Published on September 20, 2021
Stormwater Improvement Project to Require Closure of Stretch of Southbound Colorado Boulevard this weekend City is working to more effectively capture/convey stormwater and reduce flooding Denver – Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure is building a bigger and better stormwater management system on the City’s east side of town to more effectively carry and convey stormwater that flows through the area in big storm events. The project team is currently working south of City Park, installing a bigger storm pipe along East 17th Avenue and moving east. They’ll later dig a tunnel and extend the pipe underneath Colorado Boulevard; but first, crews need to move existing pipes and other utilities out of the way. Crews will need to close travel lanes on Colorado Boulevard on several occasions to remove these utilities and the first closure is this weekend. This Friday, September 24, at 9:00 p.m., crews will fully close the southbound lanes of Colorado Boulevard from Montview Boulevard to E 16th Avenue, reopening the lanes by 5:00 a.m. Monday morning, September 27. The northbound lane closest to the southbound lanes will also close for safety. Variable message boards are placed along the corridor to encourage people to consider alternate routes. A detour map showing East 23rd as the official detour route can be viewed here. A second weekend closure of the southbound lanes of Colorado Boulevard is scheduled for Friday night, October 8, to Monday morning, October 11. Information will be posted on the project website. This stormwater management project is in Denver’s Montclair basin, the largest basin in the city without a natural waterway to convey stormwater, and an area of town most at risk of flooding. Future projects will build off this new system as funding becomes available, ultimately reaching and providing relief to well-known flood areas, including 14th Avenue and Krameria Street.