DENVER | Main Development Thread #6

[Sam Hill]

Did Pixar make that rendering?

[trace™]

Whoa. That is a horrendous looking project (usually HKS comes out with something a little more tasteful)!

Sad that we lose S. Calatrava, lose S. Holl, and then get this! At least the two stararchitects had a positive influence on the buildings.



Denver needs some real quality big buildings, or impressive developments. US was the missed opportunity (though I am quite happy with SOM's part of the project). I am still hopeful for Gates - has anyone heard anything of that project?

[RyanD]

Yes. Let's all look at how much of a missed opportunity DUS is...

I don't get your beef with that development or the fact you think skylines are what gauge a city.

Also, don't expect Gates to be denser, or even as dense as what's going on at DUS right now. You might get a 12-story building at Gates but it's going to be mostly 5-story all over that site. That area will never support DUS density.


via DenverInfill

[trace™]

Originally Posted by RyanD

I don't get your beef with that development or the fact you think skylines are what gauge a city.

I wasn't suggesting that made a city, but it is a big part of a city. It was just something I noticed on a recent trip - I am sure most cities wouldn't be such a visible difference, Charlotte was just particularly nice.

As for US, it is great that it is happening, don't get me wrong. My background and education is in architecture, so the buildings are what I care about most (and notice most).


Gates showed a lot of promise in the concept/conceptual renderings (though I don't think Rosette has a Denver presence anymore). It wasn't about height, but design/vision. It's been a while, though, so maybe I am just favorably remembering it (Rosette has designed some decent stuff, though).

I hope that vision isn't lost in a sea of more apartments, that's all. Condos/for sale justify a better investment in amenities and quality of design, variety, etc.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by trace™

Denver needs some real quality big buildings, or impressive developments. US was the missed opportunity (though I am quite happy with SOM's part of the project). I am still hopeful for Gates - has anyone heard anything of that project?

You mean the same SOM that couldn't put functional canopies over the platforms? I thought architects were supposed to put function over form, not form at the expense of function.

[trace™]

Originally Posted by wong21fr

You mean the same SOM that couldn't put functional canopies over the platforms? I thought architects were supposed to put function over form, not form at the expense of function.

I don't know anything about what the discussions were regarding the functional aspects. I highly doubt, however, that any architect would design something that didn't meet the requirements set forth by the client (legally, it would never go anywhere, certainly not be funded and built w/o the client's approvals).

To "form over function", there is always a compromise, never an absolute. I'll take a Ferrari over a Toyota, but there would sure be a lot of compromises for a great design.

[Cirrus]

Moved WV's post about rail capacity to the transportation thread.

[TakeFive]

Originally Posted by Cirrus

RTP draws away companies from Charlotte in the same sense that San Francisco draws away companies from Charlotte. Or that Dallas draws away companies from Denver. To a certain extent, the whole country is one market.

But that's an entirely different issue than where companies locate within a single region. DTC draws away companies from downtown Denver, but only companies that still want to be in the Denver metropolitan area. Companies that want to be in the Charlotte metropolitan area cannot go to Raleigh, nor vice versa. They're too far apart to be fungible like that.

Fair points. The distance probably plays more of a role than I considered.

I was thinking back to the history of Colorado. Early on when Colorado became attractive to tech (and other) companies they located along the northern front range. HP and Kodak in Northern Colo. IBM along the "diagonal." Storage Tek and Sun along the "turnpike." Co. Sprgs. had defense stuff and a brief affair with Intel. But the bigger aerospace - defense companies tended to pick the Denver Metro area.

Just because a big plot of dirt was assembled way out in the suburbs past Arapahoe Road and named the Denver Tech Center didn't assure success. And yes, early on anywhere in the country with a prospect was within their target market, along with more local companies.

And the rest is history. They did attract many software and other computer related companies and did become a very successful business park. Comparing states, Colorado doesn't have a RTP. The Denver Tech Center grabbed all the buzz and became Colorado's go-to new place to do business. Yes it's also close enough to compete with downtown. But for companies that didn't want to be downtown the Tech Ctr. prospered. For a few decades (and still) companies very much wanted to have a suburban location.

