DENVER | Main Development Thread #7

[TakeFive]

Alphabet Opens Colorado GFiber HQ In Lakewood
December 2, 2024 by Jonathan Rose, Denver / Bisnow

Lakewood city officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for tech giant Alphabet’s newest headquarters in the Belmar neighborhood during Thanksgiving week.

GFiber, Alphabet’s high-speed internet subsidiary, said its 13K SF office at 439 Upham St. and 7244 W. Bonfils Lane will manage the rollout of services across the metro area, state and broader region. Lakewood is the only Colorado city that currently has access to the GFiber network.

Courtesy of the city of Lakewood

GFiber and Alphabet, also the parent company of Google, chose Lakewood for its Colorado HQ after a “competitive selection process,” the statement says. “It’s a real testament to the vision of the leadership of the mayor, of City Council, of city staff that they wanted to bring this additional internet option to Colorado. Lakewood was our first city, it was the first place we signed, it’s the first place we’re serving customers, and now it’s going to be our home.”

[TakeFive]

Originally Posted by laniroj

What do folks think about the City thinking big and instead of doing the same old, they build an elevated "high line" or "river mile" in our case above the tracks along the river mile frontage. We could add a ski lift as a nod to the former elitches. Tourist attraction in and of itself and huge neighborhood amenity.

Am I crazy?

(Click on this) -- Gondolas are frequent, fast, and reliable. And now they’re popping up in cities across the world.

This unsung form of public transportation is finally getting its due
11-29-2024 BY Eli Moore -- Fast Company

But in Colombia, Germany, Turkey, Algeria, and other countries, gondola systems are being celebrated for enhancing urban public transportation systems. In Bolivia, for example, research found that the installation of a mass transit cable car system “expanded school accessibility for low-wealth students and reduced socioeconomic school segregation.” Few examples exist in the U.S. where gondolas have been planned or developed as public transportation. But some of the current needs and constraints on urban transportation in the U.S. provide reason to consider gondolas more seriously as urban transportation and climate solutions.

[Cirrus]

I have direct experience with gondolas. Like most technologies, they're a particular solution to a particular set of problems. They have a legitimate role that they're good for and it is probably true that we've underused them in this country. They are not however a panacea or replacement for traditional modes, and several of the specific proposals for them in recent years have indeed been harebrained.

When proposals for them come around, the correct reaction is to be skeptical but open-minded.

[mhays]

The first obvious point on the website is that the support towers are too close to traffic lanes. My guess is this one one of many aspects that would require more space and more cost in the US.

[AHS1983]

The London cable car/gondola system isn't much used.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by AHS1983

The London cable car/gondola system isn't much used.

Two-station gondola system go between destination points not well utilized in city with world-class rail transit system? Shocking.

Denver does have a gondola proposal from one of the dozens of studies the city has done in order to keep urban planners employed and allow city staff to point to some sort of achievement during annual reviews:

Central Platte Valley Gondola

[TakeFive]

^^ Your link isn't working; maybe try again?

------------------------------------------

Originally Posted by AHS1983

The London cable car/gondola system isn't much used.

That is one hilarious video.

[TakeFive]

The Law of Unintended Consequences
Sometimes worded as "Be careful what you wish for"

Can Denver become more pedestrian ie more affordable; would that be a good thing or not?

The City has tried to make things more affordable by having an impressively high "minimum wage" which is logical. The problem is that more of the type of retail businesses (the hole-in-the-wall places I enjoy) are failing or in many cases moving out of the city for more affordable locations. There are other barriers to entry in Denver as well.

Englewood has a different strategy

New app encourages Coloradans in Englewood to shop local, provides cash back to customers
October 25, 2024 By By Ashley Portillo -- CBS News Denver

The City of Englewood is trying out a new way to encourage people to shop locally. The Colorado city launched a program over the summer to support small businesses through an app where customers can get cash back.

It's called EARN, which stands for Explore And Reward Network. For every dollar spent at approximately 160 participating businesses, shoppers get 5% cash back. The money can be cashed out or used again to support Englewood businesses. It's fully funded by the city and comes with no cost to the businesses.

"It's really a win-win for our local economy and the people who shop, play and live here," she said. Since the EARN program's launch in August, there have been more than 540 users and the city has given out nearly $2,000 in cash back rewards.

Back to Denver

Likely for businesses in Denver Central Market they can afford to pay a higher minimum wage. But for many "local" small businesses it's one of many issues.

Señor Burritos packing up, heading to Westminster after 34 years in Denver's Baker neighborhood
Nov 14, 2024 -- Denver 7 News

Taco Uprising is the latest Denver eatery struggling to stay afloat. Industry experts say they're not alone.
Nov 23, 2024 By: Adria Iraheta -- Denver7 News

It's a trend that underscores how minimum wage increases are impacting area businesses, according to the Colorado Restaurant Association.

“The past several years have been incredibly challenging for Colorado restaurants, as they’ve had to absorb minimum wage increases on top of soaring costs for food, liquor, property taxes, rent, credit-card swipe fees, utilities, and more,” said Colorado Restaurant Association CEO Sonia Riggs...

