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Park Avenue - Safety & Connectivity

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low-level stone curb next to green grass

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

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

  • Project Update | October 2020

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    Hello all,


    Please see below for the latest on the Park and Midland neighborhood project.


    As a reminder, we are moving all project updates to be sent through Aspen Community Voice. If you haven’t already, you must activate your subscription to receive future updates. Please subscribe at aspencommunityvoice.com/parkandmidland.


    PARK + MIDLAND OUTREACH UPDATE: 10/15/20

    During the October 6 engineering budget discussion, City staff connected with Council on next steps for Park + Midland. City Council approved funds to implement safety improvements in this neighborhood which will be further discussed in a council work session this winter – stay tuned for details. Meanwhile, the project team is using updated data from the traffic study to move forward with a couple immediate modifications.


    City engineering will soon be installing stop signs on Park Ave. at the intersection of Park and Hopkins. Additionally, City Engineering plans to place a temporary, driver feedback device to measure real-time speeds and alert motorists heading north on Park Ave. This device will be placed between Hwy 82 and Hopkins Ave. in relation to the traffic study’s findings. City Engineering will assess the impact of both the stop signs and driver feedback signs, and we also encourage neighbors to share any insights on the project webpage.


    VIRTUAL NEIGHBORHOOD HUDDLE

    Thank you to those who have RSVP’d for the virtual Neighborhood Huddle on Wednesday, October 28 at 11:30 a.m. A calendar invitation with call-in information will be sent shortly.


    The focus of this meeting will be to review the findings of the traffic study and to touch base on next steps. This meeting will be recorded for those who are unable to attend.


    COMMUNITY INPUT SUMMARY

    For reference, the project team has assembled an overarching infographic to summarize community input we have received to date. This brief graphic pulls out general themes and ideas we have received through our neighbor interviews, phone calls, emails, and Aspen Community Voice to date. There are a lot of nuances to the feedback we’ve received, but we wanted to report back on some common themes.


    View Community Input Summary Infographic >>


    Please let us know if you have any questions and thank you for your continued engagement.


    Regards,

    Park and Midland Project Team

    Phone: 970-340-4334

    Webpage: aspencommunityvoice.com/parkandmidland

  • Project Update | September 2020

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    Hello all,

    Please see below for the latest on the Park and Midland neighborhood project.

    As a reminder, we are moving all project updates to be sent through Aspen Community Voice. If you haven’t already, you must activate your subscription to receive future updates. Please subscribe at aspencommunityvoice.com/parkandmidland.


    PARK + MIDLAND UPDATES: 9/30/20

    City engineering is evaluating locations for driver feedback signs between HWY 82 and Hopkins along Park Avenue. These are the signs that use radar to give drivers real-time feedback on their travel speed. In our considerations, we are reviewing locations that can accommodate both the space of the sign and have good visibility for vehicles.

    Additionally, the traffic engineering consultant is wrapping up collection of neighborhood traffic data. This information will include traffic counts, speed data and technical analysis of existing conditions. The consultant will assemble all the data into a report which we will review during a virtual neighborhood huddle on October 28 (see below), share with this group, and post to the project webpage.

    BUDGET WORK SESSION

    City Engineering is scheduled to present their department budget requests in a work session with City Council on Tuesday, October 6. Included in this will be a line item request for the design and implementation of the spring 2021 Park & Midland living lab experiment as requested by council. City engineering will base the budget line request on an estimated cost to design the living lab. We are asking the living lab designers to consider neighborhood input, council direction, traffic data, and engineering best practices.

    Please note that this line item will likely be reviewed very briefly as one part of the overall budget discussion. Council is not expected to take public comments, but we encourage you to continue to submit your comments and questions through the Aspen Community Voice page.

    SAVE THE DATE - VIRTUAL NEIGHBORHOOD HUDDLE

    Please join us for a virtual Neighborhood Huddle on Wednesday, October 28 at 11:30 a.m. At this meeting we will review neighborhood input to date, technical considerations, and next steps for this project. This meeting will be recorded for those who are unable to attend.

    Thank you for your continued engagement and please reach out with any questions or concerns.

  • Project Update | September 2020

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    Dear Park + Midland Neighbor,

    Thank you for your input to date about the safety and connectivity improvements in your neighborhood. Over the past few months, we have received a considerable amount of input in addition to the 27 initial interviews we did last winter, and want to assure that everyone’s voice is heard by Council. This is an important community conversation and the City is pleased to have your active engagement in this process.

    BI-MONTHLY UPDATES + ASPEN COMMUNITY VOICE

    This is the first of a regular bi-monthly email update that is aimed at keeping interested neighbors and community members updated on the progress of this project. In an effort to focus our discussion in one place for all to be able to share in the conversation, we are relaunching this project on Aspen Community Voice. This will serve as our group hub for project information, updates and will serve as the designated forum for collecting input.

    SUBSCRIBE TO PROJECT UPDATES on Aspen Community Voice and register to participate in the discussion: https://www.aspencommunityvoice.com/parkandmidland

    Future updates on this process will be sent via Aspen Community Voice, so please add this to your email address book: notifications@engagementhq.com

    PARK + MIDLAND OUTREACH UPDATE: 9/11/20

    As a quick recap and to follow up on the August 10 informational memo, council directed staff to develop the best approach for implementing safety and traffic calming measures and to work towards a living lab experiment for this neighborhood.

    • As a first step, city staff is working to implement immediate measures and hopes to utilize a variable message sign (VMS) as well. Signage is expected to be installed after budget discussions in October.
    • City engineering is working with a traffic expert to collect additional traffic data, including speeds. This data is expected to be ready for view in December. The information will give staff and the public a full picture of the neighborhood including the impacts of implementing a living lab project next spring.
    • City staff is also working on preparations for the upcoming budget cycle which will occur in October. Per council’s direction, staff is developing a preliminary living lab concept with consideration of input received to date, feasibility, and safety engineering best practices.
    • We are working to collate all of your input that has been submitted to date and will post it the project webpage soon for everyone to review.

    Over the next several months, we will be expanding this conversation in an effort to build neighborhood consensus and understanding of the challenges faced by this neighborhood. Thank you for your continued engagement.

Page last updated: 14 May 2024, 01:56 PM