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Pickleball fans, get your rackets ready,
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and if you’ve been itching to ride or walk
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from Durango to Three Springs,
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trail improvements will
be underway this year.
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You’re watching the local news network,
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brought to you by Serious Texas Bar-B-Q,
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and Durango Party Rental.
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I’m Wendy Graham Settle.
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The City of Durango will start a number
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of long awaited parks and
recreation projects in 2021.
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Including work on Durango Mesa Park,
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new pickleball courts at Three Springs
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and completions of the Animas River Trail
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from Oxbow Park to Three Springs.
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The city of Durango, La Plata County
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and the Durango Mesa Park Foundation,
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will begin design work to
upgrade the intersection
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of Colorado State Highway
3 and Ewing Mesa Road,
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to meet Colorado Department
of Transportation standards.
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The city will purchase 250 acres
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of open space in Horse Gulch,
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from the foundation for
$1.5 million this summer.
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And the foundation will use that money
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to contribute to
intersection improvements.
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Durango parks and recreation director,
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Kathy Metz, said actual
construction on the intersection
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will begin in 2022, but
once completed will provide
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the necessary access to begin construction
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on park infrastructure.
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Longtime Durango resident and businessmen,
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Mark Katz, purchased the 1800 acre park
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in 2015, with the intention
of conserving open-space
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and donating the land
to the City and County
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for cultural and recreational facilities,
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including new fairgrounds
trails and other amenities.
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Lake Nighthorse will see
improvements this year
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with the installation
of a play structure near
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the sand beach built last year.
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Metz said Nighthorse has
experienced an explosion in use
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during the pandemic, with
an increase of 30,000
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more visitors last year,
over the previous year.
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Design work will also
begin on improvements
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at the Three Springs Community Park,
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including plans for eight
outdoor pickleball courts.
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Design work is expected
to be completed this year
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with construction to begin in 2022.
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And the city’s trail
system will be expanded
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in the near future.
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Construction is expected to
begin on the last connection
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on the Animas River Trail at 32nd street,
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with the purchase last
year of the property
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at 275 East 32nd street.
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Now the city purchased the property
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at 275 East 32nd street,
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which is on the corner
that you referenced.
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And in October of 2020
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and that is now allowing
the city to go forward
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with an underpass at that location
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so that the trail users will
not have to cross 32nd street
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at grade, which we know has been a problem
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with people actually being injured
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by vehicles at that intersection.
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So we’re very excited about
being able to complete
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that last link of the Animas
River Trail in Durango.
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Finally, the city will begin design work
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to complete the last mile
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of the smart 160 trail connection,
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to the Animas River Trail
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at the Escalante Bridge Terminus.
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That trail will connect with
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the Three Springs Trail Terminus
underneath the high bridges
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where the Farmington
Grand View interchange
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on us highways 550 and 160 will end.
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So if you think about
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the hard surface trail network
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we will have, the entire
Animas River Trail.
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We’ve got lots of sections
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of the smart 160 trail already built,
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but it’s just not connected.
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And so we’re really setting the stage
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for an amazing trail experience,
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and that will draw people to Durango,
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because we have the hard surface system
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and then we have over a hundred miles
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of natural surface trails,
and it is a destination for
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for people to come to Durango to enjoy.
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If you’d like to learn more
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about park and recreation
capital improvements underway,
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visit the department’s
website at durangogov.org.
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Thanks for watching this edition
of the local news network.
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Be sure to keep up with our latest stories
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on Instagram or Twitter
or listen to our stories
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on your favorite podcast app.
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I’m Wendy Graham Settle.
