|
A mixed-use development has been announced to replace
the Office Depot store at 16th and Market streets by
Integrated Properties Inc. To be known as
16M,
the 10-story building is to offer 15,000 SF of
retail
space on the 1st floor while the 2nd through 6th floors
will total 130,000 SF of
office
space and the remaining 3 floors will offer 43
apartment
rental units. Construction of the project is estimated
for completion in early 2014.
A price of $134.8 million, or $334,000/unit was garnered
by WMB IX LLC in the sale of the 403-room
Embassy
Suites Denver-Downtown / Convention Center
hotel to Cornerstone Real Estate Advisors LLC. Purchased
on behalf of Denver Downtown Hotel LLC, the sale price
of the 14-story property at 1420 Stout Street is
considered among the top prices for a Denver hotel.
The 65,716 SF
1660
Wynkoop office building in downtown
Denver was recently exchanged between buyer AEW Capital
Management and seller Legacy Partners for $26.6 million,
or $405/SF. Located directly across the street from
Union Station, the sale of the 11-story property was
managed by Cushman and Wakefield agents Mike Winn, Tim
Richey and Chad Flynn.
The recent garnering of Antero Resources as a lead
tenant in the future
One Union
Station office building in downtown
Denver assured its completion by East West Partners and
Starwood Capital Group. To complement transformation of
the historic Union Station building at 16th and Wynkoop
streets into a multimodal transit hub and boutique
hotel, its construction is set to begin August 1st, with
Antero set to occupy 70,000 SF in the third, fourth, and
fifth floors of the 5-story property in December 2013.
The recent purchase of a 0.83-acre property by the Urban
Land Conservancy will allow for the placement of an
affordable senior housing community near the future
Sheridan Station on the West Line
corridor of FasTracks. Located less than 0.25-mile from
the planned station along 7th Avenue, the 58-unit
community is to be built for a projected $10 million via
a partnership of the ULC and Rocky Mountain Communities
and will serve seniors who fall below 30.0% to 60.0% of
area median income. The site was purchased for $350,000
or $9.68.SF by the ULC's Denver Transit-Oriented
Development Fund.
The opening of a new apartment complex on West Colfax
officially occurred last Wednesday. To be known as the
Renaissance West End, the complex at
West Colfax Avenue and Zenobia Street is to devote 50
units in the 101-unit complex to the chronically
homeless and their families and offer the remainder to
those who fall below 30.0% to 60.0% of the area median
income.
Olgivie Properties recently purchased two office
buildings in the Denver metro area from Pioneer
Investments for $6.85 million, or $60/SF. Located at
155 South Madison in Denver and
3609 South
Wadsworth Boulevard in Lakewood, the
buildings have respective areas of 42,138 SF and 71,600
SF. Representation for both parties was provided
in-house for Olgivie and by Cassidy Turley Fuller Real
Estate agents Stockton Baker and Terry Matthews for the
seller.
Geoff Baukol of CBRE Group Inc. represented both seller
Gecc 2000-1 Cypress Point LLC and buyer Red Tail
Acquisitions in the exchange of the
Cypress
Point office building at 3801 East
Florida Avenue in Denver. Located just off Colorado
Boulevard, the 153,500 SF property sold for $3.2
million, or $21/SF. Red Tail intends to make upgrades to
the property as well as rebrand it in order to raise
vacancy at the property from its current 40.0%.
Construction of a new
Greenbox
Self Storage facility was recently begun
by Focus Property Group. To total 690 units with 45,000
net rentable SF at 3310 Brighton Boulevard, the 65,000
SF property is to meet LEED certification standards and
provide amenities such as computerized keypad access,
individual door alarms, web-based payment options,
temperature controlled units and closed-circuit video
surveillance.
A student housing community in North Denver is to gain a
5-building addition courtesy of Central Street Capital.
Located on 6 acres, the 120-unit addition, known as
The Villas at Regency, is to be an
enhancement of the Regency Student Housing community
located in the former Regency Hotel building at 3900
Elati Street. Opening in 2013, the $12 million addition
is to provide fully furnished 1,268 SF rooms in a rent
range of $700 to $775 with free on-site parking.
