With spring, street repair blooms while Aspen is quieter
Kelsey Brunner/The Aspen Times
May typically is one of the busiest times for street repairs in Aspen, as there are fewer tourists, more businesses are closed, and snowmelt reveals winter’s true impact on the city infrastructure.
The city conducts major asphalt street repairs every three to four years on a limited number of blocks, depending on need. The curbs and gutters are replaced block by block, leading up to asphalt projects.
COVID-19 created a pothole in that plan, and after a six-year hiatus, this May is especially busy for the Parking, Transportation and Engineering departments. The good news? The city is ahead of schedule on street repair. The bad news: There’s more to come.
What’s accomplished?
City of Aspen/Courtesy map
CONCRETE CURB & GUTTER REPAIR (blue)
5 — Hopkins from Monarch to Mill: through May 5
10 — Ute Avenue from Original to Ajax Park: through May 15
ASPHALT REMOVAL & REPLACEMENT (orange)
1 — Mill Street from Rio Grande Place to Main: May 1-9
2 — Mill Street from Lone Pine to Rio Grande Place: May 1-10
3 — Aspen from Cooper to Durant: May 4-12
4 — Aspen from Main to Cooper: May 4-12
5 — Hopkins from Monarch to Mill: May 8-16
6 — Hyman from Aspen to Monarch: May 8-15
7 — Monarch from Hyman to Durant: May 9-17
8 — Aspen from Bleeker to Main: May 10-18
9 — Hyman from West End to cul de sac: May 10-19
10 — Ute Avenue from Original to Ajax Park: May 15-17
11 — Smuggler from 7th to 4th: May 17-19
12 — Bleeker from 7th to 6th: May 18-22
Also notable, the dip on Hopkins Street by the Wells Fargo has already been smoothed out.
The city is spending $1.66 million on the asphalt repair work and concrete replacement through contracts with Frontier Paving Inc. (asphalt work) and Excavation Services Inc. (concrete curb and gutter).
What’s to come?
Stormwater infrastructure needs to be upgraded to prevent flooding, damage of property, and unsafe travel in Aspen. The stormwater improvements will take place along N. Garmisch Street parallel to the Red Brick Center. The Yellow Brick Center will also be impacted along W. Hallam Street. Both streets are getting a water main replacement and expansion or replacement of a storm pipe.
City of Aspen/Courtesy photo
“A large portion of our stormwater in this area begins up on Aspen Mountain and is conveyed in this main pipe in Garmisch Street. Unfortunately, it’s undersized,” said City Engineer Trish Aragon. “This project is part of a larger project to upgrade the pipe in Garmisch. It also includes a tie-in to the Yellow Brick, where we also experience flooding.”
Deputy City Engineer Pete Rice said, “We are installing a 48-inch stormwater pipe. It’s a really big size for the city, but we want to be pro-active.”
