Field Work Kicks Off for the CB2CBS Rec Path
After 30+ years of community conversation, the long-awaited connection between Crested Butte and Crested Butte South is officially on the move
Boots are on the ground for the Crested Butte to Crested Butte South (CB2CBS) Rec Path. The first phase of design, project initiation and data collection is now underway. Crews are tackling a topographic survey, an existing utility survey, a geotechnical investigation, and environmental and regulatory analysis, laying the groundwork for everything to come.
An award-winning team at the helm
Leading the charge is Otak, an award-winning architecture, engineering, landscape architecture, planning and construction project management firm. Under a $1,749,927 contract with MetRec, Otak will carry the path through the 90% design process. Phase 2 will advance the path to 30% design, and Phase 3 will bring it to 90%.
Nine miles, three decades in the making
The approximately nine-mile path will link the Town of Crested Butte and Crested Butte South along the CO 135 corridor, a route the community has been talking about for more than 30 years. The design will address multimodal safety, ADA compliance, drainage and irrigation, utilities, CDOT right-of-way, wetlands and wildlife.
A smart approach that saves money
MetRec originally sought a 100% design, but Otak’s Scott Belonger, P.E., recommended a savvier route: stopping at 90%. Because the path sits within CDOT right-of-way, standards change and environmental clearances expire, meaning final design work would need to be revisited after construction funding is secured and before bidding anyway.
“It doesn’t make sense to spend the money and go beyond a certain point until you’re ready to build it,” Belonger said.
Built together, ready to build
Collaboration is at the heart of the design. The project calls for coordinated stakeholder engagement and phased design development, weaving the path seamlessly into existing infrastructure, utilities and agricultural operations. The result will be a permit-ready, bid-ready design that advances MetRec’s goals for better regional connectivity, fewer vehicle trips and expanded access to recreation and transportation options.
Belonger sees community support as the key to unlocking funding. Showing funders the community backing behind the project, the need for it, the history of safety issues and a design that’s ready to build proves it can be delivered.
The goal, he said, is to “eliminate the surprises, build the public support.”
Funding strategy from day one
Funding isn’t an afterthought; it’s built into the plan from the start. Otak’s subconsultant, The Beckett Group, has helped clients secure more than $500 million in awarded grants over the last five years. Its grant strategy will run side by side with design, and cost estimates will be broken out by segment to allow for phased construction and targeted grant applications.
About Scott Belonger
Belonger brings serious trail design credentials to the project. He has been with Otak and its predecessor firm, Loris and Associates, for 26 years. Over that time he has managed more than 400 miles of trails, 50 pedestrian bridges and 40 grade-separated crossings, and has been involved in nearly $500 million in trail, bridge, underpass, pedestrian and traffic calming projects, including Aspen’s Maroon Creek Trail, Boulders’s CO 119 Bikeway and North Foothills Bikeway, multiple segments of the Animas River Trail in Durango, the Santa Fe Rail Trail and the Pathway 22 project in Jackson, Wyoming.
His vision for CB2CBS: a path that feels inviting and comfortable for everyone who uses it.
“We’ve been very fortunate to work in communities that value this kind of work, and Crested Butte is at the top of that list,” Belonger said. “I really think the community is something special.”
The full team
Joining Otak are Norris Design, Ayres Associates, CMT, Del-Mont Consultants, Pinyon Environmental, Wright Water Engineers and The Beckett Group.
