DENVER | Main Development Thread #7

[SirLucasTheGreat]

Between Amacon, Greyhound, and 650 17th, there seem to be pretty high expectations for housing demand in the central business district. I'm not sure how many of these will actually get built but I do wonder how many people really want to live in the CBD vs LoDo, Lower Highlands, Cap Hill, Golden Triangle, or RiNo. I hope to see much more activity around places like 17th and California but it definitely doesn't feel like where the momentum is headed.

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

Between Amacon, Greyhound, and 650 17th, there seem to be pretty high expectations for housing demand in the central business district. I'm not sure how many of these will actually get built but I do wonder how many people really want to live in the CBD vs LoDo, Lower Highlands, Cap Hill, Golden Triangle, or RiNo. I hope to see much more activity around places like 17th and California but it definitely doesn't feel like where the momentum is headed.

I tend to agree with you and am skeptical of 17th/California as a hot residential spot BUT growth will ultimately go where it can. Those areas seem to be Arapahoe Square, RiNo, and Golden Triangle for the moment and likely this entire next cycle until they are built through.

[wong21fr]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

Between Amacon, Greyhound, and 650 17th, there seem to be pretty high expectations for housing demand in the central business district. I'm not sure how many of these will actually get built but I do wonder how many people really want to live in the CBD vs LoDo, Lower Highlands, Cap Hill, Golden Triangle, or RiNo. I hope to see much more activity around places like 17th and California but it definitely doesn't feel like where the momentum is headed.

Amacon and Greyhound are close enough/in Arapahoe Square to ride the trend wave of that area. I would also be surprised if we don’t see several office to residential conversions in the CBD over the next decade. There’s servers Class B towers that are ripe to be repurposed.

[TakeFive]

Originally Posted by rds70

A new concept plan application has been submitted for the Greyhound bus station property:

A 400 foot tall residential tower - 38 stories and 479 units, and a 400 foot office tower - 30 stories. Ground floor retail is also planned.

It's good to see they're not waiting around for the dust to settle. We don't have to look back far for news on this project.

News Release Dated December 29, 2020

https://www.rockefellergroup.com/new...joint-venture/

DENVER – Dec. 29, 2020 – Golub & Company and Rockefeller Group announced today the acquisition of 1055 19th St. in downtown Denver, the 2.5-acre site of the former Greyhound bus terminal...

The venture is planning a large-scale, mixed-use development on one of the last undeveloped full-block sites downtown. The site is bounded by 19th, 20th, Arapahoe and Curtis Streets. It is directly across from the Ritz-Carlton hotel and within walking distance of Union Station, the River North Art District, and Coors Field.

"We really, really do like Denver

...said Michael Newman, President and CEO of Golub & Company. “As this marks our third significant project in Denver, it is clear we are strong believers in the city’s investment potential,” said Josh Patinkin, Senior Vice President, Capital Markets. “Together, the demographics, population shifts, job growth and access to outdoors make it even more attractive long-term than ever before,” he added.

Recall that I've mentioned that Golub likes to partner - spread the risk?

Both Rockefeller Group and Golub & Company have extensive track records pioneering large-scale mixed-use developments. The Greyhound station redevelopment is the first co-development between the two firms and is Rockefeller Group’s first project in Colorado.

Put this in your tickler file

Per Wikipedia,

Rockefeller Group is an American private company based in New York City, primarily involved in real estate operations in the United States and it is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Estate Co.

[TakeFive]

Reading Tea Leaves and Speculating

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

Between Amacon, Greyhound, and 650 17th, there seem to be pretty high expectations for housing demand in the central business district. I'm not sure how many of these will actually get built...

With respect to 650 17th Street

When Harbinger Development secured this site it seemed a bit of a head scratcher to me. While they've done nice projects in the past their more recent past seemed to be Hotel development. Perhaps they thought they found a diamond in the rough where it would be easy to raise capital back in Boston/NYC corridor. Who knows?

We all know how badly the hotel sector has been damaged? It may now be that Harbinger Development just wants (needs) to get their money back. In order to do this they need to find someone who falls in love with the opportunity as much as they did - therefore the splashy promotion. Not sure how easy this will be? It could be many years before any groundbreaking.

