Denver anticipates completion next year on a nearly $300-million, four-year suite of projects to convey stormwater more efficiently to the South Platte River. Project officials say the completed stormwater system will improve water quality while also enhancing Denverites’ quality of life with new amenities and better connectivity between neighborhoods.
But residents in the affected Denver neighborhoods have complained that the changes, including removal of nearly 300 trees from the area, hurts their property values and permanently changes the landscape. A lawsuit to stop the project was dismissed in Denver District Court in 2017. Opponents also claim that the city has not been forthcoming about how the project is related to the current $1-billion-plus renovation of Interstate 70, which runs through the area.