Park Avenue - Safety & Connectivity
The Park Avenue neighborhood is a web of residential homes and some businesses. Pedestrians, bus riders, and motorists travel through this neighborhood to access businesses, homes, and recreational opportunities. The next steps for this project are currently in review. For future updates, please follow this project page.
Project Background:
Since 2008, the City of Aspen has been working with local community members to explore options to improve safety and connectivity for pedestrians and motorists that travel through this area. This project has been rooted in the following goals:
- Enhance safety and ways of moving around the Park and Midland neighborhoods for residents and users.
- Engage with the neighborhoods and community to better understand their values and insights, which inform the City’s direction for potential improvements.
- Comprehensively study traffic and neighborhood movement.
The Chosen Path:
At the January 25, 2021, Council Work Session, Council and staff discussed feedback from the community outreach conducted in 2020. Council directed staff to proceed with the conceptual design of Park Avenue as a two-way scenario and realign the east side of the roadway to install a sidewalk.
Key benefits include:
- Accomplishes goal of pedestrian safety.
- Detached trail is aesthetically pleasing.
- Wide trail allows for more uses.
- No change to existing traffic patterns.
While this option was chosen as the preferred option to increase safety and connectivity in the Park Avenue neighborhood, it does come with a relatively high cost as it is difficult to construct, will be an intrusion into existing landscaping and property, and will have some impact on existing on-street parking.
Thanks to the feedback collected through the public engagement process, we will be better able to alleviate the concerns voiced by our community regarding:
- Safety at the intersection of Hopkins and Park Avenue.
- Significant and rising levels of vehicles, pedestrians, and bikes on residential streets.
- Ill-defined paths prompt poor interactions between vehicles, pedestrians, and bikes.
- Poor site lines making it difficult for motorists to see pedestrians.
- Connectivity with other destinations in town.
- Traffic speeds.
- Snow storage.
- Drainage.
- Limited street width.
- Construction and cost of solutions.
Past Information:
All previous letters from city staff can be found below in the "updates" section of the Tools menu. The latest letter from city staff is dated 5/23/23 and reads below:
Dear Park Avenue Neighbors,
I hope this letter finds you well. As your neighborhood liaison, I wanted to provide you with an update on the Park Avenue Safety and Connectivity Project, which has been a topic of interest and discussion among our community members.
As mentioned, the improvements will consist of finishing the sidewalk connection along the east side of the roadway and installing critical stormwater infrastructure along the northern block of Park Ave and along the E Hopkins trail corridor.
The project went out to bid in late March 2024. The bidding process is set to close on June 10th, 2024, and we look forward to reviewing the bids from qualified contractors.
Following the bid closure, this project will go to Aspen City Council for approval. While the exact date for this presentation is yet to be determined, we will keep you informed and provide ample notice.
Once the bid is awarded and all necessary approvals are obtained, preparations will begin for the construction phase. The construction schedule will be determined and promptly shared with you once we have an approved contract. During this phase, you can expect to see work crews on Park Avenue as they undertake the necessary improvements outlined in the project plan.
Throughout the construction process, we are committed to keeping you informed and addressing any concerns or questions you may have. Regular updates will be provided through neighborhood letters, email communications, and signage posted at key locations.
Your patience, cooperation, and feedback are invaluable as we work together to realize the vision of a safer and more connected Park Avenue. If you have any immediate questions or concerns, please contact me directly.
Warm regards,
Emily Ford, Communications Specialist
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Project Update | June 2021
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Happy summer to all. Over the last several months, the City of Aspen Engineering Department has been designing the Schematic Design phase of the improvements to Park and Midland, focusing on the Conceptual Design of the sidewalk on the east side of the north portion of Park Avenue.
Design work includes:
- Improvement survey
- Initial topography
- Right-of-way review
- Sidewalk design
- Drainage considerations
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Engineering Standards
The design team continues to work through the sidewalks' conceptual layout, including road widths, sidewalk widths, and grading. Unique conditions present design challenges that the project team is working through to determine the best solution for the Conceptual Design ahead of outreach meetings. Much of the summer will be spent designing improvements; in late August and September, we will be scheduling meetings with neighbors before presenting the conceptual plan to City Council in September.
The project team will continue to share updates through this email newsletter and on the project webpage.
As we get closer to determining specifics on the conceptual design solutions, we will connect individually with impacted neighbors. Thank you for your continued involvement, and please reach out with any questions.
Best regards,
Park and Midland Project Team
Phone: 970-618-9251 (Call or Text)
Videos
Document Library
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ACV Survey Responses Report - 12/16/20 (182 KB) (pdf)
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Virtual Neighborhood Huddle Memo - 11/9/20 (2.05 MB) (pdf)
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Neighborhood Huddle Presentation - 10/28/20 (19 MB) (pdf)
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Community Input Summary Infographic -10-15-20 (690 KB) (pdf)
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Park and Midland Information Sheet (268 KB) (pdf)
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Project Background