With respect to the Greyhound site

Currently the value of the Yen versus the Dollar is more favorable than it has been. That means Mitsubishi Estate Co may look favorably on projects in the U.S. (converting Yen into $'s). It may also be that prominent Japanese companies like Toyota, Honda etc might prefer to use a portion of their U.S. profits to reinvest in U.S. real estate and Mitsubishi Estate Co could 'comfortably' handle that for them.

This most recent transaction may just be the one that gets fast-tracked.

What you may be overlooking

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

there seem to be pretty high expectations for housing demand in the central business district. ...I do wonder how many people really want to live in the CBD vs LoDo, Lower Highlands, Cap Hill, Golden Triangle, or RiNo.

It wouldn't be unusual among companies especially tech companies to want to secure a block of (furnished) apartments nearby for any of various reasons. Maybe they have a constant flow of employees coming to Denver for training; perhaps they have a constant flow of employees between their Denver office and other offices, etc. etc. Perhaps Gen Z lands good job in Denver that 'could be' very temporary. You might be surprised how many 'corporate' apartments there are.

The question isn't how many people don't want to live in the CBD but rather how many people would choose to live downtown. We might all be surprised.

[Robert.hampton]

https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/n...partments.html


Renderings of the project underway at Tony P's/Beast and Bottle at 17th and Clarkson. I had pretty low expectations between the portfolio of the developer and the architect, but this actually looks stellar.

Only bummer is no retail -- especially since it is replacing 4-5 storefonts -- but I can see the hesitance with retail given the amount of time storefront have been sitting vacant along 17th. If they can just get something going on those parking lots across the street at 16th and Washington this will be a nice little stretch of 17th with quality new builds blending in with nice older retail storefronts and great adaptive reuse buildings.

[DenvertoLA]

Originally Posted by rds70

Here is another project rendering. This one is for the 17 story project and the southwest corner of 13th and Cherokee across the street from Eviva. 248 units and 5280 square feet of retail (think they did that on purpose?):


Courtesy Carvell Architects

They put a Tesla truck in the rendering

[SirLucasTheGreat]

Lol didn't even notice that initially

[The Dirt]

That's how you know only cool people can live there.

[Robert.hampton]

the panelling def has a tesla truck vibe to it.

[The Dirt]

Look at it about to mow down that cyclist. Classic Denver!

[SirLucasTheGreat]

Honestly though, this might be one of my more anticipated projects because of how much I hate that parking lot. The lot on that corner is absolutely gargantuan and serves as a gaping hole in what is quickly becoming one of the most urban Denver neighborhoods. I go by it all the time and it honestly might be my most hated parking lot with possible exception of the north corner of 18th and Market. I might have to open a bottle if/when that project breaks ground.

[TakeFive]

What nobody is talking about that everybody will be talking about

http://www.slatedenver.com/

The Slate’s adjacent restaurant and retail block Emily’s Alley will be Denver’s most anticipated new shopping, dining, and gathering destination. A beacon for guests and local residents alike, Emily’s Alley will always put you just where you want to be.

Logo image courtesy Stonebridge COS/The Slate Hotel

Stonebridge Companies to Open The Slate Hotel This Fall
June 16, 2021 - Mile High CRE


Courtesy Stonebridge Co/The Slate Hotel via Mile High CRE

Denver-based Stonebridge Companies has announced that The Slate Hotel, at the site of the historic original Emily Griffith Opportunity School, will begin welcoming guests this fall. Stonebridge Companies is the property owner and developer and will operate the hotel under the Tapestry Collection by Hilton brand.

Stonebridge purchased the former Emily Griffith Opportunity School property from Denver Public Schools in May 2017 and broke ground on the redevelopment in April 2019 after Denver City Council approved the property’s redevelopment plan in October 2018.

Additional info via the DBJ

When it opens, the four-story, 135,000-square-foot property will offer 251 rooms, 4,370 square feet of meeting and event space and a signature bar and restaurant. The Slate, which will be a part of the Tapestry Collection by Hilton, also will include 37,500 square feet of retail and office area, though Stonebridge officials have not said yet what will occupy that space.

