Pion rest area near Pueblo still closed as CDOT weighs options

It’s been more than eight months since the Piñon Rest Area on southbound Interstate 25 closed, but recently, little to no work is being done.

Connie Tachias was driving from Albuquerque to Denver, a seven-hour drive, and she decided to stop at the rest stop on northbound I-25 just outside of Pueblo.

“They’re so convenient to use the bathroom and empty out your trash and just wake up from being in the car for so long,” Tachias said.

But if you are on the other side of the highway, you are out of luck if you have to use the bathroom. The fix was supposed to take six months, but it’s already past schedule.

“All of the rehab of cleaning it out is complete, but we’re at a bit of a standstill with progress, because the fix to repair it is a lot more than we initially thought it would be,” said Michelle Peullen, with the Colorado Department of Transportation.

Peullen said the price tag of the repairs is $2.5 million.

“More than anything, we want to be good stewards of taxpayers’ money and make the right decision. We know it’s an inconvenience to have it closed,” Peullen said.

A new septic system was put in at the rest area recently, but Peullen said it broke down because people are putting items like shoes and clothes into the system.

“We were told it would be a self-sustaining system and would last forever. Unfortunately, it only lasted about four months due to volume, due to inappropriate things getting put into the system,” Peullen said.

At this point, there are three options. They can find the $2.5 million and reopen it, knowing it will have to be closed again in about a year, or keep it closed until a solution is found.

Peullen said they hope to have a better understanding of what the future of this rest stop is by the beginning of next year.

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