New bus stop to be built in front of early childcare center in Avon
Chris Dillmann/Vail Daily
The town of Avon is building a new bus stop adjacent to the Lettuce Patch Early Learning Center, linking more bus access to the school and surrounding businesses.
This project is an addition to the new early childhood learning center that is projected to open this upcoming October. From Monday through Friday, the center is planning to serve up to 165 children, from the ages of six weeks old to five years old. It will also employ over 40 people, including a director, teachers, supporting staff and kitchen personnel, according to a past statement.
Initially a bid from RA Nelson was solicited since they are already working on the construction for the early learning center. However, on July 29, the Town Council approved MacAllister Construction to be the contractor of the bus site after the company proposed the lowest qualified bid.
The investment from the town of Avon is going towards a bus pull-off, bus shelter and sidewalks on both sides of the shelter. The project budget was approved to increase from $150,000 to $673,452.38 to reflect an expanded project scope that includes street lighting, landscaping irrigation improvements and relocation of existing irrigation. The Vail Valley Foundation is contributing $103,388.60 toward street lighting costs and $32,417.18 toward construction of the public sidewalks. The town will contribute $537,646.60 for the rest.
According to a recent proposal to the Avon Town Council, the improvements should enhance transit access and pedestrian safety around the new education center. It should also upgrade ADA accessibility as well as provide mobility and connectivity to the surrounding area. The stop itself will sit in front of where the center will be on East Beaver Creek Boulevard and before the roundabout, connecting the street to Post Boulevard and Yonder Avenue.
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“I think the bus stop going in there and how it ties into the mass transit system of the community, it will be a benefit to the employees of our facility and potentially the families that are gonna use the bus system to drop their child off and pick their child up, but I think it’s also for that greater area,” said Mike Imhof, president of Vail Valley Foundation.
The new bus stop will also improve a connection to other nearby businesses and homes, including Walmart, Home Depot and the Piedmont apartments.
“I think it will ultimately be for a lot of different folks,” Imhof said.
Overall, the proposal said the bus stop will also play a role in supporting the town’s sustainability goals of a greenhouse gas emission reduction target of 50% by 2030 and a minimum of 80% by 2050. Transportation use is targeted as one of the strategies to successfully follow the local climate action plan.
The construction of the bus stop area is anticipated to begin in August 2026 and finish by November 2026.