Successful business parks attract all kinds of ancillary businesses and growth. In a way, downtown Denver benefits and prospers because the Tech Ctr. is NOT two hours away.

[TakeFive]

Pretty cool. From your local DBJ:

Future Earth, an international research effort... will have its U.S. headquarters in Colorado and be jointly managed by the University of Colorado Boulder and Colorado State University.

The U.S. hub of Future Earth will work with existing research organizations in Colorado, including the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the National Center for Atmospheric Research

If you go there (DBJ) there's also a decent article by Caitlin Hendee entitled "Denver apartment development boom intensifies."

Of 58,099 Q1 national multifamily unit completions... more than half were concentrated in 10 markets: Denver, Houston, Austin, New York, Washington, D.C., Raleigh, Dallas, Minneapolis, Phoenix and Seattle.

[denconyny]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

Pretty cool. From your local DBJ:

Will this mean a new high-rise somewhere in the area?

[Denver]

Rendering for the hotel at 245 Columbine. Not nearly as good as the office proposal IMO.

http://www.jgjohnson.com/?page_id=2307

Edit can't get the picture to show up

[comoneymaker]

I remember a while back I said I have a feeling we would be getting a new sky scrapers soon. Someone said this was true but could not say more. It wasn't one of the old proposals brought back to life like 15th st was it ?

[Brainpathology]

Originally Posted by awholeparade

Ho. Lee. Shit. That rendering!!

It looks like an awful Thomas Kinkade painting.

Yeah it's the awful Kinkade paintings that really ruin it for the good ones he did I'm sure.

Destroying places by vomiting horrendous developments all over them must be a RIDA specialty. They are similarly building the most cynical turd of a central transportation station adjacent development here in Orlando. One which actually makes me feel a little bad about my criticisms of USish. (except even here we cover stations from the elements)

[awholeparade]

You're right, that did sound like I was saying that there are actually good Kinkade paintings.

[Brainpathology]

Originally Posted by awholeparade

You're right, that did sound like I was saying that there are actually good Kinkade paintings.

I'm glad you picked up what I was throwing down.

Driving through Downtown Orando this morning (from 8:30 - 8:31am) I did notice that relative to the size of each downtown RIDA's central station in Orlando is about the same as USish. So maybe my dissapointment in both is a little more understandable.

[bunt_q]

Originally Posted by Brainpathology

Driving through Downtown Orando this morning (from 8:30 - 8:31am)

So much traffic the day before a holiday?

[Brainpathology]

Originally Posted by bunt_q

So much traffic the day before a holiday?

It did take longer than usual...

[TakeFive]

Originally Posted by Brainpathology

Yeah it's the awful Kinkade paintings that really ruin it for the good ones he did I'm sure.

Destroying places by vomiting horrendous developments all over them must be a RIDA specialty. They are similarly building the most cynical turd of a central transportation station adjacent development here in Orlando. One which actually makes me feel a little bad about my criticisms of USish. (except even here we cover stations from the elements)

Another blog I frequent is populated by cranky conservatives who can't believe the idiots who want to revive choo choo trains, including... in Orlando.

I took the opportunity to familiarize myself with what's going on. I was reasonably impressed, especially with the efforts along Church Street. IIRC the commuter rail that's being built only costs a little over $20 million per mile. Those complainers have no clue down there, needless to say. I just caught the news about the new Balfour Beatty apartment project at 420 East Church Street. Nothing like what is going on in Denver but we are talking about Orlando so this is good.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by Brainpathology

Destroying places by vomiting horrendous developments all over them must be a RIDA specialty. They are similarly building the most cynical turd of a central transportation station adjacent development here in Orlando. One which actually makes me feel a little bad about my criticisms of USish. (except even here we cover stations from the elements)

That's because people in Florida are fat and soft and Rascals don't handle slick pavement very well. Though that surely helps contribute plenty of tissue samples in your department, right?

[Brainpathology]

Originally Posted by wong21fr

That's because people in Florida are fat and soft and Rascals don't handle slick pavement very well. Though that surely helps contribute plenty of tissue samples in your department, right?

It absolutely does.. God's waiting room has lots of things that need to be resected/biopsied.