The city’s stormwater project at Globeville Landing Park is taking longer than expected, with construction in the area likely to continue into 2019.

Construction crews found they had to remove more groundwater than they anticipated from the site, according to public works spokeswoman Nancy Kuhn.

The Globeville project links artificial creeks and underground pipes, replacing the concrete canyon that used to run through the park. It will take water from the larger Platte to Park Hill project out to the South Platte River. (See a longer explanation.)

Water will start flowing through the channel this summer, but the drainage work won’t be done until the end of the year, according to Kuhn.

Then it’s time to rebuild the park, including irrigation, playgrounds, picnic areas and foliage. “The park will be finished in 2019, and we’ll have a better timeline for completion as we get closer,” Kuhn wrote in an email.

The Colorado Department of Transportation is contributing to the flood-control project, since it will protect the Interstate 70 expansion.

The delay could have come with a hefty punishment: CDOT’s agreement with the city allowed it to fine contractors $5,000 a day if work extended beyond Dec. 1, 2017. However, the city and CDOT have waived those fines.

“It was an agreement from both sides that pushing back the completion schedule would not be detrimental in any way, as CDOT’s construction schedule had also changed and was pushed back from what was originally estimated,” Kuhn wrote.