The Denver City Council approved a roughly $200 million contract for the construction of the Colfax Bus Rapid Transit project.

The contract was previously delayed by Councilmember Amanda Sawyer, who highlighted the ongoing budget process for the delay.

The council also approved a contract with the Salvation Army’s Tamarac Family Shelter, which is worth $2.5 million and will provide multiple services at the center.

Councilmember Shontel Lewis voted against the contract, using her vote as a plea to the mayor’s office to bring more resources to her district.

Denver’s rapid transit project will dramatically reshape Colfax Avenue, one of Denver’s busiest corridors, and halve the number of lanes available to motorists.

Under the plan, the corridor will have a center-running bus line and only one lane of car traffic each for both directions.

The specter of construction and road closures has alarmed businesses that call Colfax Avenue home, especially in light of ongoing struggles that shops and restaurants face along the 16th Street Mall, even as more of Denver’s downtown icon has begun to reopen.

Highlighting these worries, Sawyer said there has to be more money for supporting those business in the 2025 budget, despite the tightening money situation in Denver.

There were also several comments opposed to the center running option of the Colfax BRT, with some residents preferring a side-running design, Sawyer said.

“The conversation about the design of this project is something that’s been going on for a long time and is something that is at 100% design,” Sawyer said. “While I appreciate the comments of the community and hear you and agree with you, Colfax BRT is going to be center-running and it’s going to be starting in just a couple of weeks.”

“The city council does not make the engineering decisions or the design decisions on how a project like this moves forward,” she said.

Though the design of the BRT is set, support for businesses along the corridor is woefully lacking, Sawyer said.

“The business impact opportunity fund is dollars set aside specifically to support businesses that are affected by a city construction project,” Sawyer said. “There are businesses that will be supported during the Colfax BRT project and that is a good thing when there is enough funding in the bank account.”

After looking through the proposed 2025 budget however, Sawyer said, it is “clear” that there is “not enough funding for the need” on Colfax Avenue. The conversation about adding funding for the business impact opportunity fund was not on the table for Monday night, she said, indicating she will seek money to support businesses on Colfax Avenue that will likely suffer as a result of the construction.

“We are in a tight budget next year and we have to fund these businesses appropriately,” she said.

The council ultimately adopted the resolution unanimously.

Immediately following Sawyer’s discussion on the Colfax BRT, Lewis voiced objections over a contract that will provide $2.5 million to the Salvation Army to continue operating the Tamarac Family shelter.

Lewis emphasized her vote against the contract is not a protest of the community nor the services — which she said are “much needed” and “much deserved” — but rather a protest over where money is being funneled.

“It’s distressing to me that this contract will provide specialized services to a district that is historically more affluent, more White, much older and has more social, political and financial capital (compared to District 8),” she said. “I understand a similar contract may be coming soon for one of the shelters in my district. I don’t think that is a sufficient investment in an area that was asked to and has borne so much of the brunt of All in Mile High and the House 1,000 programs.”

The councilmember was referring to Mayor Mike Johnston’s most prominent initiatives on homelessness.

Councilmembers Sarah Parady and Sawyer, joined her in voting against the contract.

At-large councilmember Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez said she was “tempted to vote no” because of the lack of “equity” in services, but ultimately did not.

“I know that it is important that this shelter continue to receive the services they need and that these families get the services they need,” she said. “But I want the administration to know that there are more of us now watching, and watching how this is playing out. We want to see this done differently going forward.”

The council approved the contract, 9-3.