More than 180 restaurants shut down between the summers of 2023 and 2024. Denver alone accounts for 82% of statewide losses.

If Denver wants to "manipulate" the market and support small businesses too, perhaps they should pay retail businesses $5 per employee per hour?

Thinking of the 16th Street Mall it appears the City is discouraging business success. OTOH, with those businesses that can afford the freight, most have moved out of downtown.

Note: The State's minimum wage in 2025 will be "$14.81 per hour, up from $14.42 in 2024" and is much higher than surrounding states but more reasonable than the City's

[TakeFive]

Story of One Office Building that is doing Well

Standford Place III -- is located at 4582 South Ulster Street in the heart of the Denver Tech Center.


Courtesy LoopNet

Back in November of 2016 this building sold to Angelo, Gordon & Co for $39.3 million who proceeded with an extensive renovation of the property. The 17-story building has a 377,000 square foot and at the time rents were quoted in the $17-$18 range. Then Menashe Properties paid $50 million for the property in August of 2022. Leasing rates are now quoted from $27 to $29 per square foot.

Back in December of 2023

AssuredPartners (AP), a national full-service insurance broker, is growing its Denver office, taking the full 15th floor in Stanford Place III – a Class A, 17-story office building... The company is relocating its operations from the 6th floor of the building to 21,823 square feet on the 15th floor as it continues to expand its presence in the region.

Then on December 5, 2024

CBRE has arranged a 21,699-square-foot lease for City Light & Power’s new headquarters at Stanford Place III in Denver. The company has expanded from its previous headquarters of 13,274 square feet and plans to occupy the speculative office space in Q3 2025. The company is expanding its footprint to accommodate a growing headcount and will occupy the entire eighth floor.

to one success story

[rds70]

Here is a rendering of the 94 unit, seven story affordable residential building that DaVita Healthcare hopes to build at 2000 Welton St. Craine Architecture is designing the project:

[AHS1983]

Neat video I found on YouTube of a travelogue of Denver and environs in 1945.

https://youtu.be/BbQtkX0LBEg

Mute as the original audio is gone.

View down 16th from the (I presume) Capitol:

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by rds70

Here is a rendering of the 94 unit, seven story affordable residential building that DaVita Healthcare hopes to build at 2000 Welton St. Craine Architecture is designing the project:

It's perfectly serviceable, but it's woefully undersized for the site and for the need.

[TakeFive]

Colorado's economic growth fell from 5th in the nation to 41st, according to new report
Dec 10, 2024 By: Brandon Richard -- Denver 7 News

Note: Part of this covers the previous 15 years.

The University of Colorado’s Leeds School of Business released its 60th Annual Colorado Business Economic Outlook on Monday. While it shows Colorado’s economy is still growing, it's doing so at a slower pace.

When comparing the prior 15 years to this year, Colorado’s economic growth has fallen significantly — from 5th in the nation to 41st, according to the report. ... The report said slower growth "may be the new reality for Colorado as population growth, especially through net migration, remains slow..."

The usual 'cost of living' is one issue. Then there's the Colorado Chamber of Commerce who speaks for all those nasty, evil businesses and developers.

The Colorado Chamber of Commerce said there’s another reason for slower growth: too many regulations on businesses. The chamber released a report of its own on Tuesday, showing Colorado ranks sixth in the nation for regulations on businesses. The report said there were nearly 200,000 restrictions on businesses in Colorado.

“A lot of these regulations could be considered as redundant or otherwise excessive, and approximately 45% of these regulations do fall in that category,” said Irina Piatselchyts, a senior partner and consultant for StratACUMEN, a business analysis and research firm.

“A lot of these regulations have been in the area of labor and employment, energy and environment. So those would be some of the areas we would be focusing on in terms of our legislative solutions,” said Loren Furman, the president and CEO of the Colorado Chamber of Commerce.

Recently I googled "Site Selectors" to see what their latest take is. They complemented Denver for its tech talent etc. But for those looking for a more affordable business-friendly place they recommended Colorado Springs and Greeley/Weld County.

[Fritzdude]

The ads on the site make viewing this on mobile very onerous.

[TakeFive]

Accounting firm subleases DaVita space near Union Station
December 10, 2024 By Matt Geiger -- BusinessDen

An accounting firm is trading in two nickels for a dime.

CliftonLarsonAllen, based in Minneapolis, is closing its offices in Broomfield and Greenwood Village in favor of one in downtown Denver. The firm plans to open in 21,000 square feet at 2001 16th St. near Union Station in May. Its sublease with dialysis firm DaVita will run another eight years.

2001 16th St




Courtesy of DaVita

Back Story

DaVita owns the building at 2001 16th Street in downtown Denver, Colorado. In 2015, DaVita built a new 410,000 square foot space at this address, across the street from their original headquarters. DaVita leases 265,000 square feet of the building

Someone who works for DaVita had mentioned recently on Reddit that their space was mostly empty or barely used so this lease in not a surprise. Leasing 21,000 square feet will make a nice dent and is presumably a good deal for both parties.

