Improvement project delayed by underground spring resumes on Dublin Boulevard in northeast Colorado Springs
Scott Harrison
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) — The closure of a third of a mile of a busy Colorado Springs street is in effect after being delayed by city officials a month ago.
It means that the closure will now affect the start of the fall semester for a nearby charter school in District 49.
Officials revealed that the delay was caused by addressing an underground spring, similar to one that had been an issue in the area for most of last year.
Crews began placing concrete barriers and signs Monday night on Dublin between Fieler Drive and Mustang Rim Drive, as well as at the intersection of Dublin and Peterson Road.
The closures are required for a $15 million improvement project on Dublin between Fieler and Marksheffel Road that KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior first reported on last fall.
Officials had hoped to end the closures before classes resumed at the Pioneer Technology and Arts Academy, but the delay means that traffic patterns to and from the school will temporarily change when classes resume.
City officials said that more information about those traffic patterns will be released later.
“Then you have an adjustment with (Vista) High School,” said Kent Mathews, a neighbor. “There’s a ton of traffic that comes this way off Dublin, to make the right-hand turn to get to Vista. So, there’s school traffic in both directions that’s just going to be massive and an utter headache. But it needs to be done.”
Improving the drainage of the groundwater that contributes to spring formation is one of the project’s objectives; crews used a network of French drains to resolve the previous spring that caused splashing and ice hazards to traffic.
Drainage upgrades include more storm sewer pipes, inlets, and water quality structures.
Crews will also widen Dublin from two to four lanes and build a center median between Fieler and Marksheffel to match the alignment on both ends of that segment.
Another project benefit is building wider sidewalks and improving connections to the nearby trail along Sand Creek; that pleases Steven Foster, who rode his bike along the closure on Tuesday.
“I was hoping they’d get it done sooner, but it’s something that’s been needed for years,” he said. “It’s taken them long enough. It’ll be nice to have bicycle lanes and sidewalks through here. Overall, it’ll be great having this.”
City officials said that the three-month closure will allow crews to finish the project sooner.
At one point, The Road Warrior saw several vehicles drive through the closure — including a speeding pickup truck that nearly struck some of the concrete barriers.
That led police to post patrol cars at each end of the closure.