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The Village Inn building at 222
Columbine Street in Cherry Creek North has been
purchased by 200 Columbine Associates LLC, an affiliate
of Western Development Group, owned by Christian
Anschutz. The $6.25 million price is equivalent to
$250/SF of land for the 25,000 SF site and $491/SF of
building for the 12,739 SF restaurant/retail building.
Western owns the balance of the half-block to the north
and mixed-use development is anticipated but the
restaurant will likely be leased to an operator short
term.
David Steele of Western Development reports that nearby
NorthCreek at East 1st Avenue/Fillmore
Plaza is selling slower than originally anticipated but
better than many other developments. Phase I, the
7-story condo building on the west side of the site is
75% sold out and Phases II and III townhomes above
retail on Fillmore Plaza are about to be completed and
available to sell in the $2.9 to $3.6 million range, all
over $1,000/SF.
The soft economy is being felt in the loss of local
jobs. Westword, the alternative paper
based in Denver, has announced it has removed 3
positions from its staff. The local magazine
5280 has also announced that it has removed 2
positions from its staff. The closure of
National Hirschfeld resulted in the loss of 250
jobs. The printing company announced that it was forced
to make the decision in light of the weakening economic
climate.
But several local industrial tenants have signed large
leases. Buehler Moving & Storage
signed a sublease for 68,475 square feet at 5151 Bannock
Street. Blakes Reman signed a lease
for 54,278 square feet at 4770 Ivy Street. And Fowler &
Peth Inc. signed a lease for 40,000 square feet at 4725
Forest Street. And an office lease renewal has been
inked by the law firm Holme Roberts & Owen
at Wells Fargo Center in downtown Denver. To total
108,600 SF in the 1.2 million SF building the new
agreement extends their stay in the building until
2022. Wellbridge Co. also signed a lease in the Tabor
Center office building in downtown Denver for an
additional location of the Colorado Athletic Club to
open later this year in 38,894 SF.
The firms of Semple Brown Design and Communication Arts
Inc. have been chosen by Gart Properties to upgrade its
Denver Pavilions property in downtown
Denver. Gart Properties previously announced intention
to invest $25 million in improving the property when
they purchased it in 2008.
The Auraria Higher Education Center has
purchased land totaling 13.5 acres. Located along the
southern boundary of the campus, the school purchased
the site to serve as the location of athletic fields.
Quadrant Properties, the seller, received $27.7 million,
or $47/SF, for the property.
Developer Buzz Geller has won approval for his plans for
a 34-story Bell Tower condo tower at
the intersection of Speer Boulevard and Market Street in
downtown Denver from the Lower Downtown Design Review
Board.
Colorado Seminary of Denver received $1.8 million, or
$43/SF, for the 41,600 SF office laboratory building at
1899 Gaylord Street in Denver. The
building was formerly occupied by the Eleanor Roosevelt
Institute. The buyer was Kaplan Real Estate Ventures
LLC which intends to redevelop the building into an
assisted living facility including a major renovation.
The 51-unit Cherry Oaks senior living
complex at 6800 Leetsdale Drive in Denver has been sold
for $11.83 million, or $231,961/unit and $112/SF for the
106,000 SF facility.
CommonGround, the new golf course at
Lowry is scheduled to open May 23rd. Designed by
renowned architect Tom Doak, the course is owned by the
Colorado Golf Association and the Colorado Women's Golf
Association and replaces Mira Vista, the course of the
former Lowry Air Force Base. More at
Acoma Apartments, the new 17-story
apartment building at 816 Acoma has opened for
move-ins. The 225-unit building was developed by
Hanover Co., which also developed 4550 Cherry Creek in
Glendale and The Boulevard at 8th/Speer Boulevard.
Units have one and two levels renting for $1,400 and up.
The building has extensive amenities including interior
parking.
One Lincoln Park, the 32-story
condominium project at 20th/Lincoln Street started in
2006 is essentially complete, but sales are slow.
