WINDSOR, Colo. — Rarely does a pedestrian bridge rile up residents, but one expected to open this month did just that.
Maybe it’s the size. You can’t miss it atop the hill spanning more than 194 feet and rising 35 feet.
Maybe it’s Martin Lind. Some Windsor residents can’t get past the bridge linking two of his golf-catering communities — Water Valley and RainDance.
Maybe it’s the town of Windsor throwing about $700,000 of taxpayer money into the $2.1 million bridge.
Whatever people’s reasons, comments poured in on the Nextdoor social media platform soon after the 65-ton, pelican-themed behemoth was lowered by cranes onto its decorative concrete supports on November 19. The conversation became so divergent and divisive on the Windsor Town Watch Facebook page that commenting was turned off.
A construction worker crosses Seventh Street in Windsor where a new pedestrian bridge was under construction on Dec. 1. The $2.1 million bridge over the south end of Seventh Street will link two golf communities. Photo by Jon Austria/The Coloradoan
A good number of residents commenting about the Pelican Bridge, or 7th Street Bridge, on social media described it as a self-serving eyesore that caters to the golfing communities that Lind built but for which taxpayers are helping foot the bill.
Others see it as the only safe way to cross Seventh Street, which has a posted 45 mph speed limit and sees 6,000 vehicles a day.
As for the town of Windsor? Officials say it’s the long-sought solution for the safest and most cost-efficient trail connection that links west Windsor to the heart of downtown.
“People need to think more broadly than this just connecting RainDance to Water Valley,” Windsor Mayor Paul Rennemeyer said.
Why Windsor covered part of the bill for the bridge
Laura Danielle and her family, including two children, moved to the Water Valley South neighborhood six years ago. She said one of the reasons they chose Windsor was because it felt like a town, not a city, with a different feel depending on whether you lived in the “cute” older homes downtown or newer homes that ring the core of the town.
She believes Water Valley and RainDance residents will likely use Pelican Bridge more than residents in other neighborhoods. But she added that the bridge is necessary for the safe crossing of the street for all trail users and connects the older area of downtown Windsor to the newer neighborhoods.
“The bridge makes for the idea of coming together, having a common identity, a sense of caring for each other,” she said. “It gives our children something healthy to do and the ability to do so safely.”
It’s true that Pelican Bridge will link Lind’s 18-hole RainDance National Resort & Golf course west of Seventh Street, which is scheduled to open in July 2022, with his existing 27-hole Pelican Lakes Resort & Golf course in Water Valley, east of the street.
That’s why Water Valley and RainDance metro districts each paid one-third of its cost.
Metro districts are typically a special taxing district established by developers to finance infrastructure necessary to support a new subdivision, such as roads, sewer lines, parks, trails, and other similar services.
So why did Windsor pay the other third? Because the bridge will serve as a key trail connector to the town’s 40 miles of trails, Rennemeyer said.
In addition to connecting RainDance and Water Valley, Rennemeyer said Pelican Bridge will connect to a new 10-foot-wide concrete trail that is nearly finished, leading from the bridge north to the Poudre Trail near Treasure Island Demonstration Garden and Eastman Park with access to Main Street and Windsor Lake.
The Windsor Town Board unanimously approved the bridge project in May, and Rennemeyer said the town has been and continues to be involved in all aspects of the bridge.
Town of Windsor civil engineer Omar Herrera said the town required the bridge to serve its needs today and in the future.
That was done by requiring the bridge to be 17 feet above Seventh Street, which is higher than bridge/overpass requirements by the Colorado Department of Transportation on state roads, to accommodate future road overlays as well as wide enough to account for adding lanes.
The 12-foot-wide bridge is wide enough to allow golf carts, pedestrians, and bicyclists to pass by each other. Lind estimated 10 percent of bridge traffic will be golf carts and 90 percent pedestrians and bicyclists. Town of Windsor regulations prohibit golf carts on roads, such as Seventh Street, where the speed limit is greater than 30 mph.
Rennemeyer said there was no way for residents in some western Windsor neighborhoods such as High Pointe Estates, Highland Meadows, and Windsor Highlands to safely access downtown Windsor on the trail system before the bridge.
Lind, who founded Water Valley Company in 1990, said the bridge idea surfaced in 2006 and came to fruition with development of the area. He said his company spent money on buying land and grading the area years ago so the bridge could be built.
He pointed out that trails in Water Valley and RainDance are ones that all Windsor residents can use and eventually will connect to the future elementary school and community park planned for the area. He also said he will build connecting trails from the bridge, which will be lit with various lighting to reflect seasons.
“It’s funny how some people are unhappy when you can separate pedestrians, a mother with young children, from vehicles going 50 mph,” Lind said. “This is a phenomenal project that should be embraced as a community asset.”
Construction on a $2.1 million pedestrian bridge continues Dec. 1 in Windsor. Photo by Jon Austria/The Coloradoan.
Windsor weighed alternatives
Rennemeyer said the town has looked at various trail options to connect west Windsor to downtown and Windsor Lake, which residents have said should be a priority and has been in the town’s master trails plan.
He said the town looked at a 10-foot-wide concrete trail along Colorado 392 starting west of the top of the hill at Larimer County Road 3 to connect to the Poudre Trail that goes under the highway near the Poudre River. Because of switchbacks necessitated by the hill’s steepness and ADA requirements, the cost was going to be at least $3 million.
The town also considered a trail along New Liberty Road between Colorado Boulevard (County Road 13) and Seventh Street, which does not have a bike trail. New Liberty Road runs through the RainDance development.
“We couldn’t justify spending that much to create a trail that would only go about a mile (along Colorado 392),” he said. “We don’t have that kind of money. This project just made much more sense.”
Construction on a pedestrian bridge continues Dec. 1 in Windsor. The $2.1 million bridge over the south end of Seventh Street will link two of Martin Lind’s golf communities and to 40 miles of town trails. Photo by Jon Austria/The Coloradoan.
The town has invested in other trail improvements this year to help connect residents, which Rennemeyer said rank trails as a high priority in surveys.
The town of Windsor in recent years installed a new concrete and soft-surface trail around Kyger Open Space at the intersection of Colorado 392 and Colorado Boulevard on the west side of Windsor. It connects Larimer County’s River Bluffs Open Space to existing trails north of Colorado 392, which were connected with a recent 10-foot-wide concrete trail along Colorado 392 from Colorado Boulevard to 17th Street at a cost of $100,000.
It also revamped that intersection at a cost of $875,000 and constructed a trail and bridge over the Poudre River to connect to the Poudre Trail along Colorado Boulevard south of Colorado 392. The bridge cost $678,063, and the trail along Colorado Boulevard $365,875.
Rennemeyer said the River West and Ridge West homeowners associations donated right-of-way land on the west side of County Road 13 to allow for the bridge and trail.
Some residents believe a trail bridge should have been constructed over County Road 13 to replace the on-road crossing, which they say is dangerous and has been the scene of several crashes and near-misses with those using the Poudre Trail.
John Thornhill, the town’s community development director, said the town has contemplated installing a signal light near the crossing at River West Drive to address safety concerns.
But for now, all eyes are on Pelican Bridge to serve as the saving grace to connect Windsor residents, if not philosophically, at least recreationally.
“Trails are an important part of the town and we see this as a win for all of Windsor,” Rennemeyer said. “This connects trails, increases safety, and was done much less expensive than alternatives.”
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