Early Sunday morning last weekend I checked out the progress on the reconstruction and streetscaping of 14th Street (otherwise known as the 14th Street Initiative) in Downtown Denver. Work is well underway on the northeast side of the street. The project will narrow 14th Street by removing a traffic lane and adding a bike lane and wider sidewalks with the reclaimed space. The street and all sidewalks will be rebuilt in concrete and a bunch of pedestrian amenities (trees, flower beds, lighting, benches, bike racks, wayfinding signage, etc.) added. Bulb-outs will also be installed at most intersections to shorten the distance of the crosswalk. Here are two artist renderings of some of the design. Also, if you haven’t yet checked out the very cool video for the project, go here.
The project stretches the entire length of 14th from Market Street to Colfax Avenue and all blocks will receive the base package of improvements described above. The blocks between Larimer and Welton, however, have been designated as an “enhanced zone” where there will be additional lighting and other pedestrian amenities added. After the project has been completed, when an undeveloped property outside of the enhanced zone is developed, that block segment will then be upgraded to the enhanced level as part of the project’s site development. Currently, construction is taking place in just the enhanced zone area. While much progress has been made as is evident in the photos below, the fun stuff has yet to be installed: the incomplete gap along the back side of the new curb is the amenity zone, where lighting, landscaping, and street furnishings will be arranged.
Take a walk with me from Welton to Larimer along 14th Street. First, Welton to California (left) and the California/14th intersection (right):
Here’s California to Stout (left) and Stout to Champa (right):
Corner at Champa next to the Spire (left) and corner across Champa still under construction (right):
Champa to Curtis (left) and view of the intersection at Curtis showing how colored concrete is being used to define the crosswalks (right):
Curtis to Arapahoe (left) and view across 14th at Arapahoe (right):
Arapahoe to Lawrence (left) and Lawrence/14th intersection (right):
Intersection at Lawrence showing a new bulb-out (left) and Lawrence to Larimer (right):
That’s it! I hope you enjoyed the tour. The 14th Street Initiative is being funded with $10 million from the Better Denver Bond program approved by voters in 2007, and with $4 million raised from property owners in the vicinity of 14th Street. The entire project should be completed this fall. I’ll do another update in a couple of months.
Looks good. The Larimer street sidewalk widening is a big improvement also. Improving the Curtis Street pedestrian experience from the DCPA to 20th St. should be the next step. Curtis Street between 14th and 15th is very dated and ugly. Any word if Tabor 2 will ever get started? It will help to enliven that section of Larimer Street.
Aren’t the new 16th Street Mall buses supposed to be arriving soon?
While we are asking random questions has anyone heard why Denver Moves plan hasn’t been released yet? It was supposed to come out last month but it’s not posted on their site.
Never-mind they posted on their site why and when.
It will be released on Earth Day and they where factoring some last minute input that took longer than anticipated.
If anyone else was interested.
Although I am a fan of these improvements, I would have liked to have seen 16th St. and 14th St. for a cohesive project that improves and compiments both streets. I believe a leg of 16th mall shuttle should go west on Larimer and then turn onto 14th and then maybe again on Glenarm or Court to make a loop which would benefit the entire area. Also, as a Congress Park resident I would personally use the new bike lane if it continued east up 14th to my area; perhaps some day. Thanks for the update.
Though I appreciate Denver’s efforts to improve 14th St., I really have to question the point south of Curtis. Making this area more pedestrian is fine, but who is going to walk there? Aside from the relatively self-contained convention center and performing arts center, there is no room for local business or commerce…the area is mostly hotels without little if any ground floor commercial space and a bunch of parking lots.
I’d be thrilled to see some of those parking lots converted into a combination of commercial space and, oh, I dunno…maybe opportunities for local arts and theatre….the area *is* being labeled the “Theater District”, in spite of the fact that the label is more of a ploy by local commercial interests to create a pseudo times square area. I applaud our Performing Arts Center, but feel that for an area to be a “Theater District” there should be a bit more diversity in performing arts venues.
I agree about the more theaters in the theater district but disagree about stopping at Curtis. The project actually does have a primary zone that gets more amenities and that goes from Larimer to Welton and I believe Welton was a good cut-off.
The reason for this cut-off at Welton is that in-between Curtis and Welton you have the Convention Center(The primary reason for this project), two hotels, a residential high rise, and a light rail stop to generate pedestrian traffic.
Regarding the storefronts although between Curtis and Welton you only have about 5 commercial storefronts facing 14th a decade ago their was no commercial space and 2 years ago their was one commercial storefront. So it improved rapidly and theirs no reason to think they cannot grow the commercial further when you eliminate those two surface lots in front of the convention center or by modifying parts of the convention center (Maybe even the Hyatt) to have more commercial space.
Very nice tour. I enjoy your photography and commentary – nice work. The 14th Street improvements seem like a bargin compared to what was recently spent in Cherry Creek North. Great improvement to Denver’s urban fabric. Hopefully now the cross streets, between 16th and 14th can be improved, and maybe even apply a similar treatment to 18th and extend the cross street improvements from 14th to 18th – that would result in a wonderful,dynamic Downtown pedestrian environment and create a framework for future streetscape improvements radiating out in all directions.
I’m looking forward to the completion of this project, partly because it will look good, but mostly because the city has failed to plan for the disruption that it is causing.
I hope the day will come when downtown residents have easy access to basic, affordable goods and services without using a car. We’re not there yet. Because of this project, some of us have spent hours in gridlock in recent months. On one evening, it took me 30 minutes to drive from 15th and Curtis to 14th and Curtis. Traffic is flowing a little better for now, but we’re not getting any information about what to expect in the months to come.
I spent seven years living within walking distance of the Big Dig project in downtown Boston. I had to go through the construction to leave my neighborhood by any means other than the harbor ferry. Compared to 14th Street, the Big Dig was much larger, but less disruptive. The traffic planners made adjustments, even going so far as to change the directions of some one-way streets. It worked.
The Brooks Tower/Curtis Hotel block is one place where this kind of flexibility would help. On any given night, there are at least a thousand people on that block. Making Curtis Street two-way to local traffic only would make it possible for these people to get in and out, and would reduce backups on Arapahoe Street.