Design work could begin this fall on a transformational 5-mile walking and biking trail that will loop through and around downtown Denver.
The planned 5280 Trail will push through a variety of neighborhoods and open spaces, giving to the city an all-encompassing trail that residents will use for both recreation and transportation purposes.
Envisioned as a kind of linear park, the trail is expected to see construction in a series of phases, with the work not really being completed until sometime in the 2030s. It is thought that a handful of designers and contractors will ultimately be part of the process in making the trail reality.
Exactly how much the project will ultimately cost, and where all the funding will come from, is not yet known. But the City of Denver has secured an initial $800,000 to launch the design phase.
Additional funding may come from other government sources as well as the private sector.
Leading up to that phase, the Downtown Denver Partnership has sponsored a series of public input meetings looking at the exact neighborhoods and streets where the 5820 Trail will likely be built.
City officials have acknowledged that the 5820 Trail is inspired by other similar urban walking and biking trails across the country, including most prominently the High Line, an urban park stretching its way through parts of Manhattan.
The High Line, completed in 2009, is uniquely built on the tracks of the former New York Central Railroad, making up a 1.5-mile trail.
By Garry Boulard