According to the Denver Business Journal, some 80% of
the units were pre-sold last summer, but now only 30%
have closed. Original developer Erik Osborn was
indicted for felony theft and has left the project. The
owner has hired Kentwood City Properties as the new
listing agent and is considering seller carry back
financing. "Dealin' Doug" Moreland, an investor in the
project said, "Were closing on units almost every week
and we've signed new contracts." Units are priced from
$400,000 to $3,000,000 for penthouses. More at
Redpeak Properties, Inc., developer of the
Arboretum at Cheesemen Park condominium is
offering to buy back previously sold units at a
discount. The 10-story, 58-unit condominium project at
1150 Vine Street was a 2006 conversion of the former
Tolstoi Apartments built in 1964. Redpeak, headed by
Mike Zoellner sold 18 of the units and hired Todd
Searles of Quattro Verde LLC to reposition the
development. The developer is offering to buy back the
units at up to 18% less than the original sale prices.
The Denver Business Journal reports that the strategy is
in response to lower value of the units and difficulty
selling them. "Redpeak plans to market the entire
Arboretum property to residential investors, who then
may resell or rent the condos." Redpeak has begun to
rent the unsold units which were originally priced at
$170,000 to $399,000. Now they are renting at $1,000 to
$2,100. More at
Bush Development updated the Cherry Creek Steering
Committee on progress of the First and Steele
Project. The group is still assembling property and
awaiting its litigation resolution related to 36 Steele.
The project could be implemented in 2 phases: The NW
corner of the block that is currently owned by Bush may
be developed first followed by the rest of the block, as
it can be purchased and assembled. Bush Development is
consulting with neighbors about the development
including owners of the adjacent Mountain Shadows
condominium building regarding the parking lot on the
block. Bush plans to seek a change in zoning to RMU-30.
Traffic impact is being analyzed by Transportation
Solutions. David Steel of Western Development advised
the committee that, contrary to rumor, they own no
property at First and Steele. More at:
Michael Henry, a member of the Zoning Code Task
Force, informed the Cherry Creek Steering
Committee that the arduous task of updating the entire
zoning code and zoning map that hadn't been changed in
52 years is nearing completion! There is a possible
completion date of December 2009. The first draft may be
presented on February 11th at a Zoning Code Task Force
Meeting. The new zoning code will have a lengthier menu
of zoning classifications that reflects the context of
existing neighborhoods and will help guide future
projects.
The Wellshire Inn has closed for
renovation and a new concept. The South Colorado
Boulevard icon on the City of Denver golf course of the
same name, remains open for banquets and the golfer's
pub is still open, but the fine dining restaurant that
opened in 1976 evidently just wore out. Howard Torgove
is quoted in the Rocky as unable to specify a re-opening
date because the concession agreement with the City,
owner of the building must still be "negotiated and
approved."
The National Western Stock Show
announced recently that it plans to move to a site near
Denver International Airport. The Stock Show has been
at its current 95-acre site at I-70/Brighton Boulevard
for 103 years and would like to move to 1,000 acre site
near a proposed NASCAR auto race track as a part of a
$600 to $800 million project. National Western
officials are reported by the Denver Post as discussing
the project with NASCAR and the US Olympic Committee for
potential relocation of its Colorado Springs training
facility as well. Stock Show officials say the current
site is just too small and any redevelopment of it is
complicated by proposed reconstruction or relocation of
the I-70 viaduct. The move would cost the Stock Show
some $200 to $225 million, but it would cost some $75
million more to redevelop the current site. Jerry
McMorris, Board chair of the Stock Show says they hope
to go to voters for public funding in November.
Denver's Department of Community Planning and
Development recently invited public comment on its
evolving plan for the Alameda Station
area at South Broadway/Alameda. The 138-acre site is
now the home of the Broadway Marketplace shopping center
anchored by Sam's Club, Kmart and Albertsons and the
Denver Design District. Most of it is owned by CF
Development. The site is mostly zoned B-3 which allows
substantial density and a wide variety of uses, but any
development height is limited by a view plane ordinance
from Washington Park. Buildings as high as 14 stories
are being considered with neighborhood comments and the
total development could be as large as 10 million SF of
office, hotel, retail and residential space. The site
is adjacent to RTD's light rail Alameda Station. Across
the tracks at the SEC of Alameda/Santa Fe, RTD is under
contract to sell its former "bus barn" site to a
developer for another mixed used project that will
connect with the light rail station via a pedestrian
bridge. More at:
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