third Avenue.
It connects to north Main Avenue and is a common route for people traveling from north Main Avenue to U.S. Highway 160 west, said Devin King, multimodal manager for the city.
A crosswalk was installed at Alamo Street and West Park Avenue last year. Prior to that, the avenue did not have any crosswalks for pedestrians except at north Main Avenue, he said.
Residents are concerned for the groups of children in summer programs who cross the street to gather at Fassbinder Park because there are no crossings there.
King said the city installed an in-street pedestrian sign and temporary curb extensions using paint and flex posts several years ago, but those features are not included in any formal permanent or long-term designs.
In fact, the city has not created any formal designs at this time, he said. That’s where residents come in.
“This open house is intended to help staff understand the needs of the neighborhood and their vision for the street,” he said. “The consultant, SEH, has a few ideas that they submitted with their proposal, but we are not necessarily moving forward with them at this time. We’ll present them at the open house as examples of opportunities, but not actual designs.”
King said the design process is expected to continue through early 2025, with construction anticipated in 2026 or 2027.
“This is truly a neighborhood driven project,” he said in a city news release. “The neighborhood came to meetings with concerns about speeding and pedestrian safety on West Park Avenue prompting the city to install temporary traffic calming improvements and to budget a capital improvement project. The design team will use the neighborhood’s vision for West Park Avenue to create the conceptual design to address concerns.”
cburney@durangoherald.com
