Denver is set for a music- and beer-soaked September. A new music festival will dazzle Instagram feeds, the annual Taste of Colorado festival is expected to draw in more people than ever (over half a million!) and the Great American Beer Festival should be just that: great.
With all the food and drink being served up, Denverites looking to get around the city will need to eat their proverbial traffic-peas. Road closures and heavy pedestrian traffic will squeeze weekend transportation more than usual this coming month.
Taste of Colorado (Sept. 1-3)
Marking its 35th year, the festival is packing in its biggest lineup yet. Organizers expect over 500,000 attendees this year and are working closely with the Denver Police Department to have plenty of off duty officers on scene to ensure a safe event, said Doug Schepman a spokesman for the Denver Police Department. The festivities will converge in Civic Center Park for an abbreviated three days this year.
The following roads will be closed starting at midnight Aug. 29:
Civic Center Park will be closed through noon Sept. 4.
Lincoln Park will be closed through noon Sept. 4.
Bannock Avenue and 13th Avenue to Colfax Avenue will be closed through noon Sept. 5.
14th Avenue from Cherokee Street to Broadway will be closed through noon Sept. 4.
Cleveland Place and 15th Street to 16th Street will be closed (local access only on the North side) from 6:30 p.m. Aug. 29 through noon Sept. 4.
The following roads will be closed starting on 9 a.m. Aug. 31 through 6 a.m. Sept. 4:
Broadway and 13th Avenue to 19th Street (two lanes east side only) will be closed through Aug. 31 at 6 p.m.
Colfax Avenue from Cherokee Street to Broadway will be closed through 6:00 a.m. Sept. 4.
14th Street and Broadway to Sherman Street will be closed through 6:00 a.m. Sept. 4.
15th Street from Court Place to Colfax will have local access and access to Sheraton Garage only through 6 a.m. Sept. 4.
Broadway and 13th avenue to 19th street will be closed from 6 p.m. Aug. 31 through 6 a.m. Sept. 4.
Lincoln Street and 13th Avenue to Colfax Avenue will be closed from 7 p.m. Aug. 31 through 6 a.m. Sept. 4.
Colfax Avenue and Broadway to Sherman Street will be closed from 9:30 p.m. Aug. 31 through 6 a.m. Sept. 4.
Lincoln Street and Colfax Avenue to 17th Street will be closed from 1 a.m. Aug. 31 through 6 a.m. Sept. 4.
RTD transit will also be strained with riders traveling to the CU Boulder vs. CSU Rocky Mountain Showdown this Friday.
Local businesses expect a boost in revenue from the festival.
“What a lot of people do is come down once or twice a year for a festival like this,” said Sharon Alton, vice president of downtown experience for the Downtown Denver Partnership which puts on the festival. “It is really a way for us to showcase downtown and the center city in general.”
But, all those shoppers have feet and pedestrian traffic is anticipated to be heavy over the weekend on top of street closures.
“We want our motorists to be mindful there are going to be a lot of pedestrians,” Schepman said, adding that “Denver is accustomed to planning for this.”
Grandoozy (Sept. 14-16)
Things only get louder later in the month with Grandoozy, a first-time festival put on by the same masterminds behind Outside Lands and Bonnaroo. Slated to bring in big names to Denver, the lineup includes EDM icons The Chainsmokers, rap royalty Kendrick Lamar and all-time-great Stevie Wonder. The festival will also cause several road closures and partial blockages, but most importantly for festival-goers there will be no parking.
Grandoozy is marketing itself as a car-less affair and encouraging attendees to find eco-friendly transportation to Overland Park. Shuttles from Boulder, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs will run for long-distance fans. For cyclists, the festival is offering free bike valet off the S. Platte River Bike Trail. Designated pick-up and drop-off points will also be available to help Uber and Lyft riders find their ride.
Superfly, the production company putting on the festival, also is encouraging people to using public transportation and RTD park-and-ride options. Passengers should plan for packed busses and trains, and a possible dusting of glitter from festival-goers. RTD is not planning any extra service to the recommended I-25 Broadway or Evens Street stations, but is aware of the likely increased passenger flow.
“We just ask people to be patent and plan ahead,” said Tina Jaquez, a public relations manager for RTD.
Here are the roads that will be closed during the festival:
Florida Avenue in between S. Platte River Drive and Santa Fe Drive:
The eastbound Curb lane will be closed from 8:30 a.m. through 3:30 p.m. starting Sept. 5 through Sept. 7 and closed around the clock from Sept. 8-9.
Florida Avenue will be closed to all non-event traffic from 8:30 a.m. Sept. 10 through 3:30 p.m. Sept. 18. Aqua Golf will be accessible during these closures except during festival days.
The eastbound curb lane of Florida Avenue will be closed on Sept. 19.
Overland Pond park parking lot will be closed 8:30 a.m. Sept. 10 through 3:30 p.m. Sept. 18.
Santa Fe Drive between S, Platte River Drive and Jewell Avenue:
The southbound lane will be closed from 11 a.m. Sept. 14 through 6 a.m. Sept. 17 for ride share pick-up and drop-off.
Jewell Street via S. Santa Fe Drive will be used during non-event days for occasional loading throughout the day. It will also be used from midnight to noon during event days for the festival.
Galapagos Street will be used during non-event days and event days from midnight to noon or when outgoing traffic has cleared.
Superfly struck a deal with their suburban neighbors in the Overland Park area to give free tickets as a token of gratitude for bringing a festival to the residential area.
Private security and the Denver Police Department will also work to ensure no residential parking is used by car-driving festival-goers. After the 10 p.m. cut off time, attendees will be funneled away from residential areas.
Superfly is working with the city to ensure part of the tax revenue from ticket sales go toward neighborhood improvement projects. The festival will provide jobs to local musicians, vendors and non-profits who will participate in the event.
In a FAQ posted to the city’s website, the festival also said that it has security plans in the event of an active shooter.
Great American Beer festival (Sept. 20-22)
Filling the Colorado Convention center with over 4,000 beers from 800 breweries, the Great American Beer Festival won’t be closing any streets. Attendees are encouraged to ride RTD and ride sharing pick-up and drop-off points will be available.
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