november 18, 2020 east 52nd avenue feasibility study

November 18, 2020

East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study

Community Open House

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Welcome! For Spanish interpretation click the interpretation button on Zoom’s bottom menu Agenda:

o Project introduction o Study areas (existing conditions and preferences) o Draft alternative alignments o Draft alternative cross-sections o Discussion

Open House Communication and Expectations of Participants • Respectful conversation • At specific points during the presentation participants will be asked to provide feedback via polling activities and open

discussion.

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Angela Jo Woolcott GBSM Meeting Facilitator

Leah Langerman David Evans and Associates Polling Administrator

Karen Good, AICP Project Manager City of Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI)

Matt Buster David Evans and Associates Consultant Project Manager

Will Wagenlander David Evans and Associates Planner

Victoria Mendoza Hispanidad Interpretation Services

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Introducing the 52nd

Avenue Feasibility Study o Project goals and

outcomes o Where are we in the

planning process? o Existing conditions analysis

(building on previous planning studies)

o Flyers and online survey o Community Working

Group o Engineering feasibility

52nd Avenue

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Community Working Group Update o Globeville-Elyria-Swansea Coalition o City Council District 9 o Colorado Motor Carriers Association o Denver Streets Partnership o JK Concepts Cabinets & Woodworking o 52nd and Vasquez Scale Company

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East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study Focus Areas

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Focus Area 1: 52nd Avenue from Brighton Boulevard to Colorado Boulevard

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Existing Pedestrian Bridge

N Line Station

Focus Area 2: Brighton/York Underpass

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N Line Station

Focus Area 3: National Western Center (NWC) N Line Station Connectivity

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N Line Station

East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study Community Input and Feedback

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October 2020 Community Survey Results What we heard:

• Agreement with the need for improvements on 52nd and at the Brighton/York underpass

• Confirmed the need for connectivity in all directions • Local network is more important than regional connectivity • Low volume streets are appreciated

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Carpool

What transportation improvements are most important to you?

9% Scooter

9% Lyft/Uber/Taxi

25% Transit

32% Freight

42% Pedestrian

45% Bicycle &

Pedestrian

48% Bicycle

48% Vehicular

9% 7% Other Van

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Which gaps are the most important to fill?

Other Connectivity to bike Direct connection from Connectivity south

Connectivity to facilities 52nd Ave to Brighton Blvd across I-70 transit stops

Connectivity north along Connectivity west Connectivity east of

46% 46% 43% 36% 33% 33% 30% 30% 23% 10%

Brighton Blvd under the Connectivity east-west across river Colorado Boulevard Connectivity to NWC freight railroad to York St on 52nd across the freight Station

railroad 13


52nd Avenue Focus Area

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Focus Area 1: 52nd Avenue from Brighton Boulevard to Colorado Boulevard

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Will be edited

52nd Avenue

Street Section & Right-of-Way Limitations

• Tradeoffs between impacts and elements of the street width

• ROW and existing street section vary along the corridor

• Some ROW available on the east side

• Very limited ROW available on the west side

Reserved publicly owned land for transportation purposes, such as a highway, sidewalk, rail transport, and other infrastructure

52nd Avenue

59’ – 60’ ROW

50’ ROW

21’ ROW

ROW = Right of Way 16

Existing Street Section & Right-of-Way ROW and existing street section vary along the corridor:

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52nd Avenue Focus Area - Alignments

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52nd Avenue from Brighton Boulevard to Colorado Boulevard – Alignments

o 1 (least impactful) – 3 (most impactful) 1st Alignment

• No vehicular crossing (bike and pedestrian only) of railroad tracks with improvements to 52nd and adjacent local streets

2nd Alignment • Over or under option

3rd Alignment • Over or under option

o Each has differing types of new connections and impacts on neighboring properties

