DENVER | Main Development Thread #7

[rds70]

It looks like the old Sears store in Cherry Creek will finally be demolished and redeveloped. A Concept Plan was recently submitted to the City with the following description:

A new mixed-used residential development with ground-floor retail located along the west side of Clayton Lane between 1st and 2nd Avenues in the Cherry Creek North District. The project will feature an outdoor retail paseo lined with a variety of shops and dining options. The site currently hosts the vacant Sears Department Store Building, 2nd Avenue Parking Garage, Clayton Lane Residential Condo Building, and Crate & Barrel Building. As illustrated in the provided drawings, the Sears Building will be demolished and replaced by an 9-story mixed-use Residential High Rise with two new levels of below-grade parking that connect to the existing below-grade parking on the site. Levels 05 – 09 of the Residential High Rise will extend over the existing 2nd Avenue Garage, which is to remain. The Crate & Barrel Building will also be demolished down to grade level, though the parking garage below will remain. A new 5-story mixed-use residential building will be built above the existing below-grade parking garage in its place. The existing Condo Building to the north will remain, and its ground floor retail interiors and storefronts will be renovated.

According to BusinessDen, the project will be developed by BMC and Prism Places. The project architect is Tryba. 453 residential units and 100,000 square feet of retail are proposed.

That will be a ton of new residences at that intersection, with 600 being proposed as part of the Cherry Creek West project.

I wonder where Crate & Barrel will relocate to?

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

Post Script: If Denver is at a Fork in the Road, I hope they don't choose the same path that San Francisco has.

Fascinating stuff. I've spent time in San Francisco over the years (now decades). In some ways, this is the path that City has always followed, the boom and bust. It is currently in a very bad place if you haven't been recently. Not pockets of it, the majority of the center City. It's sad, but I suspect it will reinvent itself as it always has.

Denver, and Colorado more broadly, are barreling in the direction of SF. Between the rent control bill, the ROFR bill, leftovers of the eviction moratorium and related bills, the energy efficiency bills, green roof ordinance (in a semi arid desert), likely reform of special financing districts, and many others, I give us 10 years before we reach full Californication. That's just housing related. Factor in the anti business measures like the minimum wage increases (which are meaningless bc the market has already moved past them), paid family/medical leave, consumer protections bill, and the list goes on.

Over the past 5 years, the legislature has pursued and mainly passed an incredible amount of red tape regulation and their pursuit velocity increases each year. Are some of these things good and worth pursuits? Yes, but at what point does it become too much and inordinately restrict businesses and entrepreneurs from job growth? Clearly that hasn't happened yet, but once all this catches up to Coloradans, the change happens quickly but the reforms do not.

We need only look to other large progressive Cities to see what happens as many, perhaps most, of these measures have been implemented in those places. The answer, for me, has been the choice to grow outside of the State of Colorado.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by rds70

It looks like the old Sears store in Cherry Creek will finally be demolished and redeveloped. A Concept Plan was recently submitted to the City with the following description:



According to BusinessDen, the project will be developed by BMC and Prism Places. The project architect is Tryba. 453 residential units and 100,000 square feet of retail are proposed.

That will be a ton of new residences at that intersection, with 600 being proposed as part of the Cherry Creek West project.

I wonder where Crate & Barrel will relocate to?

The concept plan is pretty different from the article. There was no mention in that one of incorporating the Crate and Barrel store. Wonder which way they will go?


EDIT: Nevermind. According to the DBJ the developer is still working on plans for the Crate and Barrel building and whether the retailer will remain (which I would assume mean not building the five-story building) or will go. Sounds like the first phase is the Sears Building/parking garage replacement/renovation with the two buildings fronting Clayton Lane to be done at a later date.

[TakeFive]

Hot off the Press

Serious Question: Are presses still a thing?

City leaders call Polis’ sweeping land use bill ‘fundamentally flawed’
April 12, 2023 By Nathaniel Minor/Denverite

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock announced on Wednesday the city’s opposition to a sweeping — and controversial — state bill that would force many local governments to allow denser housing.

