5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

[Bryan Wilson]

Hello,

I received an update on the Shared Streets Program, which included N Acoma Street from 12th to 9th Ave.

Will this be separate from the 5280 Trail Development - Acoma Street Segment, which looks to be from 12th to 10th, or will that include the segment down to 9th? 9th Ave is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway.

It also seems like we could use a plan to connect 9th Ave to Bannock & across Speer Blvd for riders commuting to the Hospital. Any update on what will happen at the Bannock/Speer Blvd Intersection?

I use that bridge from time to time & it feels dangerous.

Thank you in advance!

Respectfully,
Bryan Wilson

CC'd https://groups.google.com/g/downtown-denver

[Bryan Wilson]

To follow up...
I looks like the https://www.the5280trail.com/ maps riders down Acoma St to 9th Ave & then crosses Speer Blvd at Bannock.


Was that changed?
Given that 9th Ave is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway, I think it would be nice to extend the Acoma St project another block from 12th to 9th.

We can then plan to widen the Bannock Street Bridge at Speer Boulevard with shared-use space on each side for bike commuters & pedestrians.

I don't see any details about improving the Bannock Street Bridge on the Citywide Bridge Program Website.
Can someone please provide an update?

Thank you in advance!

Respectfully.
Bryan Wilson

[Bryan Wilson]

Thank you for your response.

Then, why not plan the new bridge to one side of the bridge at Bannock instead of 10th?

No matter where you're traveling as a rider, we're adding extra blocks that could otherwise be alleviated?

At the very least, why not move it from 10th to 9th?

It doesn't connect to anything.

I'm asking as someone who will never use it at 10th, despite biking through that area.

Thank you in advance.

Respectfully,

Bryan Wilson 

On Wed, Jan 14, 2026, 3:33 PM Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org> wrote:

Hi Bryan, thanks for reaching out.

The attached plan was developed for connection from Acoma to Sunken Gardens, providing that connection to the hospital you mention and others. This plan calls for a new bridge rather than a widening. There is currently no funding for design or construction of that connection.

The Rise Bond funded project you referenced on Acoma is only from 10^th to 12^th. We can clarify that it does not extend to 9th. We'll also reach out to DDP about updating their 5280 map to include the revised connection from Acoma to Sunken Gardens.

Cheers,

 

Sam Beneck | Senior Project Manager 
City & County of Denver
Department of Transportation & Infrastructure | Transportation Implementation Division

Mobile: (720) 815-5663 | sam.b...@denvergov.org | meet with me

  Pronouns | He/Him/His

 

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From: Bryan Wilson <bryan...@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2026 7:42 AM
To: Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org>; Shared Streets <Shared...@denvergov.org>
Cc: City Council District 10 <Distr...@denvergov.org>; downtow...@googlegroups.com <downtow...@googlegroups.com>; in...@downtowndenver.com <in...@downtowndenver.com>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: 5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

 

To follow up. . . I looks like the https: //www. the5280trail. com/ maps riders down Acoma St to 9th Ave & then crosses Speer Blvd at Bannock. Was that changed? Given that 9th Ave is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway, I think it would be nice to

[Bryan Wilson]

Well, I'm essentially asking why we don't seem to be connecting the planned 5280 Trail down Acoma, to 9th & then Bannock.

https://www.the5280trail.com/

9th is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway, so the 10th Ave bridge is a block out of the way each direction.

Why not shift that down to 9th Ave & connect the Acoma project from 12th to 9th?

Was there a particular reason why 10th Ave was considered?

I'm not aware of 10th Ave being planned as a bike route.

Any help or guidance would be appreciated.

Respectfully,

Bryan Wilson 

On Thu, Jan 15, 2026, 9:51 AM Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org> wrote:

I don't think I'm fully understanding your question, can we discuss on a call? I'm open after 2pm today or 3pm tomorrow including evenings. Let me know what works for you and I'll set up an MS Teams call so we can look at maps.

Cheers,

 

Sam Beneck | Senior Project Manager 
City & County of Denver
Department of Transportation & Infrastructure | Transportation Implementation Division

Mobile: (720) 815-5663 | sam.b...@denvergov.org | meet with me

  Pronouns | He/Him/His

 

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From: Bryan Wilson <bryan...@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2026 6:42 PM

To: Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org>

Cc: Shared Streets <Shared...@denvergov.org>; City Council District 10 <Distr...@denvergov.org>; downtow...@googlegroups.com <downtow...@googlegroups.com>; in...@downtowndenver.com <in...@downtowndenver.com>; Cieciek, Gregory M. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Gregory...@denvergov.org>; Phillips, Taylor - DOTI CE0429 City Planner Senior <Taylor....@denvergov.org>
Subject: Re: [EXTERNAL] Re: 5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

 

[Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior]

I don't think I'm fully understanding your question, can we discuss on a call? I'm open after 2pm today or 3pm tomorrow including evenings. Let me know what works for you and I'll set up an MS Teams call so we can look at maps.

Cheers,

 

Sam Beneck | Senior Project Manager 
City & County of Denver
Department of Transportation & Infrastructure | Transportation Implementation Division

Mobile: (720) 815-5663 | sam.b...@denvergov.org | meet with me

  Pronouns | He/Him/His

 

---

From: Bryan Wilson <bryan...@gmail.com>

Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2026 6:42 PM

To: Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org>

Cc: Shared Streets <Shared...@denvergov.org>; City Council District 10 <Distr...@denvergov.org>; downtow...@googlegroups.com <downtow...@googlegroups.com>; in...@downtowndenver.com <in...@downtowndenver.com>; Cieciek, Gregory M. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Gregory...@denvergov.org>; Phillips, Taylor - DOTI CE0429 City Planner Senior <Taylor....@denvergov.org>

Subject: Re: [EXTERNAL] Re: 5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

 

[Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior]

Hi Bryan, thanks for reaching out.

