YOUR AD HERE »

City picks up road-striping tab

Brandon Gee

— The Steamboat Springs City Council on Tuesday approved $35,000 to hire a contractor to stripe roads in the city this week.

The vote came after council members learned Monday that the Colorado Department of Transportation won’t stripe city roads this summer because of budget cuts and liability concerns. CDOT will stripe state roads in the Steamboat area, namely U.S. Highway 40.

“They’re not our streets, bottom line,” said Nancy Shanks, a CDOT spokeswoman.



Shanks said striping streets for the city requires manpower the department can’t afford, and also raises concerns such as what would happen if a CDOT worker was involved in an accident on a non-state highway.

Doug Marsh, the city’s street fleet superintendent, said Grand Junction-based Patriot Highway Striping & Pavement Markings has been hired to do the job. The citywide striping will take place Friday and Saturday, weather permitting, Marsh said. Marsh said the worst-case scenario would postpone the striping until as late as Monday. No road closures will be required. CDOT will not stripe U.S. 40 until September, Marsh said.



Steamboat Springs Director of Transportation George Krawzoff said the news that CDOT would not take care of the striping came as a surprise to the city.

“It needs to be done every summer,” Krawzoff said. “We want to have it done, and we’re going to have to pay for it.”

Krawzoff said the city would use the opportunity of having a contractor in town this weekend to stripe bike lanes on Seventh Street from Oak Street to Missouri Street and on Fish Creek Falls Road from Third Street to Tamarack Drive.

At the City Council meeting Tuesday, Councilman Towny Anderson, an outspoken critic of construction’s aesthetic effect on downtown Steamboat, said the striping would help.

“We’re looking really ragged” downtown, Anderson said. “At least the striping will help us look a little better.”


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Steamboat and Routt County make the Steamboat Pilot & Today’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.