“SB23-213 is a laudable, but fundamentally flawed, top-down approach, and Denver is opposed to the bill as currently drafted,” Hancock and City Council President Jamie Torres wrote in a statement.

That's not all of the opposition.

Leaders of many other local governments, as well as the Colorado Municipal League and the Metro Mayors Caucus, also oppose the bill. Denver’s opposition is particularly notable because it’s the state’s largest city and some parts of it have rapidly densified over the last few decades.

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

It only took ten years but 'we' got her done

The GSA has sold off the 59 acres of federal land owned at the Federal Center to a developer from Dallas.

[TakeFive]

This is fascinating

Originally Posted by rds70

It looks like the old Sears store in Cherry Creek will finally be demolished and redeveloped. A Concept Plan was recently submitted to the City with the following description:

According to BusinessDen, the project will be developed by BMC and Prism Places. The project architect is Tryba. 453 residential units and 100,000 square feet of retail are proposed.

I remember when OliverMcMillan bought the property in 2016 but I forgot that Invesco was their financial partner. I also forgot that Brookfield Residential Properties later bought OliverMcMillan.

https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/n...Pos=2#cxrecs_s

Multiple groups have tried, unsuccessfully, to develop the Clayton Lane site over the years. In 2016, OliverMcMillan and Invesco Real Estate purchased retail portions of the site for $169.6 million, according to previous reporting, with plans to redevelop the site that never came to fruition. In 2018, Brookfield Residential Properties Inc. acquired OliverMcMillan, and took over the plans for redevelopment.

Joblon said that Invesco bought out Brookfield approximately 18 months ago, and is now the sole owner of the site. Invesco hired Newmark broker John Jugl to spearhead a request for proposal process from some of the country’s top developers.

Not sure how Prism Places and BMC hooked up but PRISM has done mixed-use development in Los Angeles. Whether Invesco is interested in adding additional equity on top of the land, I duno but they're capable

Originally Posted by rds70

That will be a ton of new residences at that intersection, with 600 being proposed as part of the Cherry Creek West project.

I wonder where Crate & Barrel will relocate to?

Love the residential development there.

BMC plans to demolish the former 150,000-square-foot vacant Sears building and replace it with an eight-story apartment building with studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. In compliance with Denver’s new affordable housing requirements, 10% of those units will be restricted to 60% of the area median income.

With respect to Crate & Barrel my guess is they go across the road to Cherry Creek West.

[rds70]

Some more Cherry Creek news: Waldorf Astoria branded condos planned along 2nd Avenue:



Story at businessden.com - https://businessden.com/2023/04/13/c...ldorf-astoria/

[rds70]

For those who say that Denver is becoming the next San Francisco (in a negative way), maybe:

San Francisco Company Relocates it’s HQ, Another Feather in Denver’s Cap:

https://www.denverpost.com/2023/04/1...ers-to-denver/

[Sierra Obscura]

Originally Posted by rds70

Some more Cherry Creek news: Waldorf Astoria branded condos planned along 2nd Avenue:



Story at businessden.com - https://businessden.com/2023/04/13/c...ldorf-astoria/

The skyline in Cherry Creek is nice to look at from the ground, and I love all of the streel-level retail/activation, but it's a shame about the height plateau. It has, or had, the potential to be Denver's version of Buckhead.

[wwmiv]

Originally Posted by Sierra Obscura

The skyline in Cherry Creek is nice to look at from the ground, and I love all of the street-level retail/activation, but it's a shame about the height plateau. It has, or had, the potential to be Denver's version of Buckhead.

Denver has a particular problem with respect to Cherry Creek: the mountain view that wealthy homeowners to the west have a vested interest in preserving (which adds to their land value). Hence, the plateau is beneath the level that would obstruct views.

Quite honestly, we could remove the view question altogether by passing a citizen initiated petition that protects certain views and authorizes the city to remove height caps when they don’t conflict with those views and to disallow protected views from private land.

