The
Regional Transportation District (RTD) is adding a
new station to its East Rail Line, which will open
in the spring of 2016 connecting downtown Denver's
Union Station with Denver International Airport (DIA).
The Peña
Boulevard Station, located
at 61st and Peña Boulevard will be the sixth
eastbound stop on the trip from Denver Union Station
to the airport. The travel time from downtown to DIA
will be 37 minutes with trains running every 15
minutes during peak times.
The
station will include the train platform, a public
plaza and an 800-car parking lot that is funded and
operated by DIA. The station will be accessible from
Tower Road and will serve as the catalyst for the
400-acre transit-oriented development named "Peña
Station", strategically located near DIA.
At
Peña Boulevard Station, four property owners,
including DIA and L.C. Fulenwider, Inc. came
together to jointly plan and entitle their
properties. They also agreed to an overall finance
plan to fund all of the initial infrastructure.
Fulenwider will act as lead developer for the TOD.
"This rail stop, anchored by the Panasonic
Enterprise Solutions Company headquarters facility,
will create a unique smart sustainable
transit-oriented development which will set the
stage for the next generation of transit-oriented
developments in North America," said Cal Fulenwider,
President of L.C. Fulenwider Inc.
The
first tenant of the development will be the 112,000
square-foot headquarters facility for Panasonic
Enterprise Solutions Company.With
Panasonic's involvement, Peña Station will be
developed as a global showcase of public/private
development. It is designed to be a smart,
sustainable community that reflects the true
live-work-play community envisioned by Mayor Hancock
for the "Corridor of Opportunity" between DIA and
downtown. The community, developed in partnership
with Panasonic, will be patterned after Fujisawa
Sustainable Smart Town, which they developed in
Japan. The Sustainable Smart Town aspires to blend
nature and cutting edge technology into an "Eco and
Smart" lifestyle.
Work
on the Peña Boulevard Station is underway and will
be complete for the opening of the East Rail Line in
the spring of 2016. Construction of the Panasonic
facility will begin in October and will be complete
by the end of 2016. .
http://www.penastation.com/Home.aspx
RTD's
Board of Directors recently approved a new
fare structure that
will go into effect January 1, 2016. The new fare
structure was designed to simplify the way
passengers pay for trips across RTD's expanding
transit system, including two fare levels for bus
and rail, fewer rail zones, one airport fare, the
consolidation of Express and Regional fare
categories, and the introduction of a day pass that
will allow passengers to make multiple trips in a
given day without paying more than a round-trip.
http://www.rtd-denver.com/fare-recommendation.shtml
The
Regional Transportation District is planning to
redevelop its busyCivic
Center bus terminal at
Broadway and East Colfax Avenue. The station is the
terminus for 18 RTD bus routes and for the 16th
Street Mall free shuttle bus. About 15,000
passengers use the terminal daily. The concept under
consideration includes nine bus bays, a
glass-enclosed terminal building and reconstruction
of the bus concourse, costing between $17 and $23
million. RTD has issued a request for proposals to
four construction companies.
Commercial Property Executive reports that two
out-of-state players are betting big on Denver's
thriving real estate market. Dallas-based Lincoln
Property Co. and ASB Real Estate Investments of
Washington, D.C. will broke ground on a
450,000-square-foot expansion at the Colorado
Center. Currently
comprising about 500,000 square feet of office
space, as well as 120,000 square feet of
entertainment space, the Colorado Center is 96
percent occupied. At 2000 S. Colorado Blvd.,
the mixed-use center is home to Dave & Buster's and
the United Artists Colorado Center 9 & IMAX theater.
The center also features an RTD Light Rail Station,
eGo CarShare and a pedestrian bridge over I-25
currently under construction.
The
expansion consists of a 210,000-square-foot Class AA
office building, a 205,000-square-foot Class A
residential tower, as well as 40,000 square feet of
main street retail. JE Dunn Construction Co. of
Kansas City will serve as general contractor, while
Tryba Architects will handle design work. The office
part of the expansion is scheduled for completion in
December 2016, while the residential portion is
expected to open in mid-2017.
http://coloradocenter-denver.com/
The
Denver Planning Board approved the general
development plan for the site of the former
Denver Post printing plant at
4400 Fox Street in north Denver. The plan calls for
a mix of residential, retail and office uses.
