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Lindsey Vonn airlifted after crashing in last downhill before Winter Games: ‘Olympic dream is not over’

Contract for National Western Center pedestrian bridge advances

By January 28, 2026 | updated 2 days ago

Members of the South Platte River Committee voted on Wednesday to advance a $12.7 million contract with Ames Construction to construct a new pedestrian bridge at the National Western Center.

City officials say the project will improve east-west campus and GES connectivity by spanning nine railroad tracks and connecting to the RTD N Line Commuter Rail at the 48th & Brighton Station.

The 18-month contract, funded by National Western Center program dollars and a U.S. Department of Transportation grant, includes construction of a 256-foot, single-span bridge, landing plazas, elevator towers, staircases, lighting, and communications connectivity.

a map of the national western center in denver
A new pedestrian bridge is making its way to the Denver City Council. Officials say the project will improve east-west campus and GES connectivity by spanning nine railroad tracks and connecting to the RTD N Line Commuter Rail at the 48th & Brighton Station. (Courtesy City and County of Denver)

Michael Bouchard, executive director of Mayor Mike Johnston’s office of the National Western Center, said the intent is to have the bridge completed and open for the 2028 National Western Stock Show.

Once complete, the bridge is expected to reduce the commute for pedestrians and cyclists by approximately one mile.

The plan would also include a pedestrian connection to Brighton Boulevard to make the bridge easier to access once built. 

District 2 Councilman Kevin Flynn questioned the contract’s length, stating that “18 months seems like an awfully long time to build this bridge.”

“A lot of the time is procuring long-lead materials,” National Wester Center Program Manager Sarah DiPietro said, adding that the materials must comply with the Build America, Buy America Act, which requires all iron, steel, manufactured products and construction materials used in federally-funded infrastructure projects be produced in the United States.

As for the “stickiness” of the federal funding, DiPietro told the committee that the project had progressed far enough in design that the federal funds could be obligated, and that was part of an intergovernmental agreement approved by the City Council in January 2025.

“We were concerned that the worst could happen and funding could be pulled back, but we were glad that we were able to secure what we could when we could,” she said.

mechanical drawings of a pedestrian bridge
A Denver City Council committee has advanced an 18-month contract, funded by the National Western Center program dollars and a U.S. Department of Transportation grant, for a new 256-foot single-span bridge between the 48th and Brighton RTD Station and the National Western Campus. Officials expect the bridge to be completed and open by the 2028 National Western Stock Show. landing plazas, elevator towers, staircases, lighting, and communications connectivity. (Courtesy City and County of Denver)

A recent economic impact study for the National Western Center and co-located CSU Spur campus estimates that, over the 2022-2027 period, the site will contribute nearly $3 billion to Colorado’s GDP, over $2.1 billion in personal income, and support more than 11,000 jobs, according to Johnston’s office. 

The Equestrian Center Project plays a key role in those projections, the statement said. Funding for the project primarily comes from a dedicated revenue stream approved by voters in 2015.

Deborah Grigsby

Reporter

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