The block of Tejon Street in downtown Colorado Springs between Colorado and Pikes Peak avenues is expected to reopen fully later this month as crews complete the first phase of a multimillion-dollar road widening and improvement project.

The city reopened the east side of the block in early July and will complete mill and overlay work, paving and striping on the block next week, project manager Ryan Hershberger said.

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Crews will also install new road signage and, later, parking kiosks and permanent wrought iron patio railings.

The block will fully close to vehicle traffic next week as the work happens. Sidewalks will be open to pedestrians.

The entire section of Tejon between Colorado and Pikes Peak is scheduled to reopen to two-way vehicle traffic and on-street diagonal parking on Aug. 25.

There could be a lane shift on northbound Tejon Street north of Pikes Peak Avenue, according to a Friday news release from the city. Colorado Springs Utilities will conduct electric system work; crews may begin removing and replacing concrete on the southeast corner of the block.

Work on a second block of Tejon Street, between Pikes Peak Avenue and Kiowa Street, is expected to begin Sept. 2, after the Labor Day holiday.

The block will close fully to vehicle traffic and street parking when construction starts, but pedestrian access will be maintained. Workers will conduct pre-construction activities along the block the weekend prior, Aug. 30-31. 

Colorado Springs began in March the $8.6 million project officials said will boost business activity, public safety and accessibility along these two blocks of Tejon Street. The project is reconfiguring pedestrian and vehicle traffic through the corridor by eliminating the center lane and expanding both sidewalks. 

Wider 10-foot sidewalks and flex zones that businesses can use as extended patio space are among the new improvements completed on the first block. The 6-foot amenity zones marked by red pavers will include new trees, benches, street lights, bicycle racks and parking kiosks that are replacing existing parking meters along both blocks, Hershberger said.

Some angled street parking spaces have been converted into short-term loading and unloading areas, including for ridesharing uses.

Commercial deliveries have moved to alleys and new loading zones on Colorado and Pikes Peak avenues.

Crews will make the same surface improvements along the second block of Tejon between Pikes Peak Avenue and Kiowa, Hershberger added. Construction on the second block is scheduled to be complete in December. Paving and tree planting along this stretch of Tejon will be done around the spring of 2026.

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The city will also make aesthetic improvements at Historic Busy Corner, the intersection of Tejon Street and Pikes Peak Avenue, as part of the project.

Granite pavers are planned for the intersection’s crosswalks, city spokesman Eric Sieger said. Crews will widen the sidewalk and crosswalk areas to create a larger space for crowds and pedestrians during special events like parade grandstands and pedestrian-only events; there will remain dedicated areas for public artwork; and the city will install new traffic signal mast arms. The city is reducing the number of poles in the intersection from four to two, helping give the intersection “a more open feel,” Sieger said.

The city initially hoped to complete improvements to the first block by the end of June, but crews encountered some complications, Hershberger said.

While excavating old sidewalk, crews discovered some of the buildings in the first block had old basements — at one time used as coal chutes or for boiler access — that extended underground and directly underneath the sidewalk, for example.

“So it took us a little bit of time to figure out how we carefully wanted to” replace the old sidewalks in those areas, Hershberger said.

The nature of the project and its impact on so many businesses also caused some delays. The project team divided the work into smaller “chunks” to minimize inconvenience to businesses, their patrons and other downtown visitors as crews put down new sidewalk, Hershberger said.

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“Instead of being able to place 100 feet of sidewalk at one time, we could now only place 30 feet, 10 feet, at a time. Those kinds of iterations slow us down overall,” he said, adding that the project remains within budget.

City officials and businesses say the improvements are already benefitting downtown merchants and visitors.

“It’s been called a ‘glow-up,’ and it really is,” Red Gravy General Manager Tasha Martinez said. “This project is making (the corridor) more accessible for visitors. The trees they’re putting in will add shading for our patio. The new benches installed are helping us when we have long lines; people are using them as kind of a waiting area. It just makes it more appealing.”

Sieger said he recently observed three friends, all using wheelchairs, traveling along the improved portion of Tejon.

“Just like any of us would walk down the street, they all got to be next to each other. They didn’t have to move into a single-file line, they weren’t trapped (on the sidewalk); before, it was so narrow. They were able to use the corridor as it should be, and they were just yukking it up and having a great time. I was like, that’s why we’re doing the project, right there: just to make this easy to use for everybody,” Sieger said.