ACPA Quarter 2 2019

www.acpa.org Quarter 2, 2019 17 B R I G H T O N B L V D C O L O R A D O Denver’s New Gateway Features Concrete Pavement and More By Sheryl S. Jackson FOR MANY YEARS BRIGHTON BOULEVARD IN DENVER has served as a shortcut or back door into the city, especially because it provides a direct route fromDenver International Airport to downtown Denver. The four-lane asphalt pavement road, however, did not present the image of a “gateway” to the area that city leaders wanted. “The redevelopment of the Brighton Boulevard corridor creates a signature gateway to the city that reflects the changing nature of the neighbor- hood,” explains BrianMcLaren, P.E., engineering specialist for Infrastructure Projects Manage- ment for the City and County of Denver. The multi-modal corridor supports new business and residential development of the area as well as the growing pedestrian and bicycling population with continuous sidewalk and a cycle track—a protected bicycle lane—on both sides of the street. Concrete pavement was chosen for the 7,300-ft- long section of roadway for several reasons, in- cluding its durability during Denver’s harsh winter weather. “But the choice of concrete relied on more than maintenance,” explains McLaren. “A concrete urban arterial road is more modern looking and fits the urban neighborhood.” The 7,300-ft project was split into two sections, with Kiewit handling 5,000 ft of the project. The coordination between Kiewit* and another general contractor, the city, developers in the area, and existing residents and businesses was complex, says BrianArmstrong, project manager for Kiewit Infrastructure Co.The challenges were addressed by co-locating contractors as well as city representatives in one construction office that was placed on the boulevard under construction. “Co-location of everyone involved in the project at the project site is definitely a best practice for complex projects,” says Armstrong. “Wewere able to talk about issues that were identified during construction and easily share ideas.” Another benefit of the on-site office was the ability for residents, existing business owners and devel- opers who were building, or planning to build, along the road to walk in with questions any day. The open-door policy of answering questions and providing updated information to local stakeholders was critical, he says. The new road boasts two 12-ft lanes in each direc- tion, six signalized intersections, more than 80 on-street parking spaces, 5-ft-wide continuous sidewalk, 6.5-ft-wide continuous cycle track, and new landscaping, light fixtures and benches. “The road pavement is 10.5-in. concrete,” says Armstrong. “We milled the existing asphalt to the original base and used Class 1 structural fill to backfill areas of utility work.” The amount of newmaterial used to backfill utility work, which represented about 99% of the subgrade area, and the condition of existingmaterial made it possible to eliminate the aggregate base course included in the original design, he says. “We used a lot of high early strength concrete on the project so we could open the lanes to traffic more quickly,” says Armstrong. Because Brighton Boulevard is a major artery, it could not be closed to traffic. “We closed one two-lane section at a time, which left two lanes—one in each direction—open to traffic,” he explains. Working between the hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., the contractor also had tomeet noise restrictions at night. “We saw-cut at night and phased the cutting, so we were in residential areas earlier in the evening, and then moved to non-residential areas throughout the rest of the nighttime and early morning hours.” Access and space limitations were major chal- lenges throughout the project. “We used string- less, GPS-guided paving equipment because we did not have room to set lines,” says Armstrong. “We also met early on with developers who were building or planning to build along the road so we could plan for utility connections, driveway cuts and construction access.” Planning “every square inch” of the project means that the need to cut into the newly paved continues on page 19 »