DENVER — For those driving by Union Station, road closed signs are blocking off Wynkoop Street between 17th and 18th Streets as the City of Denver looks into the future of the block as a place for the community to gather. Instead of cars, people can expect to see games and live music as part of the "Spooky Wynkoopy" festival.
Denver7 listened to community members about their thoughts on the closure and what they would like to see for the future of the block. Nicole McSpirit said she was very excited about this closure and wanted to come check it out.
"People in cars can't just pull over and shop somewhere. If you're riding your bike, if you're walking, you're much more likely to pop in a place. If you smell a good aroma, you're like, 'Okay, I'm going to go in here.' It's a little bit easier for us, so it's better for businesses, too. You want people out on the street enjoying it," McSpirit said.
On Saturday, Nuggets Nation took over Union Station as part of the Ball Can-I-Val season tip-off party. John-Mark Larter, food and beverage director at Union Station, explained how great it was seeing everybody walking around downtown before the home-opener.
"We've got beer garden tables in the street that looks really cool. What we're doing right now is testing what it would be like if this was largely a pedestrian area, with the end game vision to have a walking mall between Coors Field and Ball Arena, so everything we're doing right now is sort of testing the waters of that," Larter said.
Alissa and Bret Waples were walking through the closed-off area on Sunday. They went to school at CU Boulder and talked about the Pearl Street Mall being a great way to enjoy shops and restaurants. They hoped the closure of Wynkoop would continue into the future.
"We're really hoping that it stays. We were disappointed that Larimer opened back up, because that was really nice to have that as a walking area, and it's just nice to be able to go out and enjoy and not have cars zooming by," Alissa Waples said.
Signs were spotted throughout the block informing the community about the closure and encouraging people to make their voices heard online. The closure will be in effect until November 1. Details about live music performances and planned events for Spooky Wynkoopy can be found here.
