Aurora to Fund Glass-Printed Bus-Stop Canopy Art for Colfax BRT Stop

Aurora City staff described an approved public-art design for two new bus-stop canopies on Colfax Avenue, part of the Denver–Aurora bus rapid transit (BRT) project.

The artist Jazz was selected to produce artwork printed on glass panels for two canopies serving eastbound and westbound buses at the Havana and Colfax stops, Amber Pixley, public art program specialist, said. The city’s contribution to the design and fabrication is budgeted at $45,000 and will be paid from the Public Art Reserve Fund, a staff member said during the June 18 meeting.

Why it matters: The canopies are part of a coordinated Denver–Aurora BRT design; Aurora officials said the city aimed to match Denver’s higher-spec canopy design at the single Aurora location that uses the more sophisticated glass panels. The project ties Aurora’s public art to a regional transit agreement and will be visible to riders and Colfax corridor businesses.

Key details - Artist and concept: The artist billed as Jazz submitted a two-canopy concept: one canopy emphasizing cookware from a range of global cuisines (Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Ethiopian, Senegalese, Polish and Thai) and the other emphasizing floral ingredients such as orange blossom, peppercorn and saffron. Pixley said Jazz will “be filling in the cookware forms with color” and agreed to add more filled-in elements to increase shade for bus-stop users after selection-panel feedback. - Fabrication and format: The canopy artwork will be printed on glass that sits in an overhead triangular structural frame. The glass vendor requires artwork supplied in vector format; the designer’s budget includes vector conversion and printing costs, Pixley said. - Budget and funding: The total design budget for the Aurora portion is $45,000. A staff member explained this is not coming from the city’s general fund but from the Public Art Reserve Fund and stems from an agreement between the City of Aurora and the City of Denver made as part of the BRT project. - Schedule and approvals: Staff said the contract with the artist was being finalized, with a final design scheduled for December 2025 and shop drawings and samples to be approved before fabrication. Installation was projected for mid–late summer 2027, contingent on final approvals and coordination with the Denver–Aurora project team.

Questions and process Council member Gardiner asked whether the artwork funding would come from general funds and raised the item in the context of expected budget deficits. A staff member answered that the project uses the Public Art Reserve Fund and that the funding and layout parameters were determined by the Denver–Aurora project team; no motion or formal vote was required because the item was informational.

Next steps Staff will finalize the contract with the artist, complete shop drawings and samples for approval, and return as needed for any required approvals tied to contract execution or installation timing.