Council shoots down proposal for Cascade

Cascade Avenue north of downtown Colorado Springs won't be narrowed to one lane in each direction, at least not any time soon.

The City Council on Tuesday rejected a plan advanced by Colorado College to shrink the street by one lane in each direction for 20 blocks, from Boulder to Jackson streets, which includes long stretches outside the college's campus. The plan also called for installing traffic circles at four intersections with Cascade Avenue. It was part of larger changes to a plan for development at the 90-acre college.

College leaders including President Richard Celeste argued the changes were important to improve the campus' physical appearance, and to enhance safety for students and others who use crosswalks on Cascade where there are no traffic signals.

But dozens of residents from the Old North End neighborhood argued the changes would push traffic to other nearby streets, diminishing safety for younger schoolchildren there.

Several residents said shrinking Cascade would hurt the character of the historic neighborhood.

"Once you start nibbling away, the next time it's easier," Dave Swint, who said he moved to North Cascade Avenue 25 years ago because of the area's historic character, told the council during Tuesday's meeting.

Vice Mayor Larry Small strongly opposed the idea and had a few pointed exchanges with proponents of the plan. Small pressed Colorado College Facilities Director Ed Eng on why the college wanted to impose a narrower street and traffic roundabouts on areas so far from the campus. Eng said the idea was to increase the college's ties to the local neighborhood and improve the area's appearance by creating the impression of a gateway to a unique part of town.

"We're trying to be good neighbors," Eng said.

"Well my neighbor's real nice to me, but he doesn't tell me what color to paint my house," Small shot back. "I think you've exceeded your responsibility."

The central consideration for Colorado College is the safety of students, Celeste said. Since 2002, five vehicles have struck pedestrians or bicyclists on Cascade Avenue where it runs through the campus, according to the college.

"The one thing that keeps me awake at night is the safety of our students," Celeste said.

Colorado College offered to pay for a test of safety and traffic patterns by using equipment to temporarily narrow the road. But a majority of the council said such a test would be pointless unless it was coordinated with numerous government and private agencies, and previous government plans that were supposed to guide changes to traffic flow.

The vote was 5-1, with Councilman Scott Hente the opponent. Hente said he favored conducting a test to shed light on traffic safety problems on Cascade and other roads around the Colorado College campus. Councilmen Tom Gallagher and Darryl Glenn were absent. Councilman Randy Purvis left before the vote but said he would favor what the council ended up doing.

The rest of the college's long-term plan was approved, including elements about redeveloping buildings on North Tejon Street, access to parking, rehabbing Cache La Poudre Street, pedestrian safety and the land uses on Weber Street.