Stonebridge founder and CEO Navin Dimond said he believes the hotel will help Visit Denver in attracting larger events to the convention center because of the added capacity adjacent to the facility.

This will quickly become one of my favorite projects due to my love of historic preservation - especially well deserved and qualified preservation. In this instance preservation should bring added value and appeal to the CCC.

[TakeFive]

Source

That's what I'm talking about

Certainly I've ranted and raved about how valuable (of an export) the convention and tourism business is to downtown, the City and the State.

Corporate retreats are now a must
Jun 16, 2021 - Economy & Business by Bryan Walsh - Axios


Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Why it matters: The pandemic showed that most white-collar employees can get their work done outside of an office, but a company's culture will wither without occasional face-to-face time. With more firms adopting remote or hybrid work practices, company-wide retreats are going from boondoggles to a necessity.

• "Retreats have often been perceived as junkets that just let people blow off steam and have fun," says Edward Sullivan, CEO of the executive coaching company Velocity Group.
• But in the age of hybrid work, "retreats have gone from 'nice to have' to 'must have,'" he adds. "They're critical to the culture-building at a company because it's the time when we come together and create that connective issue as a team."

The bottom line: While we can't guarantee they'll be fun — and let's be honest, they probably shouldn't be too fun — corporate retreats are a necessity for the foreseeable future.

And Ken gave the heads up about the Crane Family starting to arrive for the CCC expansion and renovations.

[TakeFive]

Even I wouldn't sneeze at One Million Seven Hundred Thousand Square Feet of new space downtown

James Rodriguez/Denver Business Journal provides additional details on the Greyhound Block.
Jun 17, 2021

The parcel offers some of the most generous zoning in the city, allowing potential development to stretch up to 400 feet. Golub and Rockefeller appear intent on maximizing that zoning, with both proposed towers reaching that height.

The residential tower, as currently proposed, would include a mix of studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units for a total of 479 units. The neighboring tower would include 731,803 square feet of office space. Both buildings would include ground-floor retail and lobby space.

The two structures would total more than 1.7 million square feet, including roughly 465,000 square feet of garage space across three below-ground levels.

Who are some of the key players on this project?

Golub and Rockefeller appear to have enlisted architecture firm Pickard Chilton to design the office tower and Solomon Cordwell Buenz for the residential tower, according to the concept plan. Engine8 is listed as the local architect, and Kimley-Horn is providing civil engineering services.

"Our general philosophy is we want irreplaceable properties and locations, and to build irreplaceable assets," Smith said. "So when you get a chance to get a site that's this well-located, that allows for this much development potential and this much place creation, I think you've got to hop on it no matter what the current market conditions are today."

While I'm sure the entitlement process for a project of this size will take some time you have to be impressed by how far they come in less than six months.

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

Reading Tea Leaves and Speculating


With respect to 650 17th Street

When Harbinger Development secured this site it seemed a bit of a head scratcher to me. While they've done nice projects in the past their more recent past seemed to be Hotel development. Perhaps they thought they found a diamond in the rough where it would be easy to raise capital back in Boston/NYC corridor. Who knows?

You ask, I tell you. They had a 1031 placement requirement. Smart people will do just about anything to not pay taxes...

[laniroj]

Originally Posted by TakeFive

...Uptown East is an okay-looking building... and how many apartments come with their own Signature Billboard?

Apparently, more than one multifamily development...

https://www.google.com/maps/@39.6778...7i16384!8i8192

[BG918]

There is a tower crane up at 3707 Walnut and Hensel Phelps is the GC. What is this project -office or multi-family?

[SirLucasTheGreat]

Originally Posted by BG918

There is a tower crane up at 3707 Walnut and Hensel Phelps is the GC. What is this project -office or multi-family?

I believe you are referring to FoundryLine

[BG918]

Originally Posted by SirLucasTheGreat

I believe you are referring to FoundryLine

You are correct I didn’t realize this was the same as 3707 Walnut. Here is a rendering, looks like 16 stories. That is the 38th St Underpass on the left (with the WTC next to it, who knows what actually will get built there) and 37th St on the right with the Hub office building. Good location for apartments literally across the street from the train station.



https://crainearch.com/projects/the-foundry/