The Regional Transportation District and its project team broke ground June 7 on a project to upgrade Civic Center Station on the east end of Denver’s 16th Street Mall.

The design team for the $26-million project includes Perkins Eastman and SEH and is being built by the Denver office of Mortenson Construction. It involves a complete renovation of the decades-old transit site, including:

• Building a new structure that is easier to maintain and repair.
• Transforming the station into a more open and welcoming environment.
• Adding nine bus bays.
• Constructing a glass-enclosed terminal building.
• Rebuilding the bus concourse.
• Extending a bus ramp that connects Broadway to Lincoln.

The station closed for renovations earlier this month in preparation for the 12-to-18-month project, which is scheduled for substantial completion in late September 2017.

Civic Center Station is one of RTD’s busiest regional bus transit centers, handling 18 routes that serve an average of 15,000 passengers a day. It provides a turnaround point for the 16th Street free MallRide and is also the site of Civic Center Plaza.

“It’s time to give this transit hub a much-needed facelift,” said RTD General Manager Dave Genova at the groundbreaking.