Cars drive over Peña Boulevard. Aug. 24, 2023.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite
A Denver City Council committee has voted to approve a crucial contract to Denver International Airport’s proposed overhaul of Peña Boulevard, setting it up for a full council vote.
Hundreds of thousands of cars travel along Peña Boulevard, which has led to DIA exploring options, some of them controversial, to alleviate the traffic it has caused. Transit advocates and some city leaders aren’t sure the airport is truly committed to exploring other alternatives.
This $15 million contract will require the airport’s contractor, Peak Consulting Group, to lead the proposed overhaul through the federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process.
Two weeks ago, discussions over the contract went long, leading city councilmembers to postpone the vote of the contract.
During the first meeting, some council members brought up concerns with the project. Council President Amanda Sandoval said she received hundreds of constituent emails expressing concern about the contract.
Airport leaders and transit advocates disagree on how to revamp Peña Boulevard.
DIA officials have been studying and planning the Peña project for years, and have also repeatedly said that they haven’t decided exactly how the highway will be changed.
Leaders have argued Peña Boulevard has caused traffic headaches for the millions of people driving to the airport a year. Meanwhile, transit advocates and some city leaders have worried the airport would only pursue avenues that would lead to an expansion of the highway.
Last February, DIA officials released a master plan that outlines the future of Peña Boulevard. The plan identifies five options for the road’s future:
- Adding a bus-only lane
- Adding a “managed lane” either for carpools or a toll lane
- Building a frontage road for local traffic off the highway
- Building a collector road to separate airport express traffic and local traffic
- Or, doing nothing at all
However, since then, airport CEO Phil Washington said the NEPA process could reveal more alternatives.
If the contract is passed in full, Peak Consulting Group will be responsible for producing an initial design for a new Peña Boulevard that satisfies the NEPA process. The 5-year contract also includes an option to submit a full design.
The contract’s second hearing, beat by beat.
Shontel Lewis — the chair for the Business, Arts, Workforce, Climate & Aviation Services Committee — limited the renewed discussion to 30 minutes on Wednesday.
Questioning once again revolved around DIA’s commitment to exploring other alternatives, specifically ones that would incentivize public transit over highway widening.
Councilmember Stacie Gilmore, who represents northeast Denver, said she wanted to see the contract approved to commission a full environmental study of the highway.
“What I’m concerned about is if we don’t study this corridor, we’re not going to be ready for a right of way or an easement that might need to be in place for EV infrastructure expansion, air taxis, vacuum tube transit, smart highways, and self-driving transit,” she said.
Councilmember Lewis also asked several questions about whether community input would be considered while the contractor identifies a preferred design for Peña Boulevard.
DIA officials once again tried to assuage concerns that its contractor won’t explore public transit-oriented improvements.
“We believe that there is ultimately challenges associated with the airport being able to fund [transit alternatives] through this particular project,” said Scott Morrissey, senior director for sustainability at DIA. “That does not mean that they cannot be considered through the NEPA process. And so if they get brought back in by NEPA, I think [CEO Washington] has said very clearly that all of those alternatives will be considered.”
The contract was eventually voted through to the full council floor. All members of the committee voted yes on the contract except at-large councilmember Sarah Parady, who voted against it, and District 4’s Diana Romero Campbell, who abstained.
The vote sets up a showdown in front of the full city council. A previous step to study the possibility of widening the highway narrowly passed through the council last year after Councilwoman Flor Alvidrez changed her vote during the final hearing.