Ascendant Capital Partners bought the 41-acre site
in 2007 and will clear the land of buildings and
make the site available to residential developers.
The property is about three blocks north of the RTD
commuter rail station at Fox Street and West 41st
Avenue. Its location in the southwest quadrant of
the I-25 and I-70 interchange restricts vehicular
access only to the south on Fox Street and West 44th
Avenue
Hangar 2 at Lowry is
the Urban Land Institute's Colorado Innovation Award
Winner for 2015 Jim Hartman, design architect of
Hangar 2, shared a few of the reasons that Lowry's
Hangar 2 was selected.
-
Solar power, as Lowry's "Sustainability Symbol."
Hangar 2 has the largest, most visible,
building-integrated solar array on a historic
building in the United States. Remarkably, while
Hangar 2's power is provided by the solar array,
most of the roof-mounted solar panels are
"community-owned" and provide clean power
benefits/electricity bill credits to citizens
throughout Denver. The two solar power arrays are
designed to integrate seamlessly with the
appearance of the metal panel roof panels on this
historic landmark building.
-
Extreme energy efficiency - the historic hangar
building uses 50% less energy than a new building
of the same size and function.
-
Lowry's first Electric Vehicle charging station
(free).
-
Lowry Recycling Center and annual electronics
recycling event (free). Indoor, all-weather
storage facility loading area.
-
Incubator office and retail space (including the
LCMA office!).
-
Chef-driven restaurants and Beer Garden that
integrate with the historic site layout.
-
Creative building/fire code solutions for complex
re-use of two-football-field-sized interior area.
http://www.hangar2lowry.com/
Kirkland Museum is
building a new facility and relocating to 12th
Avenue and Bannock Street, near the Denver Art
Museum and the Clyfford Still Museum, in Denver's
Golden Triangle Museum District. The museum is
currently in the design phase, with an expected
groundbreaking to take place in 2015 and opening in
2017.
http://www.kirklandmuseum.org/pages/index/documents
Continuum Partners began construction on A
Block, a
mixed-use office, retail and hotel project adjacent
to Denver Union Station. The project will contain
about 45,000 square feet of office space, a 200-room
Kimpton Hotel and several restaurants. A Block is
located at the east corner of 16th and Wewatta
streets and is scheduled for completion in fall of
2016.
A
partnership of Kroenke Sports Entertainment and
Revesco Properties bought Elitch
Gardens, the amusement park along the South
Platte River near Speer Boulevard in downtown
Denver. The park was acquired for an undisclosed
price from Premier Parks, which will continue to
operate Elitch Gardens. Elitch Gardens was
originally located at Tennyson Street and West 38th
Avenue in northwest Denver, having opened in 1890.
It moved to its new location in 1994.
Stoltz Real Estate Partners bought the former Hedges
- Atkins Supply Company building in LoDo. The four
story, 102-year old building is located at 1730
Blake Street and
contains about 57,000 square feet of office space.
The seller was Barerose Properties, which was
represented by Patrick Devereaux and Jason Schmidt
of JLL. The purchase prices equates to about $314
per square foot. The building is Stoltz's third LoDo
acquisition.
Unico
Properties LLC bought the Denver
Club Building, a 231,454 square foot office
tower at 528 17th Street in downtown Denver. The
Seattle investment company reportedly paid $30
million for the 61-year old building, or about $129
per square foot. Unico plans to spend about $10
million to renovate the 24-story building.
Hines
broke ground for its 42-story office building at 1144
15th Streetin downtown Denver. The Texas
developer is building the project on a speculative
basis, seeking to take advantage of the low vacancy
rate and strong demand for office space downtown.
The building will contain about 657,400 square feet
of office space and 5,500 square feet of ground
floor retail space. plus an 840-space garage.
Completion is scheduled for early 2018 .
The
Hogan Lovells LLP law firm leased 70,000 square feet
at 1601
Wewatta Street, a
new office building under construction new Denver
Union Station in downtown Denver. The firm will
relocate from its current quarters in One Tabor
Center. 1601 Wewatta Street is a 300,000 square foot
ten-story building being developed by Hines and
Jordan Permutter and Company. It is scheduled to
open in 2016.