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Alignment 1: Bike and Pedestrian Crossing • Define and formalize parking

and street edge. i.e. add curb, gutter, & sidewalks

• Includes bike and pedestrian crossing but no vehicular crossing of rail line

• No vehicular connectivity to commuter rail, Platte River, and NWC

• Limited impacts to adjacent properties

• At-grade railroad crossing is not possible

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Alignment 2: Over or Under Rail Line • Ped, bike and vehicular

improvements from Brighton to Vasquez

• Creates a 4-way intersection at Brighton Blvd / 52nd

• Proposed grade-separated rail crossing

• Local street network re-alignment impacts residences

• Improved connectivity to Brighton, Platte River, and NWC

• Property impacts on west side

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Underpass Option Overpass Option

Alignment 3: Over or Under Rail Line • Ped, bike and vehicular

improvements from Brighton to Vasquez

• Creates a 3-way intersection at Brighton/York Underpass

• Proposed grade-separated rail crossing

• Improved connectivity to Brighton, Platte River, and NWC

• Property impacts north of 52nd

• Greater property impacts on west side

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Underpass Option Overpass Option

Overpass Example Underpass Example

15th Street Under Freight Rail Line in Downtown Peoria Crossing at Smith Road in Aurora • Visual barrier • Clearance needed • Possible environmental issues

• Easier and more economical (esp. related to railroad &) • More difficult to • Higher cost drainage coordinate/construct • Impacts to surrounding street

• Impacts to adjacent properties • Line of sight to other side for network multimodal users • Impacts to the local street network • Impacts to adjacent

• Drainage issues/pumping properties

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Poll What appeals to you: Over or under the rail line?

1) Over 2) Under 3) Equal or no difference 4) No crossing

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Poll Which of the alignment options do you prefer?

1) Alignment 1 2) Alignment 2 3) Alignment 3 4) None of the above

Please add additional ideas

Alignment 3

Alignment 1

Alignment 2

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3

2

1

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Discussion


52nd Ave Corridor Characteristics

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52nd Avenue Corridor Characteristics

• West side

• Neighborhood

• Commercial

Example ideas to get your perspectives and ideas

Preference polling and discussion will follow

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Commercial • Larger blocks • Big parcels • More truck and

vehicular movements • Large curb cuts and

driveways for parcel access

• Employment • 60-foot ROW typical • More regional

connection needs

Commercial -Cross Section 1 Commercially focused street • Separated bike facility on

one side • No on-street parking • 10.5’ travel lanes • Amenity zone (trees in

hardscape) with opportunities for transit stop enhancements and to buffer pedestrians from traffic

• Larger sidewalk / multimodal path to accommodate bikes on side without the bike lane

• Stays within the existing 60’ ROW 30Existing 60’ ROW

Commercial -Cross Section 2 Benefits and tradeoffs: • 1 Bike lane • On-street parking on

one side to buffer bike lane

• 11’ travel lanes • Amenity zone (trees in

hardscape) with opportunities for transit stop enhancements and to buffer pedestrians from traffic

• 6’ Sidewalks on each side

• 62’ ROW vs. 60’ Existing ROW

31Existing 60’ ROW

Poll Which of these sections do you prefer for the commercial section? o Section 1

Please enter new ideas/ questions you might have into the chat box o Section 2

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Section 1 Section 2

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Neighborhood • Primarily residential • Multiple intersections • Swansea Neighborhood

Park • Homes address 52nd at the

side of lots rather than fronting the street

• More bicycle and pedestrian needs

• ROW from 20 feet – 60 feet • More local connection

needs

Neighborhood -Example Cross Section 1 Benefits and tradeoffs: • Bike lanes on both

sides • On-street parking on

one side to buffer bike lane

• Amenity zone (Turf and Trees) to buffer bikes and pedestrian from vehicles

• 6’ sidewalks • 10’ travel lanes • 60’ ROW

65’ ROW

34Existing 20’- 60’ ROW

Neighborhood -Example Cross Section 2 Benefits and tradeoffs: • Buffered bike lane on

one side buffered by parking

• Amenity zone (Turf and Trees)