Recreational facilities include a bowling alley, fitness
room, indoor courts for volleyball and basketball,
swimming pool, big-screen amphitheater, and convenience
store. Within 2 miles of the Auraria campus, the
location also provides convenient access to I-25 and
I-70 and will be within a block of a future RTD light
rail station at 41st Avenue and Fox Street.
The site of the first Hooters restaurant in Colorado as
well as west of the Mississippi River is to be
redeveloped by June 2013 into a 32,000 SF retail and
restaurant development by Reliable Investment Co. LLP.
To be known as
Century 21
Plaza in honor of the movie theater that
had occupied the site 25 years ago, the development is
to feature newly constructed, architecturally compelling
buildings at 1390 South Colorado Boulevard.
Metropolitan State University of Denver managed to place
itself in a unique position in the national hospitality
industry when it recently became home to a teaching
hotel. To be run primarily by students in the
hospitality, tourism and events department of the
University, the
SpringHill
Suites Denver Downtown at Metro State
offers 150 rooms and a 28,000 SF learning center for
interactive laboratories. The hotel, which is operated
by Sage Hospitality, serves as a fully-functioning
flagged hotel, in addition to serving as a learning
laboratory for the growing hospitality program at the
university.
A price of $4.43 million, or $35/SF, was garnered by LNR
Property LLC in the sale of the
One and
Two Monaco Park office buildings to
Boxer Property. Sold via Transwestern agents Brad Cohen
and Larry Thiel, the 128,471 SF property is located at
6795 and 6825 East Tennessee Avenue in Denver.
The 197-unit
Courtyard
at Cherry Creek apartment complex has
been exchanged for $14.3 million, or $72,600/unit.
Located at 5100 Leetsdale Drive in Denver, 5100
Leetsdale LLC purchased the property from R-Investments
via Jeff Johnson of Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors.
Pinnacle also represented the seller via Josh Newell.
The Praedium Group LLC jointly purchased the 384-unit
Santana Ridge Apartments in Aurora and
the 158-unit
Deerfield
Apartments in Denver for $47.5 million,
or $87,638/unit. Respectively located at 1355 South
Galena Street and 1771 South Quebec Way, the properties
were acquired from Redhill Realty Investors LP and
BlackRock Realty Advisors via self-representation by all
parties.
Denver City Council Member Peggy Lehman reports that
plans have been submitted for a
Walmart
Market at Monaco and Evans (former King
Soopers site). Construction should begin sometime this
winter and opening is planned for the fall of 2013.
Labor Day Weekend at Denver's Civic Center Park is the
site of the 29th Annual
Taste of
Colorado by the Downtown Denver
Partnership. The event hosts more than 50 Colorado food
establishments and 280 Marketplace booths. This year
entertainment includes Lou Gramm, the voice of Foreigner
and the Pointer Sisters on a Main Stage and four other
entertainment stages Aug. 31 through Sept. 3.
The
Denver
Energy Challenge is a free energy
program provided by the City andCounty of Denver to help
residents and businesses cut energy waste, while saving
money and increasing indoor comfort and air quality.
Free energy advisors are provided along with access to
exclusive rebates and financing when you sign up. New
low-interest energy loans are available to help finance
over 40+ energy saving measures including solar! To date
over 4,300 residents and 940 businesses have taken the
Challenge to cut energy waste in Denver. 720-865-5520.
Denver city staff announced that they have chosen the
Denver International Airport (DIA) site for an
additional
station on the
East Rail
Line. The station will be located at
Pena Boulevard and 61st Avenue, between
I-70 and DIA. If Denver and the developer, Fulenwider
secure the funding necessary to add the station
mixed-use development (retail, restaurants, residential)
is planned for the site.
Denver chose this site over 72nd Avenue east of Tower
Road, where a convention center and hotel has been
proposed but are currently on hold. RTD has an agreement
with DIA allowing the airport to select and fund up to
two new stations. The agreement with DIA has third
parties paying for the building of the new station while
RTD covers the added operating and maintenance costs.
