Laramie closes Colorado Avenue again for additional base repair work

Colorado Avenue is closed again between Riverside Drive and Venture Drive after crews found damage deep enough to require additional base repair, adding another round of disruption for one of Laramie’s key east-west connectors. The stretch is shut from May 11 through May 15, forcing drivers, nearby residents and businesses to work around a road segment that had only just been reopened after earlier paving work.

The problem surfaced during the April 29 closure, when the city shut the road from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for roadway surfacing and set detours in place. What crews found below the pavement changed the scope of the job. Instead of a surface-only fix, the city determined that Colorado Avenue needed deeper work beneath the driving surface, the kind of repair that usually means excavating, rebuilding and compacting the roadbed before the pavement can hold up under normal traffic.

For people moving through West Laramie, that matters well beyond a single block. Colorado Avenue carries local traffic, commuter trips and access to homes and businesses along the corridor, and even a short closure can shift vehicles onto other neighborhood streets. The city’s notice did not spell out detour routes in the text posted, but the closure window points to several days of rerouted traffic and slower movement around the work zone.

The repair also fits into a broader season of street work across Laramie. In April, the City of Laramie and Knife River announced a 9 lane-mile rehabilitation project that includes mill and overlay work, curb and gutter, ADA ramps and spot base repair. City materials said the schedule is approximate and can change with weather, field conditions and construction progress. City staff also said the 2026 maintenance list was reviewed through the city’s PCI model, which emphasized arterial and collector streets suited for mill-and-overlay treatment.

That broader planning is especially relevant in West Laramie, where the city’s (re)Connect West Laramie Plan says its goal is to fully, safely and equitably connect West Side and West Laramie neighborhoods to each other and to the rest of Laramie. A repeat closure on Colorado Avenue suggests the city is still uncovering roadbed problems as it works through that network. Residents with questions can reach the City of Laramie Engineering Division at 307-721-5250 or engineering@cityoflaramie.org.