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#7: Downtown Denver Historic District

Posted by Ken on January 22, 2010

If pressed to name an historic district in Downtown Denver, I’d estimate that 98% of Denverites would cite Lower Downtown. In the 22 years since it was designated as an official Denver Historic District, LoDo has transcended from a seedy skid row of boarded-up buildings into one of the largest preserved Victorian-era commercial districts and coolest mixed-use neighborhoods in the country. Its fame is well-deserved. But less well known yet just as important is Downtown’s other historic district, the Downtown Denver Historic District, #7 in our countdown of Denver’s Top 10 Urbanism Achievements of the Aughts.

Unlike the Lower Downtown Historic District, which has relatively simple and straightforward boundaries, the Downtown Denver Historic District doesn’t really have any boundaries at all. The DDHD, designated by the city in 2000, consists of 43 buildings located on 18 different blocks throughout the Central Business District. About half of the DDHD’s buildings are also designated Denver Historic Landmark Structures, but the creation of the DDHD provides additional protection and control to ensure that these buildings will be around for a long, long time.

It is difficult to overemphasize the importance of the buildings in the DDHD to the integrity of Downtown Denver and to the soul of our city. Eleven of the buildings front the 16th Street Mall, and eleven more front 17th Street. These buildings are the core of Downtown. Their distinguished architecture, their impressive yet approachable scale, the craftsmanship and pride that went into them, gave credibility to a fledgling city back then, and give us today an understanding of our heritage as a city. Can you imagine Denver without the D&F Tower, the Brown Palace Hotel, or the Equitable Building? The fact that these buildings are scattered across a relative large area, from Tremont to Lawrence and 14th to 18th, means that you’re never more than a block or two from a building that serves as an historic anchor amid a sea of modernism and surface parking lots.

We lost a lot of great buildings during the second half of the 20th century, but the formation of the Downtown Denver Historic District in 2000 was a partial redemption and an important achievement in Denver’s evolving urbanism.

Filed under Architecture, Central Downtown, Historic Preservation, Upper Downtown.
3 Comments

#9: Convention Center Expansion and Hotel

Posted by Ken on January 17, 2010

Next in line at #9 in our countdown of “Denver’s Top 10 Urbanism Achievements of the Aughts” is the expansion of the Colorado Convention Center and the construction of the Hyatt Denver Convention Center Hotel next door.

First, a quick history of Denver’s convention centers. The city’s first convention center was the Denver Auditorium at 14th between Curtis and Champa, which opened just in time to host the 1908 Democratic National Convention. That handsome facility today has been incorporated into the Denver Performing Arts Complex and is the home of the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. Eventually, the Auditorium became insufficient for a city Denver’s size, so in 1964 Denver voters approved a bond issue to build a new convention center. Currigan Hall was completed in 1969 at a cost of $13 million. It covered two full city blocks between Champa and Stout and from 14th to 12th Streets and was connected to the Auditorium with a skybridge. Currigan Hall featured a 100,000 sf exhibit hall on the ground floor, 40,000 sf of exhibit space in the basement, and another 30,000 sf of meeting space in the mezzanine.

By the 1980s, Denver again desired a bigger and better convention center. Finally, in June 1990, Phase 1 of the Colorado Convention Center opened to great fanfare. The new $126 million convention center was 940,000 square feet in total size and featured a 300,000 sf main exhibit hall, 65,000 sf of meeting rooms, and a 35,000 sf ballroom. Phase 1 covered the blocks between Welton and Stout and from 14th Street past 12th Street to almost Speer Boulevard.