Calls it “Peaks from Parks” or something else catchy and deliberately protect all remaining views of the mountain crest from all major public parks and select sites. It’d remove the question from contention—it’d be settled by voters, and thus allow city council greater maneuverability with respect to developing height. e.g. they can always say “well, this doesn’t conflict with the voter passed initiative, therefore it has voter support to go taller.”

[TakeFive]

Originally Posted by Sierra Obscura

The skyline in Cherry Creek is nice to look at from the ground, and I love all of the streel-level retail/activation, but it's a shame about the height plateau. It has, or had, the potential to be Denver's version of Buckhead.

The Atlanta market is huge but I'd tend to compare Buckhead to downtown Denver.

Cherry Creek is more comparable to Kierlands Commons - Scottsdale Quarter across the street from each other in Scottsdale. Both areas are upscale and better known for their retail and entertainment (restaurants etc) than office space - although both areas have some corporate presence. Both areas include hotels and are medium density.

[TakeFive]

What you missed

Originally Posted by rds70

For those who say that Denver is becoming the next San Francisco (in a negative way), maybe:

The primary point of the Chronicle's articles is that San Francisco needs more downtown residential density like $billions more.

While the Denver CBD has only modest residential density the CBD is relatively small. If you look at the greater downtown footprint, then there's mixed-use areas including residential in LoDo and DUS. Other adjacent neighborhoods like Arapahoe Square, Golden Triangle, Ball Park and RiNo have seen an explosion of residential density and it continues.

It's always nice to see new companies come to town.

[rds70]

Originally Posted by wwmiv

Denver has a particular problem with respect to Cherry Creek: the mountain view that wealthy homeowners to the west have a vested interest in preserving (which adds to their land value). Hence, the plateau is beneath the level that would obstruct views.

Quite honestly, we could remove the view question altogether by passing a citizen initiated petition that protects certain views and authorizes the city to remove height caps when they don’t conflict with those views and to disallow protected views from private land.

Calls it “Peaks from Parks” or something else catchy and deliberately protect all remaining views of the mountain crest from all major public parks and select sites. It’d remove the question from contention—it’d be settled by voters, and thus allow city council greater maneuverability with respect to developing height. e.g. they can always say “well, this doesn’t conflict with the voter passed initiative, therefore it has voter support to go taller.”

Denver does not protect any views from private property, only from public spaces.

The view plane that limits the height in Cherry Creek is from Cranmer Park.

[rds70]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

Cherry Creek is more comparable to Kierlands Commons - Scottsdale Quarter across the street from each other in Scottsdale. Both areas are upscale and better known for their retail and entertainment (restaurants etc) than office space - although both areas have some corporate presence. Both areas include hotels and are medium density.

Cherry Creek in no way is comparable to the fake (sub)urbanism of Kierland Commons. Cherry Creek has developed organically over decades. It was not created as part of a single development. Kierland is also almost all surface parked, with only the fake Main Street being pedestrian-oriented. Scottsdale Quarter is a little better, but was still developed by a single owner, rather than organically.

I would compare Cherry Creek to Tempe in terms of the development pattern.

[TakeFive]

I couldn't help but find some humor in this

Originally Posted by rds70

Cherry Creek in no way is comparable to the fake (sub)urbanism of Kierland Commons. Cherry Creek has developed organically over decades. It was not created as part of a single development. Kierland is also almost all surface parked, with only the fake Main Street being pedestrian-oriented. Scottsdale Quarter is a little better, but was still developed by a single owner, rather than organically.

I would compare Cherry Creek to Tempe in terms of the development pattern.

Rather arbitrary but you make many good, fair points.

The comparison to Tempe makes some sense. It has exploded with dense development. But the organic part of Tempe is from its adjacent 55,000 student ASU campus and nearby housing etc along with the iconic Mill Street. There has been some adjacent 'more midrise' development. Tempe has also become a huge address for corporate location (very different from Cherry Creek) along the Tempe Town Lake but since it's (largely) all come in the last dozen years not sure whether organic or 'fake.' It was basically also a master plan.

Some could argue that the Cherry Creek Shopping Center is more comparable to to Fashion Square in downtown Scottsdale and I wouldn't disagree.

