Town of Vail hosting open houses on I-70 underpass project, trail connections

The Town of Vail is joining with its partners to host a pair of open houses on Monday, Feb. 29 to review the start of the I-70 Vail underpass construction and another to discuss opportunities for soft-surface trail connections in a format that allows community members to drop in on both sessions at two locations at the Lionshead Welcome Center.

The dual open houses will run from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. with the underpass discussion taking place on the ground level of the Welcome Center and the trails discussion taking place in the Grand View on the third level with a trails presentation at 6 p.m. Free parking will be available in the Lionshead structure upon entry after 3 p.m.

I-70 Vail Underpass Open House, Lionshead Welcome Center, Ground Floor
During the I-70 Vail Underpass open house, community members and commuters are invited to drop in at anytime between 4:30 and 7:30 p.m. to meet with representatives from the Colorado Department of Transportation, Town of Vail and other members of the project team to learn about the project schedule and to plan ahead for potential impacts. Preliminary construction work starts in late March with major construction activities starting April 4. During this first phase of construction, I-70 traffic will be diverted into a head-to-head configuration on the eastbound side of the interstate to allow for construction of a bridge on the westbound side. Once this work is completed, traffic will be diverted to the westbound side of I-70 while the eastbound bridge is constructed. Completion of this first phase will take an estimated 90 days with no impacts to the frontage roads. A second phase in July will require one-way traffic on portions of the frontage roads and the rerouting of the West Vail Red and West Vail Green transit routes. Informational handouts containing the construction schedule; project website, codot.gov/projects/i70vailunderpass; hotline number, 970-685-7706; project email, i70underpass@cig-pr.com; as well as details on how to receive regular project updates will be provided. Completion of the underpass is scheduled for December 2017.

Vail Valley Trails Open House, Grand View, 3rd Level – Presentation at 6 p.m.
The Vail Valley Trails open house is being hosted in partnership with the Vail Valley Trail Connection and ECO Trails. Discussion topics include a two-phase concept for alterations to the Vail Trail, a soft-surface path that currently connects Golden Peak to the Vail Golf & Nordic Clubhouse. In addition, representatives from the Vail Valley Trail Connection will present information about this newly-formed non-profit organization which seeks to promote soft-surface trail connections for users valleywide. A presentation at 6 p.m. will include a discussion of existing trails in Vail, ideas for new trails and an overview of the Vail Trail project. Hikers, mountain bikers and other interested community members from Vail to Gypsum are encouraged to attend. For details, contact Gregg Barrie with the Town of Vail Public Works Department at 970-479-2337.