As soon as the new Colorado Convention Center opened, city leaders began discussing the need for a convention headquarters hotel, as well as the future Phase 2 expansion of the new center. Planning for the Phase 2 expansion occurred throughout the late 1990s, and in November 1999, Denver voters approved a $310 million bond issue to pay for the center’s expansion. Construction began in January 2001 and opened in December 2004. The expansion added another 300,000 square feet to the main exhibit hall, another 35,000 sf of meeting rooms, an additional 50,000 sf ballroom, a 5,000-seat auditorium, and a 1,000-space parking garage, taking the entire facility up to 2.4 million sf in total size. To accommodate the expansion, Currigan Hall, as well as TerraCenter, an office tower at Speer and Stout, were demolished, and Stout Street and the Light Rail tracks were rerouted to curve through the facility. Here’s an animation I’ve created using GoogleEarth archive images, starting with a black and white 1999 image before construction began, and ending with a 2006 image after the hotel was completed:

2010-01-17_ccc_animation2

Meanwhile, several convention center hotel proposals were advanced by the private sector, but none could get off the ground. Finally, with expansion of the convention center underway, the Webb Administration, fed up with the lack of progress on the hotel project, decided that the city should build the hotel itself. Construction on the new Hyatt Denver Convention Center hotel began in June 2003 and opened in December 2005, one year after the expanded convention center opened. The new hotel covers the entire block bounded by 14th, 15th, Welton, and California, and includes 1,100 rooms in a 37-story tower.

The combination of the expanded convention center and the Hyatt hotel has allowed Denver to stay competitive in the convention-hosting business by keeping the city in the top tier of convention cities and able to host all but the biggest conventions. Together, the Colorado Convention Center and Hyatt Denver Convention Center Hotel projects have spurred substantial private-sector investment in the area and, along with the investments made next door at the Performing Arts Complex, have greatly contributed to the overall revitalization of Downtown Denver.

Filed under Central Downtown, Government & Civic, Hospitality, Urbanism.
6 Comments

Historic 17th Street Bank to Become Hotel

Posted by Ken on December 24, 2009

You may have read about this a few days ago in Margaret Jackson’s article in the Denver Post, but Stonebridge Companies, a major Denver-based hospitality management and development firm, has recently purchased the former Colorado National Bank building at 17th and Champa in Downtown Denver.

The historic bank building, built in 1915, is a contributing structure to the Downtown Denver Historic District. Its neoclassical design was intended to convey a sense of respectability and security that one expects from a bank. In fact, when it opened, the bank’s boast was “the bank that looks like a bank”. The original 1915 structure included only the first three floors.  In 1926, an addition matching the original design was added along Champa Street, and then in 1964, an additional three floors were added featuring a design with a modern interpretation of the neoclassical base. On the left is a DenverInfill photo of the building from 2006 and on the right a Bing maps bird’s eye photo (click to embiggen):

Colorado National Bank at 17th & Champa 2009-12-24_cnb_birdseye

For more on the building’s history, please read Shawn’s post over at the Denver History Tours blog.  Shawn also has a follow-up post about the building’s beautiful murals inside. Also check out the building’s page at the Historic Denver website.

The building has sat vacant since 2007, and the building’s Champa Street side near the bus stop is particularly shabby looking.  Anyway, the good news is that Stonebridge is planning on converting the building into a boutique hotel and adding a few floors in the process.  JG Johnson Architects has been given the task of adding a contemporary addition above the 1960s addition which sits above the 1915 original base. That will be an interesting architectural challenge. I have no problem philosophically, however, with adding yet another addition to this building. Buildings, even historic buildings, need to evolve and flex over time to stay relevant and contributing to the vibrancy of the city.

Hopefully this proposal will stay on track and, in a few years, we’ll have a new hotel operating along 17th Street in a repurposed and scrubbed-up and slightly taller historic building that will thrive well into the new century.

