What ever happened to the hotel they were building across from Town Plaza? Just curious. – Cathy
Even though hotels are designed for overnight stays, hotels don’t get built overnight. Certainly not in a sleepy little town like Durango.
But set your alarm to three or four weeks from now and you’ll wake up to see heavy equipment and crews on the riverfront site.
That’s according to Mike Marsh with the Realty Trust Group, the firm doing the redevelopment project at 1111 Camino del Rio, south of Natural Grocers.
“It will be the posterchild for highest quality,” Mike assured from his office in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Though the brand is still under wraps, he added that the hotel will be a “limited-service hotel,” which is hospitality-speak for accommodations that serve breakfast and offer a reception area but not a full-service restaurant.
Mike said the Durango Planning Department really put developers “through the wringer.” The resulting facility, he said, “will be the nicest limited-service hotel in the world,” rivaling the Four Seasons and other upscale establishments.
That will be quite a change from the previous building, constructed in the mid-1960s and gutted by a fire last May, a blaze investigators called “likely not accidental.”
By the way, Action Line did some checking around and found out that after more than a year, the fire investigation is still open, with no official conclusion.
Someone ought to light a fire under those arson sleuths.
I am a loyal Albertsons shopper and I regularly turn left exiting the store onto Camino del Rio. That signal has one of those dang flashing yellow arrows. The problem is, an aspirational left-turner like me simply cannot see whether or not it’s clear to turn because the lane directly across from me is turning south. It’s not until the flashing arrow turns into a protected green that I can make that turn safely. Meanwhile, all these yahoos behind me are growing impatient. How do I keep from doing something unsafe and ending up as a statistic? Yikes. Please help. – Kitty
Action Line, despite the moniker, will often advise readers that not taking action is often the best course of action. This is one of those occasions.
The intersection can be quite confusing, even for frequent users.
The good news is that the lane in question is clearly marked, “Left Turn Yield On Flashing Yellow Arrows.” Moreover, it’s designated as left turn only.
The bad news is that it’s not obvious or intuitive as to which lane is for oncoming, straight-through traffic. (Hint: the through-lane is the third one from the right.)
Action Line experienced this confusing confluence during a recent reconnaissance.
At the stoplight, turning left, the car ahead of Action Line didn’t move despite the flashing yellow and nothing in the through-lane.
Action Line found himself almost tapping the horn. Aha! That’s the problem.
You just can’t tell which oncoming lane allows what.
So it’s best to do nothing. Just wait until the all-clear green arrow signals the way.
The others behind you can wait.
The extra 15 seconds isn’t going cause raw chicken to spoil or ice cream to melt.
Maybe that’s why they call it “chilling out.”
Email questions to actionline@durangoherald.com or mail them to Action Line, The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301. You can request anonymity if your Iron Horse weekend didn’t involve any irons or horses.
