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Gov. Jared Polis joins Glenwood Springs City Council in breaking ground on new Devereux Trail project

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks about the Devereux Trail Project at Monday's groundbreaking at Two Rivers Park.
Chelsea Self/Post Independent

Gov. Jared Polis announced plans in Glenwood Springs on Monday to propose $40 million in his next fiscal budget for community development project grants. The program would be aimed at projects similar to the new pathway to Two Rivers Park he was on hand for to help break ground.

Golden shovels in hand, Polis and Colorado Department of Transportation Executive Director Shoshana Lew joined Glenwood Springs city staff, Mayor Jonathan Godes and members of City Council in kicking off the construction of a 10-foot-wide sidewalk to better connect Devereux Road to Two Rivers Park as part of the Devereux Trail Project.

The multi-use path was funded, in part, by CDOT grants from the Small Multimodal and Economic Resiliency and Revitalizing Main Street programs, plus match donations from Iron Mountain Hot Springs owners Steve and Jeanne Beckley. The city funded the bulk of the estimated $850,000 needed to complete the project.



“It’s really exciting that as a state we’re able to support these kinds of Main Street improvements that make it easier for bikers and pedestrians in our towns,” Polis said. “The projects are about attracting people from across the state, across the country and across the world with better trail linkage and world-class recreation opportunities.”

In addition to budgeting $40 million for community development in fiscal year 2023, Polis said his administration recently made $22 million available to Colorado communities through CDOT grants of up to $2 million for projects such as improving user safety along urban roadways.



Lew applauded Glenwood Springs for using Main Street grants in creative ways, bolstering the local economy and improving safety for residents and visitors alike.

“The breadth of these investments are worth more than the sum of all their parts,” Lew said.

The pathway is intended to provide safer pedestrian and bike connectivity to the Traver Trail Ride Glenwood bus stop and Two Rivers Park, as well as improve a popular route to community events and local attractions, a city news release states.

The need for creating a trail connection, which provides direct pedestrian access to the Roaring Fork and Colorado rivers and attractions like the Iron Mountain Hot Springs, was originally highlighted during the seven-month closure of Two Rivers Park for riverfront improvements last year, city staff reported.

During the closure, pedestrian traffic increased along Devereux Road, which has no shoulder and no rails above knee height, even as it crosses Interstate 70, the release states.

The new path is slated to run about 500 feet along Devereux Road. Completion is slated for April 2022.

“This project helps bring economic vitality and vibrancy to our community,” Godes said. “Being able to connect residents and visitors to summer music, boat ramps and Iron Mountain Hot Springs has been a critical need for our community for the last several years.”

Reporter Ike Fredregill can be reached at 970-384-9154 or by email at ifredregill@postindependent.com.


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