Filed under Adaptive Reuse, Architecture, Central Downtown, Historic Preservation, Hospitality.
8 Comments

Convention Center Embassy Suites Update

Posted by Ken on December 3, 2009

Construction of the 17-story Embassy Suites project at 14th and Stout in Downtown Denver is progressing slowly but steadily. In case you haven’t been past there recently, here are two photos I took a few weekends ago:


The photo on the right shows how the building is now up to the point where it splits into two sections with the gap in the middle for the glass atrium. Here’s a rendering showing the bottom few floors:

The developer has never bothered to share with the public a rendering of the full tower’s final design. I’ve sent them several requests but they have never responded. They also haven’t even bothered to post a project sign with a rendering on it at the site. Lame. Anyway, in that cool 14th Street video I posted about a month ago, if you look at it closely around the 1:25 minute mark you’ll see a 3D image of the completed Embassy Suites. A quick screen capture later, and here you go (click to double the size):

Let’s assume this is the final design.

The Embassy Suites website states only that the hotel will open in 2010. I’m guessing the 120-room hotel will open for business in September. What do you think?

Filed under Central Downtown, Hospitality, Infill.
4 Comments

Top of the Clocktower

Posted by Ken on November 7, 2009

The other day I had the opportunity to be the guest speaker at the monthly meeting of the Denver Independent Brokers group. Not only are they a noteworthy association of real estate professionals focused on the Downtown area, but they also have exceptional taste in selecting cool venues for their meetings, such as, say, the top of the D&F Tower.

The historic Daniels & Fisher tower is perhaps Denver’s most iconic historic structure, one that I’m sure you’ve all admired numerous times from vantage points throughout downtown:


Gaining access to the top of the 325-foot tall D&F Tower has not been an easy thing to do for many years. But now, thanks to Holly Kylberg, the top of the historic tower has been converted into a fabulous space for private events. The last stop on the elevator is the 17th floor, and from there on up to the 22nd floor, an internal stairwell connects six unique levels that feature the tower’s clock, the spiral staircase to the bell, and two levels with outdoor observation decks. First, the view:


Sweet, huh? Next, the interior is awesome. Check this out:


It was a thrill to get to the top of the D&F tower and hang out with the DIB folks. My thanks to John Robinson for the invitation.

So, the next time you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind Downtown space for a small private event, you should definitely consider the Clocktower.

Filed under Architecture, Central Downtown.
8 Comments

14th Street Makeover

Posted by Ken on November 4, 2009

Here’s a press release from the Downtown Denver Partnership with good news!

~~~~~

Downtown Denver’s 14th Street will soon emerge has a vibrant pedestrian-oriented thoroughfare, thanks to the successful result of the November 3rd election in which private property owners along the street voted to contribute $4 million to the overall $14 million cost of the streetscaping project through the formation of a general improvement district.

Through this public-private initiative, sidewalks will be expanded, encouraging outdoor seating and ground floor shopping and dining uses that will bolster the experience one has when walking down the street. Key elements include the addition of about 200 trees, as well as new flower planters, better “wayfinding” signage, crosswalk bulb-outs, improved pedestrian lighting, decorative street corner monuments, bike racks and enhanced maintenance. A dedicated bicycle lane will be added in the street and on-street parking will be retained.

14th Street is becoming known as the “Ambassador Street” due to the diversity of visitor-oriented uses found along this corridor, including the Colorado Convention Center, the Denver Performing Arts Complex, the Hyatt Regency at Colorado Convention Center, and four other new or recently-constructed hotels. Altogether, $1.5 billion in public and private investments have been made along the corridor since 2002. The new streetscaping project will build on these investments to strengthen this new identity. The district covers the entire the 12 block length between Market Street and Colfax Avenue and extends approximately one-half block on either side of 14th Street.

“With the completion of this ambitious plan, 14th Street will serve as an excellent complement to the 16th Street Mall,” said Tami Door, President & CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership. “Consistent with the vision of the 2007 Downtown Area Plan, 14th Street will truly be a magnet for pedestrians, which will benefit residents, business owners and the overall community.”

The project will cost roughly $14 million, with property owners contributing $4 million, and $10 million coming out of the Better Denver Bond Program, which was created in 2007.

“14th Street will see improvements on every level, from bike lanes to traffic signals, to sidewalk improvements and other placemaking installations for a truly multi-modal corridor,” said Deputy Mayor and Manager of Public Works, Bill Vidal. “The project is unique in that in addition to the Better Denver Bond funds, we have the property owners contributing to the improvements and we are thrilled to see this public private partnership moving forward.”

Meeting and consulting with property owners in the District was a four year process, assumed by the City, the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District and the Downtown Denver Partnership. A consultant team including Parsons Brinkerhoff, CRL & Associates and studioINSITE assisted with design and consensus building services. From February 2009 to June 2009, eight two hour workshops were held with interested property owners, other stakeholders, City representatives and representatives from the Downtown Denver Partnership.

“We are glad we could contribute to a greater ’sense of place’ along 14th Street,” said Josh Fine of Focus Property Group. “As property owners in the area, we recognized the opportunity we had not only to improve the value of what we own, but the type of experience people have when they’re here.”

Construction is slated to begin in the summer of 2010 with the goal of completion in the fall of 2011.