Because of your background were you aware that the 'Commons' was (per Wikipedia) "The development concept, urban design plan and design guidelines were prepared by Design Workshop, Inc. (Denver, CO) and Communication Arts, Inc. (Boulder, CO)." Not sure having a master plan makes it fake but it was an award winning development and is hugely successful. Kierland is also anchored by the Westin Kierland Hotel & Resort (11 stories) with its over 800 rooms and suites.

Dirty little secret

The boundary between Scottsdale and Phoenix is the middle of Scottsdale Road in much of North Scottsdale including this area - they do use a Scottsdale address/zip. It's why both zoning and density have been easier to accomplish and why the nearby areas have been adding impressive residential density. Mill Creek has acquired a huge half block site south of the Commons and adjacent to the Corporate Center in addition to their 7-story Modera project north of the Commons right on Scottsdale Rd.

So it's fair to say that Cherry Creek has developed or maybe redeveloped over a longer period of time I guess. More dense? Nah. Less suburban? Debatable.

True Funny Story

I picked up a 30 something couple at an apartment across the street to the north of The Quarter. Guy says he visited a friend in Denver while back. Impressed with all the (downtown) development etc. The one BIG problem is that Denver doesn't have the infrastructure to handle the traffic. Obvious Changes in Attitudes and Changes In Latitudes.

[Ndj]

Originally Posted by Sierra Obscura

The skyline in Cherry Creek is nice to look at from the ground, and I love all of the streel-level retail/activation, but it's a shame about the height plateau. It has, or had, the potential to be Denver's version of Buckhead.

One could argue that one of the driving factors behind the street level activation is the height limit. In a lot of way the building heights in Cherry Creek are right in the sweet spot of what many urbanists consider to be ideal.

[COtoOC]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

This is fascinating


I remember when OliverMcMillan bought the property in 2016 but I forgot that Invesco was their financial partner. I also forgot that Brookfield Residential Properties later bought OliverMcMillan.

https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/n...Pos=2#cxrecs_s


Not sure how Prism Places and BMC hooked up but PRISM has done mixed-use development in Los Angeles. Whether Invesco is interested in adding additional equity on top of the land, I duno but they're capable


Love the residential development there.


With respect to Crate & Barrel my guess is they go across the road to Cherry Creek West.

An article about the Sears redevelopment came across my FB feed yesterday and the comments were hilarious. People complaining about "paving over every square inch of Denver, too many people, too much traffic, too many high rises, too many condos" lol! Maybe a beet field and unicorn path in the heart of CCN would have pleased them? Why do I read the comments??

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by Ndj

One could argue that one of the driving factors behind the street level activation is the height limit. In a lot of way the building heights in Cherry Creek are right in the sweet spot of what many urbanists consider to be ideal.

Good point about the sweet spot, but also depends how hardcore those urbanists are. You can get NYC/Tokyo/Hong Kong density by building residential and office up and needing street level retail everywhere or you can go the Paris/London route with residential 5-8 story buildings everywhere and lots of great street level retail. Ooooor you can go the DC route and have all 12 story office space everywhere with no retail anywhere and massively sprawling suburbs. Denver seems to be going the Paris/London route (200 years in their past), which is great. Hustling vs bustling, as they say.

[SirLucasTheGreat]

This is an interesting convo. I used to be partial toward high rise development but I'm more interested now in how things feel at the street level. I feel like LoDo and CCN are among the better neighborhoods in Denver because they feel much more vibrant to walk in. The central business district is obviously much denser when it comes to vertical development but it's not a particularly attractive area to be in. This is why I think I prefer some of the development in Denver versus Austin. I think Denver is on a better trajectory for walkability than Austin despite the fact that Austin is building far more high rises than we are.

[Ndj]

Yeah I'd say the streetscape is steadily improving in much of Denver. The same can't be said for some other cities growing at the same rate. It's not perfect here but it could definitely be a lot worse.

[DenverInfill]

Skyscrapers aren't necessary for great urbanism, but density is.