Improvements Along Cherry Creek In Denver
Through a partnered application to
Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) from Denver’s Parks + Recreation and the Greenway Foundation, the Board of GOCO at its March 28, 2008 meeting, awarded a grant of
$725,000 for trail improvements along the section of the Cherry Creek Greenway between Oneida St. (adjacent to Cook Park) downstream approximately 1.5 miles to Holly St. (adjacent to Garland Park).
These funds will be leveraged with additional funding from the City and County of Denver as part of the recent Bond package passed by the voters this past November, along with
support from the Urban Drainage and Flood Control District and the Greenway Foundation.
This long-anticipated enhancement will construct a concrete
bicycle/pedestrian trail along the only remaining “non-channel” section of the Cherry Creek Greenway and will
eliminate six “at grade crossings” that currently exist. The new trail will begin at the existing pedestrian bridge adjacent to Cook Park and travel downstream along the Creek under Monaco Parkway, travel along the natural area between Monaco and Holly St. and will then
pass under the new Holly Street bridge, connecting to the existing trail just downstream of Holly St.
Construction of this new 1.5 mile, 10’ wide trail is intended to begin later this year and is anticipated to be open for use in the spring of 2009.
A community meeting will be scheduled during the coming weeks to present a more detailed overview of the project to neighboring residents.
Denver Parks + Recreation (DPR) facilities are unrivaled in the Rocky Mountain West. The DPR system spans over a 138-year history from the first park created in 1868 to nearly 15,000 acres of urban parks and mountain parkland today. It embraces nearly 3,000 acres of “traditional” parks and parkways, 2,500 urban natural acres and close to 8,000 acres of urban forest within the city alone. The system has evolved from the early years of jungle gyms and swings to 29 recreation centers and 17 outdoor pools offering high-quality programs.
Since 1974, The Greenway Foundation has been dedicated to the redamation of our City’s greatest natural resources – our urban waterways. In addition to partnering with dozens of local, state and federal agencies, the Greenway Foundation has collaborated with countless individuals, corporate and philanthropic supporters to collectively create over $70 million of environmental and recreational improvements to the South Platte River, Cherry Creek and numerous other tributaries of the River.