~~~~~

Here is a 3D animation video of the project, modeled and produced by Parsons Brinkerhoff’s Project Visualization Group in Denver. Animation team: Brian Peterson (Viz lead), Eric Martens, Leslie Hodgdon (PM), Ryan Sander, Barry Bankhead, Larissa Holderness, and Sara Wedul (AE Intro).

Filed under Central Downtown, Plans & Policies, Streets, Upper Downtown, Urban Design.
27 Comments

Four Seasons Mast

Posted by Ken on September 18, 2009

I’m out of town but, thanks to BrieAnn and Kyle, here are a couple of photos of the new mast atop the Four Seasons:

2009-09-18_fs1 2009-09-18_fs2

2009-09-18_fs3

I’m looking forward to seeing it in person soon!

Filed under Central Downtown, Hospitality, Infill, Residential.
40 Comments

1800 Larimer Tour

Posted by Ken on August 13, 2009

A couple of days ago I had a chance to tour 1800 Larimer, the 22-story office tower under construction on Block 066. 1800 Larimer will be the new home to Xcel Energy. The project is being developed by Westfield Development, with RNL the architect and Mortenson the general contractor. Many thanks to the folks from RNL and Mortenson who gave us a great tour.

So, without further ado, how about some photos? Here’s the building we’re talking about:

The highest up we could go was to floor 19, but the view was awesome:

The extruded blue squares on the outside of the building are certainly the project’s most distinctive feature. From the inside, here’s the difference in looking through the two colors, with the regular glass on the left and the dark blue glass on the right:

And, finally, what will become the building’s lobby:

1800 Larimer will be Denver’s first LEED Platinum building and will officially top off in a few days.

Filed under Central Downtown, Infill, Office.
22 Comments

Four Seasons Topping Off

Posted by Ken on August 6, 2009

A few weeks ago I speculated as to when the Four Seasons would get topped off with its 75-foot tall mast. I guessed September 5. I just learned that the mast will be installed in a big ceremony on Wednesday, August 19. Excellent!

EDIT – Wednesday, August 19:

I’ve learned that there was a delay in the fabrication of the mast so the topping-off will now occur in mid-September instead.

Filed under Architecture, Central Downtown.
18 Comments

Four Seasons Nears Final Floor

Posted by Ken on June 24, 2009

Downtown Denver’s Four Seasons, in this photo from last weekend, was up to floor 44. It looks like today they are pouring the concrete for floor 45, the topmost floor. But don’t count that as a topping off yet! After floor 45 is finished, the Four Seasons has 117 more feet of building to go. Floor 45 sits approximately 524 feet above the street. On top of that is a crown of 42 feet and then a 75-foot spire, for a total height of approximately 641 feet above the ground, making it Denver’s fourth tallest building. (Denver’s third tallest, the Wells Fargo “cash register” building, tops off at 698 feet above grade.)

So what’s your prediction for the date the spire will be hoisted into place, officially topping the building off? My guess is September 5, my birthday.

Filed under Central Downtown, Hospitality, Infill, Residential.
31 Comments
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