Hospitality Properties Trust, Inc. bought the Crown
Plaza hotel at
1450 Glenarm Place in downtown Denver. The 364-room
hotel was sold by Driftwood Hospitality Management
for $72 million, or about $197,000 per room. The
Crown Plaza was built in 1977.
Sage
Hospitality and Alliance Bernstein Holding LP bought
the Curtis
Hotel in
downtown Denver. A partnership of Sage Hospitality
and Fundamental Advisors LP sold the 336 room hotel
at 1405 Curtis Street for $86 million, or about
$256,000 per room. The Curtis is located across 14th
Street from the Denver Center for the Performing
Arts.
Southern Land Company plans to develop a 315-unit
apartment building on the site of the Tavern
Uptown at
538 East 17th Avenue. The eight-story building will
occupy the Uptown block bounded by East 16th and
East 17th avenues and Pearl and Pennsylvania
streets. The existing Tavern Uptown will be
demolished but will return with a new 14,000 square
foot bar and restaurant on the project's ground
floor. Construction is scheduled to begin in early
2016 and be completed in 2018. Nashville-based
Southern Land Company is developing several other
Denver and Boulder apartment communities.
Centre Point Properties bought Sherman
Center, a 100,774 square foot building at
789 Sherman Street in Capitol Hill. The company paid
a private family investment fund $9,950,000, or
about $98 per square foot. The seller was
represented by Coldwell Banker Commercial Alliance
agents Ben Gilliam and Jon Treter.
The
Burgwyn Company plans to develop 5280
Senior Residences, a 99 unit apartment
building for the elderly in the Uptown neighborhood.
The six-story building will occupy a site at the
northwest corner of East 16th Avenue and
Pennsylvanian Street, replacing a surface parking
lot.
Laws
Whiskey House bought a 31,000 square foot building
in the Golden Triangle neighborhood south of
downtown. The building at 1321
Cherokee Street will
be used to supplement the distiller's smaller
facility on Acoma Street. Laws Whiskey House
purchased the property from Waugh Owners LLC for
$2.8 million, or about $90 per square foot. The
transaction was handled by Newmark Grubb Knight
Frank broker Russell Gruber.
Construction started on Eviva
Cherokee, a 274-unit apartment tower in the
Golden Triangle neighborhood south of downtown
Denver. The 18-story building at 1250 Cherokee
Street is being developed by Charter Realty Group of
Denver and The Integral Group of Atlanta.
Construction is scheduled to be completed in late
2016.
Texas
developer Hines has placed under contract a parcel
of land in the Sloan's Lake mixed-use development on
West 17th Avenue in west Denver. The land is part of
the redevelopment of the former
St. Anthony's hospital campus. Tentative
plans call for about 226 apartment units in an
8-story building across from Sloan's Lake Park. The
project would require a rezoning by the Denver City
Council, however, since the master plan for the St.
Anthony's site only allows up to five floors on the
subject parcel.
The
University of Colorado - Denver plans to construct a
$42 millionwellness center on the Auraria
Campus in
downtown Denver. The 85,000 square foot building
will be located near the intersection of Auraria
Parkway and Speer Boulevard. It will primarily house
a variety of fitness opportunities for CU-Denver
students. Construction is mainly funded by student
fees. Plans call for the building to open in January
of 2018.
The
new headquarters for the Colorado
Technology Associationopened in downtown
Denver. The organization will use the 20,000 square
foot space at 1245 Champa Street as a resources
center for small businesses and newly created firms.
The center is called the Commons on Champa and is a
joint venture between the City and County of Denver
and the Downtown Denver Partnership.
A
long-vacant historic church in the Curtis Park
neighborhood north of downtown Denver is being
converted into restaurant and office space. The former
Epworth United Methodist Church at
31st and Lawrence streets is being restored and
redeveloped by 620 Corporation. Construction is
scheduled for completion in the fall of 2015. A
separate adjacent building, once the Denver
Enterprise Center, is being renovated and converted
into 15,000 square feet of co-working space.
