DENVER — The "Alameda Lane Repurposing Project" has been in the works for years, and it's gotten a lot of mixed reaction from the community.
Denver7 received an email from a viewer Bryant Denning. He and his neighbors have overwhelmingly supported the project, but Denning told Denver7 he hasn't felt like his voice has been represented.
This project has been in the works for the better part of a decade and is overwhelmingly supported by the general Speer and Washington Park neighborhood residents. I believe recent media that has been published on this topic is out of alignment with the general sentiment of the neighborhood
He believes the way things are set up now along Alameda is chaotic.
“People are making erratic turns. There is an incentive to be fast. People regularly exceed the 30 mile an hour of speed limit that's posted here for this corridor,” Denning described.
Last year, he said a driver actually crashed into the retaining wall surrounding his home.
“There's still damage present from that accident. There's evidence of those accidents all up and down this 10 block corridor,” Denning said.
Denver7 took those concerns to City of Denver leaders.
The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure in Denver (DOTI) said the number of crashes in this area has been increasing, citing 55 total crashes in 2024, and 19 from the beginning of 2025 through August 8.
The goal of this project is to enhance safety measures along Alameda from Lincoln Street to Franklin Street, according to DOIT. Some features of the project include reducing the speed limit, adding new pedestrian and biker accommodations, reducing the number of lanes from four to two, and adding new turn lanes.
On their project website, DOTI said less lanes, and adding those turn lanes, could reduce crashes between 19 and 47%.
Neighbors like Denning say this project is what the area needs.
“Alameda is tight. Alameda is chaotic. Alameda is fast. Alameda is dangerous.” Denning said. “There are several, many, the majority of the residents in my mind, that are for this project, want this project, recognize the benefits of this project, and feel that it needs to move forward."
But Denver7 also knows a lot of people have some concerns with the project, like Jill Anschutz with Act for Alameda.
Anschutz said while safety definitely needs to be improved in the area, she believes changing the number of lanes will do more harm than good.
“We agree that there is room for safety improvement in this corridor, and there's some aspects of the project that we think will achieve that,” Anschutz said. “We think that if you make congestion a lot worse, you frustrate drivers and you force them into these neighborhood streets that are narrow and are highly used by kids and pedestrians, and that's what we mean by we think you're just going to create new safety issues rather than really completely resolving the concerns."
Anschutz said the group would like to see if speeds could be lowered without such a disruptive, massive and expensive change.
There's no set date for implementation yet. DOTI said it's still giving nearby areas time to adjust to temporary lane closures and are also taking the time to consider community concerns like these.
