A block in RiNo that’s been closed to cars since 2020 will reopen this week

The 2900 block of Larimer Street will reopen to traffic on Monday after no one applied to keep the street car-free using a city-based permitting system.
3 min. read
Two dudes wheelie on their bicycles as they ride on a street.
A crew of riders take part in Wheelie Wednesday down a section of Larimer Street that’s been closed to cars since the pandemic. July 17, 2024.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

Since 2020, the 2900 block of Larimer Street in the River North Arts District has been closed to cars, allowing businesses like Ratio Beerworks and The Block Distilling Company to expand their outdoor patio space. 

On Monday, the block will reopen to traffic after the permit to keep the street closed to vehicles expires. 

The block’s closure is one of the final remnants of COVID-era policies in Denver that allowed for temporary outdoor dining — one that many businesses heralded as a savior during lockdowns that prevented people from gathering indoors. 

Due to the success of the program, the city has launched a permitting system to allow permanent outdoor dining in city streets, but no one has pursued that avenue for the continued closure of the 2900 block of Larimer. 

The decision is splitting the community — much like it has in the past

Several entities, including the RiNo Business Improvement District and a group of businesses on the block, considered applying to support continued closure to cars and to expand amenities within the closed block, but both ultimately decided against it. 

“We will continue to explore new ways to activate or create public spaces throughout the district that align with the needs and feedback of our diverse community members,” the RiNo Business Improvement District said in a statement. 

A majority of businesses and residents who responded to a 2023 survey conducted by the BID said they found the closure had a positive impact on the area. Of the over 2,300 respondents, 92 percent of them said they wanted the block to stay closed to traffic. 

The Denver Bicycle Lobby plans to protest the reopening of the block on Sunday, with organizers saying it raises “concerns about the city’s commitment to pedestrian-friendly urban spaces.”

Some who have argued for reopening the block to traffic said the closure doesn’t benefit all businesses on the block. Others in the district argued the BID shouldn’t spend money on something that only benefits one area of the district they collect taxes from. Certain people take issue with its aesthetic value. 

“The closure creates a very dangerous intersection and is basically an eyesore,” said Tai Beldock, a local business owner who has also lobbied against the dissolution of the RiNo Business Improvement District, during a Denver City Council public comment forum in January. “The street was an ice rink this past Wednesday due to no snow removal on the closure.”

The 2900 block’s reopening marks the end of a car-free era in RiNo. In the early stages of the pandemic, Larimer Street between 27th and 30th streets was closed to cars. Some permanently car-free streets remain, exclusively in downtown. 

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