Meeker: Project 45 installs new wayfinding signage

MEEKER | They’ve been a long time in coming, but Meeker’s wayfinding signs are finally here. Anyone who has been part of community planning, town board discussions, or attended a “what does Meeker need” meeting in the last 20 years (maybe longer) has heard about the need for wayfinding signs to direct visitors to various amenities.

“It’s been talked about for a long time,” said Meeker Chamber Director and Meeker: Project 45 director Stephanie Kobald. “We were told we couldn’t make it work with CDOT (Colorado Department of Transportation). But there are other towns in the Main Street group that have the same problem [of the highway going through town] and they have signs.”

When Meeker: Project 45 received a $2,500 minigrant from the Department of Local Affairs, couples with an $850 match from the town, the group decided to tackle the sign project.

The design of the signs and placement plan was completed in March 2017, and the group submitted the permit to CDOT in Fall 2017, after “borrowing” Rangely town planner Jocelyn Muller for her traffic engineering skills. CDOT approved the permit in May 2018.

The Project 45 group then sought support for funding the project from multiple groups and organizations, including the Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado (AGNC), the Town of Meeker, the Meeker Library District, the Eastern Rio Blanco Metropolitan Recreation and Park District, the Meeker Cemetery District, and Rio Blanco County, totaling (including the original grant and match) $34,850.

“All these people came together, and when that happens you can get things done,” Kobald said. She also acknowledged property owners who were willing to accommodate the signs on their properties, including Ol’ Crows Liquor, Northwest Auto and the Blue Spruce Inn.

The 13 signs, which incorporate the official Meeker logo, were installed last week, directing traffic to trails, the golf course, the cemetery, historic downtown and the museum, the library, parks and the White River, the fairgrounds, recreation center and schools.

“Placement was based on visitor destinations,” Kobald said.

The project isn’t quite finished, however. “We’re still short about $2,500,” Kobald said. “Donations are welcome.”

By NIKI TURNER | [email protected]