The attached plan was developed for connection from Acoma to Sunken Gardens, providing that connection to the hospital you mention and others. This plan calls for a new bridge rather than a widening. There is currently no funding for design or construction of that connection.

The Rise Bond funded project you referenced on Acoma is only from 10^th to 12^th. We can clarify that it does not extend to 9th. We'll also reach out to DDP about updating their 5280 map to include the revised connection from Acoma to Sunken Gardens.

Cheers,

 

Sam Beneck | Senior Project Manager 
City & County of Denver
Department of Transportation & Infrastructure | Transportation Implementation Division

Mobile: (720) 815-5663 | sam.b...@denvergov.org | meet with me

  Pronouns | He/Him/His

 

---

From: Bryan Wilson <bryan...@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 13, 2026 7:42 AM
To: Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org>; Shared Streets <Shared...@denvergov.org>
Cc: City Council District 10 <Distr...@denvergov.org>; downtow...@googlegroups.com <downtow...@googlegroups.com>; in...@downtowndenver.com <in...@downtowndenver.com>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: 5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

 

To follow up. . . I looks like the https: //www. the5280trail. com/ maps riders down Acoma St to 9th Ave & then crosses Speer Blvd at Bannock. Was that changed? Given that 9th Ave is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway, I think it would be nice to

[Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior]

Thanks for clarifying!

Options for the connection between Acoma and Sunken Gardens were reviewed at several public meetings. The purpose of the connection is to serve as a "link" of the 5280 Trail. Two alternatives were considered which utilized 9th Ave, however the strong preference from the respondents was for "Alternative D" which followed 10^th Ave. That's not to say that a neighborhood bikeway on 9^th and improvements to the Bannock bridge will be eliminated from future planning. It just means those facilities would be separate from the 5280 Trail. 

I've included some figures below from the past meetings, but all the planning study materials are available for your review on the 5280 Trail - Acoma Street Segment website under "Connections to Sunken Gardens Park".

 Please let me know if there's anything else I can provide. 

Cheers,

 

Sam Beneck | Senior Project Manager 
City & County of Denver
Department of Transportation & Infrastructure | Transportation Implementation Division

Mobile: (720) 815-5663 | sam.b...@denvergov.org | meet with me

  Pronouns | He/Him/His

 

---

From: Bryan Wilson <bryan...@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 15, 2026 11:30 AM

To: Beneck, Sam W. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Sam.B...@denvergov.org>

Cc: Shared Streets <Shared...@denvergov.org>; City Council District 10 <Distr...@denvergov.org>; downtow...@googlegroups.com <downtow...@googlegroups.com>; in...@downtowndenver.com <in...@downtowndenver.com>; Cieciek, Gregory M. - DOTI Project Manager Engineering Senior <Gregory...@denvergov.org>; Phillips, Taylor - DOTI CE0429 City Planner Senior <Taylor....@denvergov.org>
Subject: Re: [EXTERNAL] Re: 5280 Trail on Acoma Street & Acoma Street as a Shared-Street

 

Well, I'm essentially asking why we don't seem to be connecting the planned 5280 Trail down Acoma, to 9th & then Bannock. https: //www. the5280trail. com/ 9th is a planned Neighborhood Bikeway, so the 10th Ave bridge is a block out

[Bryan Wilson]

Thank you for the update, Brandon.
No, I didn't get that information, & I appreciate you sharing it! I CC'd https://groups.google.com/g/downtown-denver to share that information with others.

I agree that closing Cherokee Street at 10th would be good for everyone.
Do you think it would be reasonable to ask if the crossing & bridge could be shifted to the south a bit?

The thought here is to get the bridge & crosswalk closer to the entrance of the Cherry Creek Trail that runs under it. Plus, it would make the crossing more direct for anyone coming from the opposite side of the Speer Blvd from 9th Avenue. From there, people can choose to go up to 10th at Cherokee or down to 9th at Bannock.

The big picture is a direct connection along 9th Avenue all the way to the future Broncos' Stadium in Burnham Yards.
I feel that all these decisions were made before we had that knowledge. 9th Avenue on the West side will connect everyone directly to the future stadium site.
https://denvergov.org/BurnhamYard 

That said, I still wish the Acoma project were being extended down to 9th Avenue to pick up the 9th Avenue Neighborhood Bikeway. I'm not aware of any plans to connect 10th to the East from there, so I think it's reasonable to try to better connect 9th Avenue.

Do you think these are things we can ask about?

Thank you in advance.

Respectfully,
Bryan Wilson

On Thu, Jan 15, 2026 at 2:22 PM board gtcd <bo...@goldentriangleofdenver.com> wrote:

Hi Bryan,

You may well have gotten this update from someone else already. I live at 10th and Acoma and cycle everyday, and I'm very excited about this project.

Latest info can be found on the city's 5280 - Acoma Street Page. There has been a public engagement process and multiple options were presented.

The preferred option was linking 10th and closing vehicular access here. There are also remnants of an old bridge over cherry creek here.

Latest info from the last engagement meeting in September is here. This includes results from Sunken Gardens Connection community input and latest on the Acoma "Place" segment.

Best,

Brandon Johnson, Golden Triangle Creative District Board co-chair