DENVER | Main Development Thread #7

[jhwk]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

No activity on 1420 Wynkoop with the city in about two years

Unico still has a website for it - last update was May of 2021 that the project was still on hold and Xcel was doing utility work on the site that was supposed to be complete by the end of the summer:

https://14wynkoop.com/

[twister244]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

I can only assume that Two Tabor will be next.

Doesn't she look so nice.


Source

Please no.

Everytime that project has a renewed proposal - Bad things happen. Knowing the luck with this one, if it were to be revived, nukes will start flying from Russia.

[DenvertoLA]

Since Europe is about to buy $billion in weapons from us, maybe we can get a shiny new Lockheed Martin tower

[TakeFive]

https://milehighcre.com/dierks-bentleys-whiskey-row-sells-to-local-real-estate-investor/

...said Kenneth Monfort, executive vice president of Monfort Companies. “We are committed to continuing to build a world-class entertainment district in the Ball Park neighborhood that attracts residents and visitors alike while making a strong economic impact here in LoDo.”

Article talks about the recent sale of Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row as well as what comes next.

This deal is one of several recent moves by Monfort Companies in the Ball Park neighborhood. In January, Monfort announced it would once again partner with Riot Hospitality Group to debut a new concept at 1920 Market St., which is directly adjacent to Whiskey Row. The partnership also recently purchased 2100 Larimer St., which will open as national piano bar concept Howl at the Moon in Fall 2022.

Between what the Monfort Companies are doing along with the previously mentioned EDENS is what can give a city special places to visit; places that can grab widespread reputation as "where the locals hang out."

When "the new" is mixed in with the old (or preservation) it make a place more special and livable; it's makes it eclectic.

[Brainpathology]

Originally Posted by wong21fr

Yes he is. Same as you and I.

That was my exact worry lol. Because none of us BECAME insufferable.. I always thought that's why we got along.

[Ich]

Originally Posted by daveed

With Kairoi demo'ing the Ramada this week to make room for their mix-use project, has anyone heard what's going on with it's neighbor and the Corona Corner?
There are articles from a few years ago Smiley's Laundromat space being purchased for a mixed-use called "Route 44". The building has had scaffolding around it for a while now. Looks like the building is being restored instead of demolished.

I drove by this weekend and it definitely looks like they are taking the building down. Seems like they are doing it floor by floor but the top floor on the west side is down to the studs

[SirLucasTheGreat]

DenverInfill had some exciting updates regarding the River North Promenade area. Seems like Chestnut Lofts and Hurley Place are filing/receiving permits. That area is going to feel very different with RiNo Art Park, RiNo Promenade, Flora, The Current, Chestnut Lofts, and Hurley Place.

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by DenvertoLA

Since Europe is about to buy $billion in weapons from us, maybe we can get a shiny new Lockheed Martin tower

Maybe a bomb proof bunker in Waterton Canyon, but definitely not an office building or tower!

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

DenverInfill had some exciting updates regarding the River North Promenade area. Seems like Chestnut Lofts and Hurley Place are filing/receiving permits. That area is going to feel very different with RiNo Art Park, RiNo Promenade, Flora, The Current, Chestnut Lofts, and Hurley Place.

Also there's foundation equipment on the site of Vert Lofts so that project is now U/C.

Here's a pretty rendering from Denver Infill:

[SirLucasTheGreat]

That's exciting! That area between there and the river is getting ready to explode.

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

That's exciting! That area between there and the river is getting ready to explode.

That area is basically already a Russian tank in one of the blown up columns.

[SirLucasTheGreat]

By the way, it looks like construction is getting ready to start on that hotel at 14th and Court that looks like an Aspen tree. I go by that area often and there are a bunch of new construction barriers that weren't there recently.

[Robert.hampton]

Originally Posted by Ich

I drove by this weekend and it definitely looks like they are taking the building down. Seems like they are doing it floor by floor but the top floor on the west side is down to the studs

Looks like they have crews up there taking the thing down brick by brick. Does this mean they are saving some of the facade? Why take such a meticulous approach to demolition?

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by Robert.hampton

Looks like they have crews up there taking the thing down brick by brick. Does this mean they are saving some of the facade? Why take such a meticulous approach to demolition?

Asbestos lead abatement and maybe some adaptive reuse? The removal of brick seems crazy.