Denver Transit Partners (DTP), long-term concessionaire
for the East Rail Line, has estimated that the
additional station will add two minutes to the original
35-minute travel time between downtown and DIA.
RTD and DTP have been working closely with DIA for about
nine months to incorporate the additional work necessary
for the addition of this station, including financing
from Denver. The work includes adding 5,600 feet of a
second track to the planned single-track section on the
line. Although this comes late in project development
RTD and DTP have maintained flexibility in order to
allow DIA and Denver to work through their process. The
additional station should not delay plans to open the
line on time in 2016. The station can open to the public
after the line is in service.
The East and Gold Lines will be
commuter
rail which may be powered by diesel
fuel, electricity or both. It is heavier and larger than
light rail to comply with railroad industry standards
since it often operates within existing railroad
corridors. It can travel at higher speeds than light
rail and is better for longer distances, operating
between a central city and surrounding communities or
activity centers.
All of the existing RTD trains are called "light rail"
because the cars have a lighter frame and smaller body
than commuter rail cars. Light rail is more conducive
for rail corridors with frequent stops given the quicker
acceleration and deceleration of the trains due to their
lighter weight. They also can maneuver city streets and
navigate a sharper turning radius in tight urban
corridors. The Eagle P3 contractor, Denver Transit
Partners, is providing electric commuter rail cars.
After analyzing the public input, the commuter rail cars
will include space for wheelchairs, bicycles and storage
with a 79 mph maximum operating speed. The cars are
manufactured by Hyundai Rotem USA with steel shells
fabricated in Korea and shipped to Philadelphia for full
assembly.
RTD has been awarded a
Transportation Innovators Champion of Change
award for its Eagle P3 project and Workforce Initiative
Now (WIN) program. Eagle P3 includes the East Rail Line
to DIA and the Gold Line to Arvada from Union Station.
RTD General Manager Phil Washington accepted the award
on behalf of the agency during a ceremony at the White
House and US Department of Transportation officials.
This award is presented to organizations that have
provided exemplary leadership in the growth and
expansion of the transportation industry and have
developed innovative ways to help their community reach
new heights. RTD's Eagle P3 project and WIN program have
resulted in the largest transit public-private
partnership in the country that includes a unique
workforce development program embedded in the project.
Denver City Council Member Jeanne Robb reports that on
August 2, the
Colorado Boulevard Health Care District
- a consortium of representatives from hospitals,
neighborhood groups, CU, and the potential developer -
met to review the current plan and tenants. She says
it is clear that if this project moves forward,
Walmart
will be the large format tenant. They have agreed to
prohibit the sale of guns, and they will not pursue a
liquor license. Neither will they have a garden supply
or an automotive services area. But they did say that
they want to be open 24 hours a day. The developer says
that Mad Greens, Lark Burger, Moes Original BBQ,
McAlisters Deli, Chipotle, Shop House Kitchen (Chipotle
Asian Concept), Ulta Cosmetics, Tossa Pizza, and
Kriser's Pet Store, are interested as far as initiating
letters of intent which are promising but not binding.
The development team hopes to have as many as 12
restaurants and a natural grocer.
Fuqua Development plans to apply for tax increment
financing (TIF) through the Denver Urban Renewal
Authority (DURA). The project would need to be
substantially leased before the application is
submitted. Council must approve tax increment financing,
after being convinced that the project benefits the
community and the city.
A new
transportation study has begun on the
East Colfax Corridor, focusing on
transit options to relieve current and future congestion
along Colfax Avenue. The City and the Regional
Transportation District (RTD) and Denver Regional
Council of Governments (DRCOG), have agreed that an
analysis of East Colfax transit needs should be
undertaken. The goal is to identify a set of actions
that can be taken to meet the person-trip demand in the
East Colfax corridor over the next 25 years. More at:
http://colfaxave.com/news?p=193
In response to the growing number of people visiting
Denver area food pantries and to increase access to
healthy and fresh produce for all, area organizations
have come together to create
Produce
for Pantries. Several organizations
connect food pantries with school gardens, community
gardens and home gardens in their neighborhoods to
provide locally-grown and healthy food and nutrition
education to those in need. Food pantries will also be
connected with fruit gleaned from resident's trees who
have an excess they would like to donate. A total of
twenty-three Denver area pantries are involved as pilot
sites for 2012 and are being connected with school
gardens, community gardens and home gardens via a media
campaign. Food pantries will also be provided with easy,
nutritious bilingual recipes to accompany the produce,
information on safe food handling and storage for the
fresh produce, as well as on-site cooking classes.
