A construction project aimed at revitalizing the portion of 6th Street in Glenwood Springs that used to be part of Highway 82, and to activate the former Grand Avenue Bridge “north landing” as a new park area, commenced earlier this year.
In 2017, the Colorado Department of Transportation completed construction on the new, curved bridge that more directly connects Highway 82 to Interstate 70. That eliminated the two-block jog that the state highway used to take along 6th Street just west of the historic Hotel Colorado and the Hot Springs Pool.
The result was a quieter, more pedestrian-friendly extension of the downtown business district that’s slowly experienced a renaissance in the years since.
“I don’t think there’s been a Saturday when I’ve been over there that there aren’t people out walking around, stopping into stores and checking things out,” said Bryana Starbuck, public information officer for the City.
What still resembled an automobile-centric highway corridor after the new bridge was built was envisioned for a complete makeover through a multi-year master planning process.
The end product will include a narrower two-way street and parallel parking lanes with ample landscaping and eight-foot walkways on either side, plus a two-way separated bicycle lane.
Once the street project is complete, expected sometime next year, attention will turn to converting the space where the north end of the bridge used to land into a public park/plaza.
The dual projects, with a combined cost of about $7.1 million, involve a partnership between the City and the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). A nearly $1.2 million Colorado Main Streets Grant awarded to the City in 2022 is also helping to pay for the work.
The project has been a top priority for the DDA since Jillian Sutherland took over as executive director of the organization in 2022. “We really want to pull that great energy and vibrancy we have with 7th Street and Bethel Plaza [under the south end of the bridge] and bring that to 6th Street, and make it feel more like a downtown community street,” Sutherland said.
She noted that when she first joined the DDA, there were a lot of empty storefronts on 6th Street. But now those spaces are all occupied.
“What we’re aiming to do is meet that moment and build a true street for those shops, with parking and wider sidewalks and more shade and greenery,” Sutherland said. “We want it to be an inviting, warm space where people can spend time.”
New restaurant adapts
While the future holds a lot of promise in bringing that vision to reality, the first phase of construction has been difficult for some of the businesses that have decided to call 6th Street home.
Those businesses range from the long-established Springs Liquors, which finally reopened after taking a long hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic, to several new shops in that same building, plus the iconic Sioux Villa Curio shop and, on the north side of the street, the former Summit Canyon Mountaineering, which became part of the Gearhead Outfitters chain last spring.
Devika Gurung is co-owner of the Himalayan Cuisine restaurant that opened earlier this year in the large, one-time auto dealership building on the north side of 6th between Maple and Laurel streets. Two other eating and drinking establishments in that same spot didn’t quite take off, but Gurung is banking on it being the ideal spot once the project is completed.
When construction on the underground utilities portion of the project began this past summer, however, she said they saw a 75% drop in business.“We lost all our patio business,” she said, because of the challenge of inviting people in when there’s large machinery making noise and dust.
“This is our first business and our first year, so we want it to be a success and we don’t want to have to rely only on tourist business,” Gurung said.
They’ve tried to cater to locals with some special events, including an international potluck back in October that featured food from around the world and dancing.
Gurung is also exploring the idea of setting up a winter market in part of the large indoor dining space, and soon she plans to begin offering lunch boxes featuring uniquely prepared food from her native Nepal. Pre-ordered meals can either be delivered or be picked up at the Glenwood restaurant, or in Carbondale at the Cocoa Club, she said.
“People can choose to receive meals once or twice a week,” she said. “The menu will be vegan and vegetarian and tailored to dietary restrictions … It’s just another way to introduce ourselves to the community, and to introduce people to our traditional food.”
In addition, because the “Himalayan” name is already in use by other local entities, they’re planning a name change to Shanti Summit after the first of the year.
Taking care of business
Construction on the 6th Street project was paused for the holiday shopping season and will resume after the first of the year when the weather allows, City Engineer Ryan Gordon said.
“We wanted to make sure that those businesses had an uninterrupted period of time through the holidays, and with the Hotel Colorado holiday lighting ceremony [this Friday evening],” Gordon said.
Because of the nature of the initial stage of work tearing out and installing new subsurface infrastructure, there were a lot of impacts on businesses, he said.
To make up for the lost street parking, the City partnered with private property owners, including the Hot Springs Pool, to convert two parking lots into public parking.
“We’ve also been having regular meetings with the business owners to try to communicate and make sure we’re hearing what their problems are and seeing how we can address those,” Gordon said.
Sutherland added that the DDA and the Glenwood Springs Chamber have partnered to put a portion of the economic development funds they receive toward advertising and promotions directed at 6th Street businesses.
“We want to let people know that those businesses are still open, and that the City is maintaining access and parking in that area,” she said. “It’s been a group effort to support those businesses.”
Starbuck added that it’s more than a street beautification project. In addition to the utility work that’s part of it, the 6th Street work serves to better connect that part of town with the Glenwood Canyon recreational trail and nearby Two Rivers Park, she noted.