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The project connects the Animas River Trail to the city center corridor.
Construction workers work on HAWK lights, pedestrians and a bicycle crossing Camino del Rio on March 12th. The proposed lower crossing, known as the Camino Crossing, has been delayed by at least 2027, but the Durango Trade Improvement District fears the project may be suspended indefinitely. (Jerry McBride / Durango Herald File)
The long-planned tunnel that connects downtown Durango with the Animas River is likely to be delayed, prompting criticism from the Durango Business District.
The so-called Camino Crossing, located on 12th Street and near Camino del Rio, has been identified as the best option to please pedestrians and cyclists between the river road and the city center corridor. As of now, pedestrians and cyclists have to cross Camino del Rio on 12th Street, and cars are often unable to stop at the shiny HAWK sign.
Drivers should stop completely when the red lights at the Camino del Rio and the 12th Avenue crossing are strong or flashing. (Jerry McBride / Durango Herald File)
Sarah Hill, director of transportation for Durango, said on Friday that the tunnel had been under construction in the city for 20 years.
Funding for the project was earmarked for 2024, but the Multimodal Advisory Board identified other projects that it thought would be more cost-effective, and already had funding or greater security opportunities, Hill said.
As a short-term solution, the Board continues to discuss class-level, road-crossing improvements. Hill said she did not like at least one multimodal board member in the underground project, although she declined to name a board member.
According to the Camino Crossing Project page on durangogov.org, the city’s total design costs are $ 338,851.
Multimodal documents show that the lower tunnel, under Camino del Rio, near the River City Hall or backyard experience, is estimated to cost about $ 3.4 million.
This week, the project is on the list of five-year priority capital improvements, indicating that it will not be funded until at least 2027.
BID told the weekly newspaper: “This is so far from the road that we are worried that the project will never be built. BID believes the money should come soon.
In the newsletter, “Save the Casino Crossing,” BID urges business leaders to provide financial support and achieve an expiration date earlier.
BID wants to secure the safe passage of the Camino del Rio and the city center to the Animas River Route, BID Director Tim Walworth said in an email. Durango Herald.
BID said it had previously been successful in prioritizing the Camino Crossing project through Durango Parks and Recreation and Multimedia Advisory Boards. The project is underway this year and funds have been allocated for the construction of the tunnel by 2024 since last year.
He warned that the project could never be built.
“This is not enough for bidding,” he said of 2027.
An imaginary map of the lower corridor of the 12th Street and Casino del Rio. The Durango Business Improvement District has been talking about the project for years and it could be further delayed. The lower aisle connects the Animas River to the city center. (Celebrated in Durango)
He said the lower aisle would provide a safe passage for pedestrians and cyclists. The connection between the center of the “Two Best Durango Properties” and the Animas River Trail; It leads to a few cars downtown; And the downtown train station offers a good book on the south end and the north side of the corridor.
He said the lower corridor would provide another way to generate sales tax.
“When people come to the city center, they spend money on food, shopping or services, which leads to additional sales tax,” he said. “Downtown produces one-third of the city’s sales tax in a row.”
Camino Crossing will benefit from a half-cent sales tax return from Durango residents in 2015.
The city’s multimodal administrator, Davin King, said plans for the lower aisle were under way but less than 30%. Utilities and impact assessments on neighboring businesses are in progress.
Located 12th Street north of Megenagna, Camino del Rio has been identified as the best eastbound point for the Cino Crossing, which takes pedestrians and cyclists to the east and back of the Camino del Rio experience or near the River City Hall. , Sending pedestrian traffic to the Animas River Trail.
The lower aisle was used to allow pedestrian and bicycle traffic to cross between 12th Avenue and Camino del Rio, as it was marked by the inability of cars to stop at a red light sign posted above the road.
At a multimodal advisory board meeting in June, he said the construction of the tunnel would not interfere with the current work on the Durango and Silverton Roads. So the first earthquake could be November 2023.
Multimedia and Parks and Recreation Advisory Boards are scheduled to meet on Thursday to further finalize the five-year capital improvement projects. The projects will be related to the 2015 half-cent sales tax. That list is expected to be completed by July 20, Hill said in an email. Herald.
The projects will be submitted to the City Council in August.
cburney@durangoherald.com
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