| Project Description |
Project History
1921 The Arkansas River floods Downtown Pueblo destroying 60 percent of the downtown businesses.
Downtown Pueblo Context
The small stretch of river channel that is the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo has an impressive history. At different times throughout history, it has served as the international boundary for France, Spain, and Mexico. Later, this stretch of the Arkansas River served as the hub of three separate towns, which consolidated in 1886 to form the City of Pueblo.
Physically, the earlier town grids can still be seen and have taken on three different identities; the Employment District, the Civic District, and the Commercial District. The HARP will once again serve as the critical link between these downtown districts; it has been described as "Downtown Pueblo's food court", "Pueblo's town square", and the "central seam in Downtown Pueblo".
Each of Downtown Pueblo's three districts is growing. The Civic District is experiencing growth with the completion of the Pueblo Convention Center and the Marriott Hotel. The Commercial District, a registered historic district, has experienced a high level of redevelopment activity with recently opened new shops and restaurants.
Improvements to Downtown Pueblo have been deliberate; the City of Pueblo's planning efforts for downtown can be traced back to 1989 through a series of thoughtful and well-documented plans. These planning efforts received national recognition in 1996, when the City of Pueblo received the James C. Howland Award for Urban Enrichment from the National League of Cities. This award was given for excellence in urban planning for cities with populations between 50,000 and 150,000.
Proposed Project Timetable
The HARP Riverwalk consists of three phases:
Phase I: Construction of infrastructure improvements necessary to restore the Arkansas River channel to its 1921 location - completed 1998.
Fact sheet
HARP stands for Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo. The HARP covers 26 acres. The HARP brings the Arkansas River to its historic channel that flows through the center of downtown Pueblo. The HARP integrates the power of water with trails, sidewalk cafes, commercial and retail development opportunities, and public spaces for art and entertainment.
A $12.5 Million Dollar bond issue was voted on by the citizens of Pueblo, Colorado in November 1995 to build the HARP. The official ground breaking occurred in June 1996. It is estimated that it took over 300 workers to build the HARP. Construction started on October 1, 1996.
The HARP will be supervised and maintained by the HARP Authority that was created through an intergovernmental agreement with the City of Pueblo, Pueblo County and the Pueblo Water Conservancy District.
$7 Million Dollars has been raised by the HARP Foundation from donations.
The channel walls are 4 feet high and the water will be 3 ˝ feet deep. The channel is 10 feet below street level.
The ground level of the stores, hotels, etc., will be at the channel level (10 feet below street level) and the second story will be at street level.
Lake Elizabeth is approximately two acres. The water is 9 feet deep. The lake is at street level. There is NO SWIMMING in Lake Elizabeth.
The Natural Area is for students. All the plants and vegetation are indigenous to the Pueblo area.
The water comes from the Arkansas River. The water enters at Lake Elizabeth and flows under Victoria Street Bridge through Kelly Falls and continues down the channel to the Natural Area where it flows under Santa Fe Avenue to Lake Ruyon and then back into the Arkansas River. The water is at least 44 degrees. The only water lost will be from evaporation.
You can rent pedal boats on Lake Elizabeth and purchase excursion boat tours on the river channel.
There is NO FISHING except at the Natural Area. |