The Streetscapes Issue of Landscape Architect and Specifier News saw many firms submit their projects for feature consideration. This project was not chosen for a Feature in the issue, but we at LandscapeArchitect.com thought the project deserved to be showcased online . . .
Today's public spaces must flexibly adapt to accommodate the ways people seek to explore the outdoors in an era when social distancing practices emerged due to COVID-19 guidelines. A recent project we helped bring to life reflects those needs. The project is a thriving pedestrian-friendly district in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

What connects the work is a shared mission to create open spaces that people want to visit and become destination attractions. These public areas are emerging in urban environments where outdoor space options are limited, though the need for them has only grown over the past few years.

Streetscape Transforms Downtown Colorado Springs into Thriving District
Streetscapes rose in popularity and demand as the Covid pandemic pushed people outdoors and a perfect example of how these public spaces can help transform a community is the Vermijo & Sierra Madre Streetscape in Colorado Springs, Colorado. BrightView played a key role in bringing this thriving pedestrian-friendly district to reality in 2020 for Norwood Development Group. The project was intended to attract development into a long-neglected area of the downtown and has helped spur the revitalization of Colorado Springs' Southwest Downtown District.

Norwood Development Group's Senior Vice President Jeffrey Finn, says, "our 'why' in building this new streetscape was anchored on the idea of transforming what 'was' into a new 82-acre community connection point that sits between the thriving core of Downtown and the creek. Cities typically don't have spades of contiguous land like this. The size was unique, as was the fact that the site is near the confluence of two waterways, a monument, fountain and Downtown Colorado Springs' 16-acre front lawn."

The project name reflects its location at the intersection of Vermijo Avenue and Sierra Madre Street. Designed at the human scale with maximum flexibility, the streetscape can accommodate year-round use for day-to-day events of all sizes. The concept was to create a destination street that connects the new U.S. Olympic Museum to southwest Colorado Springs. Designers envisioned a downtown district that could accommodate pedestrians in a comfortable, connected, and engaging manner.

 
For so long, this area had been neglected, notes Finn. "The quality of the previous street was poor, and it suffered from a lack of investment in infrastructure. The railroad tracks were a relic of industry past in a part of the city needing revitalization."

Vermijo was conceived as a premier green street that sets the standard for the district as a leader in sustainable practices, it also serves as a "Signature Street" in Colorado Springs. Sierra Madre Street was also transformed into a tree-lined streetscape that leads to the museum from the north. Sierra Madre hosts dedicated bike lanes, wide sidewalks with seating, and large street trees where none existed. The flexible street design along Vermijo creates places for daily use and can easily be closed to host large-scale events and celebrations. Parking and vehicular lanes have been reduced on Vermijo and realigned to accommodate a wide, tightly amenitized pedestrian experience.

As one traverses from east to west, the streetscape along each block of Vermijo gradually builds momentum and complexity in design. The streetscape ultimately culminates into a rich gathering place at the foot of the museum. Olympic Museum Plaza will serve as a gathering place and may accommodate public events.

The work in total encompassed $160 million in investment including the museum, streetscape, bridge, and stormwater system, notes Finn. Investing roughly $30 million in a streetscape helps attract visitors' and involved installing pavers, plants, water elements, and extending the infrastructure, all of which has worked to attract private investment. "We didn't try to create a new downtown but extend and draw downtown to the west along three blocks to the museum," adds Finn.

The project encompassed adding sidewalks that were ADA accessible and incorporated elements to handle stormwater runoff. Finn notes, "The reality was Southwest downtown was in dire need of some sort of investment rejuvenation. The America Beautiful Park, built and maintained by BrightView, is the front lawn of our downtown. It was envisioned that way, as a festival space where 500 to 15,000 people can gather. But it was disconnected on three sides, so connecting both components was really the BIG move."

Colorado Springs' creek and trail system provides access to 100s of miles of biking, hiking and parks - all of which delivers on a promise of an outdoor adventure experience. The development team worked towards creating a street, bridge park and Olympic & Paralympic museums, all pieces and components that would work to create forward leaning neighborhood.

"We applied the principles of connection and walkability to infuse a collection of unique and memorable places that do all they can to enhance the quality of life to those who come - residents, visitors, restaurant goers, moms and kids to linger, visitors to museum who come to learn and be inspired. The streetscape improvements have all been integrated into the two museums, and has elevated the levels of excellence, while inspired the aspirations and goals into true gathering places. That's been accomplished through our work to connect the design of Park Union and bridge the museum across 14 railroad tracks to America Beautiful Park."

Finn notes the public private partnership succeeded in enhancing the user experience in the public realm, that is of a higher quality than other markets, and sets the stage for the private realm to unfold. "We worked hard with city and BrightView to make the best decisions in intent, design ideation and execution. It must look good and be durable," he says.

The ongoing revitalization of Downtown Colorado Springs is reflected in this public streetscape project. The six-block urban renewal area now includes granite walkways, smart technologies, storm water management, and a landscape that creates a unique urban neighborhood for residents and visitors to enjoy.

BrightView's work included installing more than 30,000 square feet of granite paving, 22,740 square feet of concrete unit pavers, and a pleasant site furnishing package that included bollards, benches, trash receptacles, and parking meters. An innovative underground stormwater filtering system captures and cleanses runoff to reduce flooding and water the trees. The water, cleaned by this natural and sustainable system, will collect in an underground basin before flowing to Fountain Creek.

During the course of construction, the BrightView team worked through many complex challenges, including supply chain issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenges presented by the health pandemic in 2020 required designers, developers, landscape contractors, and cities to embrace and welcome innovative outdoor spaces.

Ryan Phipps, project manager for the City of Colorado Springs, said, "By combining pedestrian prioritized improvements, low-impact development, smart technologies, effective stormwater management and an overall design that will draw people to the area, this will bring together elements that will make an attractive place for people to gather and enjoy a unique urban area in our downtown."

This new public space emerged out of the pandemic environment and serves as an example of what can be accomplished toward creating comfortable areas in which people can enjoy the outdoors while still following social distancing practices. In the long-term this destination district can fuel future revitalization and economic growth for a city on the foothills of Colorado's Rocky Mountains.

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