Travel information company Fodor's ranked the Denver
Zoo among
the top ten zoological parks in the US. The recent
addition of the Elephant Passage exhibit was cited
as a prominent draw for visitors. In addition to
Denver, other highly rated zoos were in Memphis,
Chicago, Cincinnati, Miami, Philadelphia, St. Louis,
Houston, San Diego and the Bronx Zoo in New York
City.
Century Development
started construction on 2300
Welton Street, a 223-unit transit-oriented
apartment project near downtown Denver. The project
will be marketed to moderate income residents. 2300
Welton Street is the second new apartment community
to be placed under construction in the Welton Street
corridor between downtown and Five Points along an
RTD light rail line. Four other apartment
developments have been proposed in the corridor.
Urban
Green Development began construction on Factory
Flats, a 24-unit condominium building in
the RiNo neighborhood of north Denver. The
five-story project at 3198 Blake Street will offer
units for sale in a price range of about $465,000 to
$525,000. The Factory Flats are being built to LEED
Platinum standards, a construction and design
designation expected to be the first for a
condominium building in Colorado.
KSL
Capital Partners leased the top floor of 100
St. Paul Street, an
eight-story office building in Cherry Creek North.
The private equity firm invests in travel and
leisure businesses and will occupy 17,564 square
feet. The Pauls Corporation is developing the
building, which is 67% preleased, including its main
anchor tenant, First Bank. Construction on the
149,000 square foot building is almost complete.
Trammell Crow Residential plans to start
construction shortly on Alexan
Cherry Creek a
164-unit apartment building on Cook Street between
East Ellsworth Avenue and East 1st Avenue in Cherry
Creek East. The eight-story building will be
constructed adjacent to the former Key Bank building
at 3300 East 1st Avenue that is being extensively
renovated into office and retail space. Construction
on the apartments is scheduled for mid-2017.
The
City and County of Denver expects to start
construction in September on the long-planned Central
Recreation Center. The
60,000 square foot building will be located at the
northeast corner of East Colfax Avenue and Josephine
Street. It will cost about $24.8 million, with
funding mainly from a 2007 bond issue approved by
Denver voters and the sale of the former RTD bus
station at 16th and Market streets downtown.
Schnitzer West LLC will construct a 100,000 square
foot office and retail building at 230 to 250
Fillmore Street in Cherry Creek North. Plans call
for Civica
Cherry Creek to
contains about 90,000 square feet of office space
atop 10,000 square feet of retail space and an
underground parking garage. Construction is due to
begin in early 2016.
Stoltz Real Estate Partners bought 155
South Madison Street, a 43,161 square foot
office building in Cherry Creek East. The buyer paid
an affiliate of Ogilvie Properties $11,450,000, or
about $265 per square foot. Patrick Devereaux and
Jason Schmidt of JLL represented the seller.
The
Denver City Council approved plans for the third and
final phase of the reconstruction
of Cherry Creek Drive South in
south central Denver. Between South Colorado and
South University boulevards the street is being
widened to two standard lanes with a median,
improved sidewalks, crosswalks and bicycle lanes. A
traffic signal will also be installed at the
intersection with East Alameda Avenue. Construction
will eliminate some of the parking spaces for the
Cherry Creek Tower condominium building but other
spaces will be provided on the street.
Pando
Holdings completed Platt
Park North, a
60-unit rental townhouse community on East
Mississippi Avenue east of South Broadway. The
developer targeted a niche by building units larger
than most of those currently being developed in
apartment projects in metro Denver. Rental rates for
the two and three bedroom units begin at $2,500 per
month.
The
Hill Company began site work for Muse, a
120-unit apartment building at 2262 South University
Boulevard in the University Park neighborhood. The
project is located at the northeast corner of East
Iliff Avenue, across University Boulevard from the
University of Denver.
The
Denver City Council approved a cost-sharing
agreement for thereconstruction of I-70 in
north Denver. The agreement calls for the City and
County of Denver to pay up to $83 million of the
$1.2 billion cost to widen and partially bury the
freeway between I-25 and Tower Road, with much of
the work involving drainage improvements. The plan
was opposed by some residents of the Globeville,
Elyria and Swansea neighborhoods but Council
approved the agreement on an 8 to 1 vote, with four
members absent.