[TakeFive]

Lender forecloses on coworking firm’s downtown office tower
December 10, 2024 By Thomas Gounley -- BusinessDen

LoanCore Capital, a real estate lending firm, owns Trinity Place at 1801 Broadway in Denver, Colorado:

On November 21, 2024, LoanCore Capital took ownership of the building after no other bidder appeared at a foreclosure auction. LoanCore submitted a credit bid of $34.6 million, which was the remaining principal on the 2019 loan.

Trinity Place -- 1801 Broadway


Photo courtesy (via) LoopNet

[TakeFive]

Lender forecloses on pair of Glendale office buildings
December 6, 2024 By Thomas Gounley -- BusinessDen

Two office buildings in Glendale are now in the hands of a lender following a foreclosure auction. Phoenicia Real Estate Holdings foreclosed on the Cherry Creek Plaza I and II buildings at 600 and 650 S. Cherry St. on Oct. 2, according to Arapahoe County records.

Cherry Creek Plaza I & II -- 600 and 650 S. Cherry St.


Image via LoopNet

AI Overview isn't always precisely accurate; Close and almost but this is a bit humorous:

Yes, a lender foreclosed on two office buildings in Glendale, Arizona owned by TerraCap Management on October 2, 2024:

• Property: The Cherry Creek Plaza I and II buildings at 600 and 650 S. Cherry St.
• Lender: Phoenicia Real Estate Holdings
• Buyer: Phoenicia submitted a credit bid of $29 million for the buildings

TerraCap Management, a Florida-based investment firm, purchased the buildings in March 2020 for $54.6 million. The company faced challenges with the property, including a decline in occupancy. As of June, Cherry Creek Plaza I was 65 percent leased and Plaza II was 60 percent leased.

Everything but the 'state' is correct.

These building have a nice location (sort of) being so close to Cherry Creek.

[TakeFive]

Potential Central Park/RTD developer for 900 affordable units?

First Residents at The Meadowmark Senior Housing Move In
December 11, 2024 -- Mile High CRE

Ulysses Development Group – a Denver-based mission-driven developer and owner of affordable and workforce housing – is excited to announce that residents are beginning to move into its first new construction community in Colorado — The Meadowmark — in The Meadows neighborhood of Castle Rock.

The Meadowmark is an affordable housing community for seniors 55+ with units set aside at 30%, 60% and 70% area medium income (AMI) — at a time when housing is at a premium in Douglas County.

The Meadowmark -- 3223 Timber Mill Pkwy, Castle Rock




Images courtesy Ulysses Development Group

New law change could pave way for more affordable housing on RTD property
June 27, 2024 By Andrew Haubner -- CBS News Denver

On Tuesday, a long-discussed effort in Denver to convert an underutilized portion of the Central Park Station parking lot into affordable housing is advancing. The RTD Board approved entering exclusive negotiations with Ulysses Development Group to create a complex that offers up to 900 affordable units at a park-n-ride lot on the west side of the station area.

This initiative is part of RTD's broader strategy to increase transit-oriented housing developments near rail and bus stations. "What we're seeing is a change in parking utilization and ridership, and also we're seeing an affordable housing crisis in the region," said Chessy Brady, the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) manager for RTD.

Originally, I had noted that Ulysses Development had a rather thin resume of completed projects (including one in So Phoenix). Basically, they started by building 'Affordable' projects and quickly moved to include 'workforce' projects. To their credit they now have a several years of experience. It appears that they started their strategy at a perfect time.

[TakeFive]

Denver Holds 19M SF of Office Redevelopment Potential
December 12, 2024 -- Mile High CRE

CommercialCafe recently published a study analyzing how much office space in urban cores represents feasible opportunity for conversion to residential use.

As we approach 2025, many U.S. cities face two pressing issues — increased levels of vacant office space and a shortage of affordable housing. Yet, this challenge also presents an opportunity.

Whatever, color me skeptical as to the data's conclusions, not that there isn't merit to the concept.

The study used the CommercialEdge Conversion Feasibility Index (CFI) for this analysis, focusing on the 30 largest cities by urban core rentable office stock. We examined how much office space could potentially be converted in each location, and ranked them accordingly.

The article does have a map of cities analyzed and places properties into either Tier I or Tier II.

[TakeFive]

You aren't wrong

Originally Posted by EngiNerd

A good thing...until the banks that back all of this can no longer absorb these hits.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/12/12/flushing-financial-seeks-to-raise-70-million.html

Flushing Financial, a New York-based commercial real estate lender, is seeking to raise $70 million to shore up its capital, CNBC has learned.

The bank’s CEO, John Buran, has told potential investors that he intends to sell low-yielding bonds and loans backed by commercial real estate, including multifamily buildings, moves that would generate a loss and necessitate the sale of fresh stock, people with knowledge of the deal told CNBC.

Generally Speaking

Most of the U.S. banks under pressure are community banks with under $10 billion in assets, like Flushing....

Now, with a rebound in bank stock prices this year and the start of a Fed easing cycle in September, investors expect more banks to raise capital in the coming months.

Behind the scenes, regulators have been prodding banks with confidential orders to improve capital levels.