[TakeFive]

My favorite groundbreaking of the year is coming soon

https://denverite.com/2022/03/10/heres-w...he-16th-street-mall-starting-next-month/

Most importantly: You’ll still be able to walk around.

It may seem anticlimactic for many as this project was much discussed and debated here... like five years ago.

Construction at the 16th Street Mall will start next month ... The first major upgrade in four decades for the downtown strip will cost $149 million... some preconstruction utility work is starting this month, between Arapahoe and Champa streets, according to the city’s transit department.

Construction on the west end of the Mall is scheduled to start next month, moving east down the corridor in the spring and finally ending, at Stout Street, in early fall 2023.

Credit: Department of Transportation and Infrastructure
16th Street Mall project renderings.

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by Robert.hampton

Looks like they have crews up there taking the thing down brick by brick. Does this mean they are saving some of the facade? Why take such a meticulous approach to demolition?

Because all those mcmansion builders in LoHi, Wash Park, and Cherry Creek North are buying those salvaged bricks for crazy money...

[bulldurhamer]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

My favorite groundbreaking of the year is coming soon

https://denverite.com/2022/03/10/heres-w...he-16th-street-mall-starting-next-month/

It may seem anticlimactic for many as this project was much discussed and debated here... like five years ago.



Credit: Department of Transportation and Infrastructure
16th Street Mall project renderings.

this is a $150 million project, something i would bet 99% of denver residents had no idea "needed" to be done. strangely there are no meth addicts looking to attack the people in the picture. i guess that's called marketing.

this is one of those projects where i'd be checking bank accounts. we don't have functioning sidewalks in denver, but this is what we're doing with our money...inventing a problem to solve for tourists while completely ignoring actual real life daily issues actual denver residents face on a daily basis.

[bulldurhamer]

https://www.denverpost.com/2021/09/26/pedestrian-dignity-tik-tok-denver-sidewalks/

"Ten percent of Denver streets have missing sidewalks and 30% are considered substandard, meaning they’re too narrow to accommodate a person in a wheelchair, according to advocacy organization Denver Streets Partnership. Almost 50% of streets in low-income areas have missing or substandard sidewalks, the organization said."

"At the city’s current funding levels, Denver Street Partnerships said it would take nearly 400 years to build out a complete, integrated sidewalk network to serve every Denver neighborhood. The city has spent an average of $2 million to $3 million per year since 2017 on new sidewalk construction, the organization said. An estimated cost for the complete Denver sidewalk network envisioned in the city’s 2017 Denver Moves: Pedestrians & Trails plan is around $1.1 billion."

i get it's cheap to compare our sidewalk issues with a completely independent project like the mall, but at the same time it's striking. denver is willing to invest in a project that's absolutely not needed for its tourists while they arent willing to invest in the people who live here. it's as simple as that. We as Denverites are worth $2 million/year to the city to push our wheelchairs, strollers, buggies, and anything else that might be needed (remember vision 0? lol). Tourists and homeless using an already perfectly fine sidewalks without holes every other step get a shiny $150 million replacement just because they can. this is a $150 improvement for volleyball campers and homeless and that's mostly it. sad

[bulldurhamer]

i've yet to find anybody who can clearly explain why the mall project exists. articles from a few years ago complain about slippery pavers and costs to maintain the street, as if there aren't always costs to maintain streets. this really feels like somebody is getting paid here. years of construction, replaced pavers, and removing the middle strip, yet still having the busses fly past you without notice as you're looking around at all of the awesome chain stores.

they are really trying to convince the public that $1 million/year for maintanence is some great reason to spend $150 on this vanity project.

so i guess i'm five years too late for this debate, fine. but i can't wheel my stroller two blocks down the street without climbing holes every other step i take. so i'm going to continue to question this boondoggle of a change at the mall, which i'm confident will change virtually nothing up there. the busses will still try to run you over. the homeless will still molest the hell out of anybody there, especially those sitting in those lovely exposed tables, and of course the chain restaurants will still continue to struggle.

why do we spend a zillion dollars on bike lanes that VERY few people will ever use and do nothing about our sidewalks, something we all use? it's bonkers.

[mhays]

The City should up the sidewalk budget x10, no doubt. We have the same issue in Seattle.

But investing in Downtown street functionality, safety, and quality of life are important too. Our downtowns are our top economic engines and deserve support.