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Business leaders and residents urge Denver to finish long‑delayed Santa Fe Drive streetscape
Summary
Business owners, neighborhood advocates and veterans groups told the council the Santa Fe Drive Streetscape pilot is "shovel ready," cited more than $2 million in prior city investment and asked that the project be elevated to tier 1 in the Vibrant Denver bond to address ADA, safety and lighting shortfalls.
Andrea Barela urged the City Council to "please reconsider the Santa Fe Drive Streetscape project because we will not give up," saying the pilot and community support justify finishing permanent streetscape work.
The request came from a string of business owners and neighborhood leaders who told the council the corridor — which speakers called culturally and historically significant — needs permanent improvements after a long pilot phase. George Lim, president of the Santa Fe Drive Business Improvement District, said the pilot reduced accidents, that the corridor was included on multiple community boards during the bond outreach, and that prior city guidance led local stakeholders to invest time and assessments to advance the effort.
Jeremy Nieman, representing the Sherman Agency, said his firm owns multiple properties along Santa Fe Drive and that temporary measures such as plastic bollards and planter boxes are inadequate. Nieman provided measured sidewalk clearances, saying "for example, in front of our space at 771 Santa Fe Drive, there's 43 inches between the curb and the front door," and urged the council to include the project in the upcoming bond.
Jim Stevens, executive director of the Veterans Arts Council at Post 1, repeated that the city has already invested about $2,000,000 in the streetscape pilot and characterized the project as meeting the Vibrant Denver bond criteria for equity, economic growth and infrastructure. He said halting the project now would leave the city with temporary bollards and unresolved safety problems.
Speakers emphasized ADA access, lighting and tree canopy improvements as immediate needs and warned that incoming development near the corridor increases urgency. No formal motion or vote occurred during the public comment period; speakers asked the council to place the streetscape in a higher priority tier for the bond so the project can proceed.