CWS
Capital Partners bought the Yards
at Denargo Market, a
301-unit apartment building in the RiNo neighborhood
north of downtown Denver. Cypress Real Estate
Advisors developed the project at 2797 Wewatta Way
several years ago. The sale price was $72 million,
or about $240,000 per unit. The transaction was
handled by ARA. Cypress' apartment development arm,
Argyle Residential, is currently building the
Crossing at Denargo Market, an adjacent 321-unit
property.
Argyle Residential is developing a second apartment
community at the site of the former Denargo Market
on Brighton Boulevard in RiNo. The 321-unit Crossing
at Denargo Market is
being constructed on Wewatta Way adjacent to the
Yards at Denargo Market, which Argyle completed in
2014. Argyle Residential is the apartment
development arm of Dallas-based Cypress Real Estate
Advisors.
The
Brighton Boulevard corridor in the RiNo neighborhood
of north Denver continues to attract apartment
developers. The latest project to begin construction
is Broadstone
RiNo, a
270 unit project at 3101 Brighton Boulevard by
Alliance Residential. Construction is scheduled for
completion in mid-2016.
Zeppelin Development will construct a 100-room
boutique hotel at 3330 Brighton Boulevard in
the RiNo neighborhood. The eight-story building will
be adjacent to The Source, a retail and restaurant
venue that occupies a historic foundry. In addition
to the hotel, Zeppelin will construct another 25,000
square feet of retail space. Construction is
scheduled to be completed by early 2017.
The Colorado state
legislature approved $250 million of funding for the
proposed redevelopment of the National
Western complex on
Brighton Boulevard in north Denver. The approval
will allow the State of Colorado to issue the
bond-like certificates of participation to help pay
for buildings housing some of Colorado State
University's programs. Other funds for the project
will come from the City and County of Denver and
from a proposal for state Regional Tourism Act
revenues.
RedPeak Properties
purchased a portfolio of three
apartment buildings in Capitol Hill. The
company acquired the properties from Mountain
Pacific II LLC for $13,850,000, or about $209,850
per unit. The buildings at 929 Marion Street, 1145
Ogden Street and 1153 Ogden Street contain a total
of 66 units. The seller was represented by Andy
Hellman of ARA Newmark along with Robert Bratley,
Justin Hunt and Kevin Jewett..
Continuum Partners and 9th Avenue Land LLC began
demolition of parts of the former University
of Colorado Medical Center at East 9th Avenue and
Colorado Boulevard in
east Denver. The site will be redeveloped as a
pedestrian-oriented mixed-use community with
residential, retail and office uses. Alliance
Residential is currently building the initial phase
in the project, a 324-unit apartment community
called Broadstone at 9th. Continuum's
initial development will occur in the northwest
quadrant of the property, including 34,000 square
feet of retail space, 613 apartment units in two
buildings, nine townhouses and several parking
garages. The overall site contains about 26 acres
and is expected to be developed over a five year
period.
The
Denver City Council approved a rezoning to allow the
redevelopment of the site of a vacant church in the
Crestmoor Park neighborhood of east Denver.
Metropolitan Homes will build a 50-unit senior
apartment building and 25 townhouses at 195
South Monaco Parkway.
A Natural
Grocers by Vitamin Cottage began
construction in east Denver. The store will replace
a closed Gunther Toody's restaurant which has been
demolished. The site is located at 4500 East Alameda
Avenue, in a triangle formed by East Alameda Avenue
and Leetsdale Drive. The store is scheduled to open
in the fall of 2015.
The
Glendale City Council approved the potential use of
eminent domain to acquire properties slated to be
redeveloped for the Glendale
180 mixed-use project. The
42 acres in question are on the south side of East
Virginia Avenue between South Colorado Boulevard and
South Cherry Street, adjacent to Cherry Creek. The
City of Glendale wants to see the property
redeveloped as Glendale 180, a mixed-use retail and
entertainment district. The vote authorizes the
Glendale Urban Renewal Authority to use eminent
domain to acquire properties if negotiations are
unsuccessful.
