|
Two plans for the historic building at
Denver
Union Station were recently revealed at
a meeting at the Colorado Convention Center. The first,
submitted by Union Station Neighborhood Co., calls for
the ground floor to house a restaurant totaling 8,800 SF
in the north wing of the building, as well as host
waiting room amenities, a walk-through food market, an
information kiosk and restaurant space in the large open
train room, while as much as 25,000 SF of office space
will be placed in the upper floors. The second proposal,
which was submitted by Union Station Alliance, would
turn the building into a 130 room-hotel, thereby
providing 24-hour access to the building. To gain
parking via an affiliation with the nearby Oxford Hotel,
the hotel would also provide retail and restaurant
services. The final choice of developer will be made by
the RTD Board of Directors early next year. See the two
proposals at:
http://www.rtd-fastracks.com/dus_1
The
Downtown
Denver Grand Illumination Event will
light up the city from Denver Union Station to the City
& County Building on Friday, Nov. 25. Festivities at DUS
begin at 6 p.m. and feature an evening of FREE holiday
fun for the entire family, including music, a visit from
Rockies mascot Dinger-Claus, complimentary refreshments,
special guest speakers and a countdown to "light the
lights" at approximately 6:30 p.m. The Denver Society of
Model Railroaders will have their model train exhibit
open to the public in the basement of DUS. The Colorado
Lightings at Larimer Square, Skyline Park, the Tabor
Center, D&F Tower, Denver Pavilions and the 16th Street
Mall will add even more magic to this special evening.
The results of the 2011
Annual
FasTracks Public Survey were presented
to the RTD Board on Nov. 1. 80% of metro-area residents
say that approving FasTracks funding in 2004 was a good
decision. 70% of metro residents have a favorable
impression of RTD in general and 56% of metro residents
have a favorable impression of FasTracks, up 7% from
2010
Jordan Perlmutter & Co. and Hines have announced plans
to develop the 1.9 acre site at
1601
Wewatta Street in time for the opening
of the RTD Union Station lines in 2016. With 140 feet of
permitted building height, the developers plan 450,000
SF of offices and apartments, 70,000 SF of
retail/restaurants and a 110,000 SF hotel. More at:
http://www.1601wewatta.com/
The
Denver
Club office building at 518 17th Street
garnered a price of $20.2 million or $87/SF for 231,000
SF in its sale to Lowe Enterprises.
The downtown Denver area is to gain a
full-service grocery store courtesy of
The Nichols Partnership. To be located in the
Union
Station district, the 42,000 SF store
will serve as an anchor for a new development that is to
be in the block bordered by Wewatta, 19th, Chestnut
Place and 20th. To also provide ground-floor retail
topped by a 312-unit apartment building, its
construction is anticipated to begin the 1st quarter of
2012.
The Regional Transportation District has opened a
new light rail station in Auraria.
Located to the northwest of its former location, it is
the first station of the West Rail Line to open. The
west line will stretch all the way to Golden.
A 1.4-acre site near the planned Blake Street Station of
the FasTracks East Line to DIA was recently purchased
for $1.7 million or $28/SF by the Urban Land Conservancy
and its TOD Fund. Located at
East 38th
Avenue and Walnut Street, the
development will provide affordable housing and other
uses. More at:
http://www.urbanlandc.org/_webapp_4461152/Blake_TOD
Clermont Park Retirement Community
is to break ground in November on a new addition. To add
74 apartments, a new adult day program and fitness
center, fellowship hall and fine-dining restaurant to
its existing Town Center, the improvements will be
funded by $36.5 million gained in bonds sold by
Christian Living Communities. The facility is located in
southeast Denver near Colorado Boulevard and Yale
Avenue.
The opening of the first Neighborhood Market grocery
store in Denver by retail giant Wal-Mart is to occur
next year. Set for the location of East Evans Avenue and
South Monaco Parkway in a space formerly occupied by
King Soopers, the store is designed to fill smaller
sites than the traditional Wal-Mart so as to allow urban
markets access to the lower prices offered by the
retailer.
Denver Council Member Mary Beth Susman reports that the
new
Central
Park Boulevard/I-70 interchange (aka
Yosemite Interchange) in the Stapleton redevelopment is
complete and opened. Also
National
Jewish Health is asking Denver for a
rezone of its property on both sides of Colorado
Boulevard at East 14th Avenue including the former Gove
School to "campus" under Denver's new zoning code. And
Sembler the developer of the
former CU
Health Sciences Center site is working
with Denver on a General Development Plan. Maps and
renderings are at:
http://denvergov.com/Portals/76/documents/9+CO%20CBHD%20site%20plan.pdf
http://denvergov.com/Portals/76/documents/9+CO%20Renderings%20.pdf
Also
Phoenix on
the Fax, a new affordable 50-unit
apartment building has begun leasing for occupancy in
January. The building will have retail space on the
ground floor at Colfax/Poplar. More at:
http://www.sherman-associates.com/phoenixonthefax
And an
Ace
Hardware is reported to plan its opening
across Colfax Avenue in the spring.
The
former air
traffic control tower is one of the few
relics of
Stapleton
Airport that remain after one of the
most successful land redevelopments in the nation. Now
Denver Council Member Chris Herndon has formed a
committee of residents to help decide what to do with
it. The land developer at Stapleton, Forest City plans
to study options for the tower as well. The building has
some 500 SF on the top level with about 15,000 SF of
office space on three levels at the base. |
