Road into north gate of Peterson Space Force Base to close through holiday weekend

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — Crews that are building a pair of roundabouts between US 24 and Peterson Space Force's north gate will spend the second federal holiday in the past month working on the project.

Southbound Peterson Road, between the highway and the gate, will be closed Saturday, Sunday, and Monday for the Presidents' Day holiday; the same road was also closed for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday.

A roundabout will eventually be on each side of the highway, as part of a $15 million project to improve traffic flow into, out of, and around the installation.

Construction was supposed to start last May, but began last month, as officials awaited final approval of the funding.

Other expected benefits of the project are improved access for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit buses.

The construction also coincides with Peterson's intent to reconfigure its north gate to eventually return it to more of a full-time operation; it was the main gate until the redesigned west gate opened in 2007 and was upgraded again in 2023.

However, there are mixed emotions about the project among people who travel through, or work in, the area.

"I don't think Colorado taxpayers should be footing the bill for the base to fix their traffic issues," said Kathy Farmer, a nearby resident. "They can build dedicated lanes. They don't have to build a roundabout because when most people get in them, they don't know what to do."

Brian Scott, co-owner of the Dairy Queen in a shopping center east of the project zone, said that he's not sure how construction has impacted his business because crews began working in the winter, when there are fewer customers and less traffic.

"It seems that what I've lost in customers has been balanced by construction crews coming here to eat," he observed. "Things have slumped a bit here at the strip mall since the base's main entrance switched from the north gate to the west gate. But the project may bring more regular hours in and out of this side, and would really help this strip mall quite a bit. It's encouraging, for sure."

The project's expected completion date is early next year.