• 6’ sidewalk on one side

• 10’ Sidewalk / Multiuse Path on other side

• 10’ travel lanes • Opportunities for

enhanced transit stops • 60’ ROW

35Existing 20’- 60’ ROW

Poll Which of these sections do you prefer for the neighborhood section? o Section 1


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Section 2 Section 1

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West Side • Large, super blocks • Big parcels • More truck and vehicular

movements • Large curb cuts and

driveways for parcel access • Employment • 0 feet to 20 feet ROW • More regional connection

needs

West Side -Cross Section 1 Benefits and tradeoffs: • Bike lanes on both

sides buffered by on-street parking

• Amenity zone (hardscape with trees)

• 6.5’ sidewalks on both sides


enhanced transit stops • 75’ ROW

38No existing ROW

West Side -Cross Section 2 Benefits and tradeoffs: • Buffered bike lanes

on both sides • Onn-street parking

on both sides to further buffer

• Amenity zone (hardscape with trees)

• 6’ sidewalks on both sides


enhanced transit stops

• 80’ ROW

39No existing ROW

Poll Which of these sections do you prefer for the west side? o Section 1


Section 1 Section 2

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Discussion

East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study Brighton/York Underpass Focus Area

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Focus Area 2: Brighton/York Underpass

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Brighton/York Underpass • Flooding and drainage issues • No pedestrian or bicycle facilities • Poor sight distance for drivers • Low clearance • Environmental issues • Aesthetics

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Brighton/York Underpass Improvements • Ped, bike and vehicular

improvements • Realignment of Brighton to

provide site distance and safety improvements

• Aesthetic improvements to a “City Gateway”

• Coordination with BNSF and RTD critical

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Poll How important are bicycle and pedestrian improvements beneath the Brighton/York Underpass to you?

1) Extremely 2) Somewhat 3) Not Important

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Discussion

East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study National Western Center Station Focus Area

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Focus Area 3: National Western Center N Line Station Connectivity

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N Line Station

47th Avenue New Mobility Elements

47th pedestrian/bike bridge 47th bike lanes

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Focus Area 3 • New pedestrian and

bicycle bridge • Bike lanes added to

47th Avenue • Connection to

Brighton Blvd Transit Station

• 48th Avenue sidewalk improvements

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48th Avenue Sidewalks Project Project Highlights • Adding 1,400 feet of sidewalk

along the south side of 48th • Landscaping along new sidewalk,

including 25 new trees • Improved storm drainage • Repaving from Brighton to Claude

Project Schedule (Tentative) • 12/2020 - Construction advertisement

• 5/2021 - Start Construction

• 12/2021 - Construction complete

48th Avenue

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Poll What are your biggest priorities for connections to the NWC N- Line Station?

1) Better pedestrian connections 2) Better bike facilities 3) Better crossings 4) Better vehicular drop-off facilities 5) All the above 6) Connections to the station are not

important to me

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Poll Which improvement is most important to you?

Please select your top priority

1) Brighton/York Underpass 2) 52nd Avenue overpass/underpass

(across the rail line) 3) Improvements to existing 52nd

Avenue 4) Connections to the NWC N Line

Station

This will help assist in prioritizing future projects based on your input.

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Discussion

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East 52nd Avenue Feasibility Study Next Steps

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What’s next? o Refinement and Identification of Priorities and Alternatives, including:

High-level engineering analysis Consideration of costs Identification of possible impacts and benefits

o Next Meetings and Opportunities for Feedback: Community Working Group: early 2021, after alternatives analysis Public: early 2021, after the Community Working Group meeting

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For More Info or to Submit a Comment:

o Visit project web page: www.bit.ly/52ndAveStudy

o Call Karen Good, Project Manager: 720-865-3162

o Email Karen: [email protected]

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http://www.bit.ly/52ndAveStudy

mailto:[email protected]

november 18, 2020 east 52nd avenue feasibility study

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