Residents are encouraged to email
produceforpantries@gmail.com
to connect with their nearest participating food pantry,
and to register their fruit trees online at:
www.yardharvest.org
if they would like to donate their excess fruit to
nearby food pantries.
The recent purchase of a 3.1-acre site in the East Gates
development along Broadway by Fore Property is to soon
be followed by construction of a
260-unit
apartment complex on the site by the
company. To be completed in 19 months, the 4-story
complex will offer unit sizes of 651 to 1,467 SF and is
to have rents of $1.50/SF. To have a LEED Gold rating,
the location at the northeast corner of
Broadway
and Mississippi places it midway between
the light-rail stations at Broadway and Louisiana,
allowing tenants equal access to downtown and the Denver
Tech Center. The property was purchased from LUI Denver
for $6.8 million, or $48/SF. Agency for the seller was
provided by Steve Odell and Chris Cowan of ARA (formerly
Apartment Realty Advisors).
The Denver Post reports that officials are again
questioning whether Denver's landmark-preservation
ordinance needs revision after a University of Colorado
student paid a $250 fee to file for protection of the
old
Gates
Rubber Co. complex. Eugene Elliott, 21,
a senior who is studying business and real estate at CU,
filed the application in June - even though he doesn't
own the property and never consulted with Gates Corp.,
neighborhood associations or the City Council before the
filing, according to a report last week in Westword.
The Gates site at Broadway and Interstate 25 has been
targeted for redevelopment. A proposal for the property
south of downtown - expected to cost $1 billion and take
15 years to complete - called for retail and residential
development on the site of the former factory. But the
project fell victim to the economic downturn, and
developer Cherokee Denver returned the site to Gates,
which still would like to see the site redeveloped.
Landmark designation, however, could threaten such
efforts. In an e-mail blast also reported by Westword,
Denver City Councilman Chris Nevitt said the issue
highlights how a person not directly involved with the
site or the neighborhood can upend the process. Annie
Levinsky, executive director of Historic Denver Inc.,
told The Denver Post on Monday that her organization is
"not supporting the landmark designation but is working
with Gates on some preservation ideas."
Council Member Robb is working with the Community
Planning Department (CPD) to propose some changes to
Denver's Landmark Preservation process.
Denver's original landmark preservation ordinance was
created in 1967. It sets criteria for designating a
property as a Denver landmark and allows for the owner
of a structure or a non-owner of a structure to nominate
a property for landmark designation. In 2006 Council
Member Robb worked with a stakeholder group of
preservation advocates and developers to add demolition
review to the landmark process. Demolition review
requires that demolition permits be reviewed by landmark
staff to see if they could potentially qualify for
designation. If so, the property is posted for ten days.
If no one files a landmark application, then the
demolition permit is granted. Alternatively a property
owner or developer can apply for a certificate of
non-historic status in order to have some certainty in
the potential sale of a building or potential
redevelopment of a site.
Council Member Robb says, it is difficult for a
non-owner nomination to make it all the way through the
process and be approved by Council. Demolition review
does not guarantee designation but it does guarantee a
chance for discussion and possible compromise. Community
involvement has resulted in design charrettes, withdrawn
demolition applications, and documentation of historic
buildings prior to demolition. Property owners are
frustrated. They feel that just one person, not a
community interest, is able to delay development and add
cost to a project. This frustration can cast a black eye
on the designation process. More at:
http://www.denvergov.org/councildistrict10/NewslettereTalkin10/tabid/427421/Default.aspx
Finally as the November election approaches if you have
a Colorado Driver's License you can register to vote,
change your address, etc. at:
https://www.sos.state.co.us/Voter/secuVoterSearch.do
|
