Every ten years, number-crunching enthusiasts and demographic data diehards anticipate the release of the new Census results. For Colorado, that special time has finally arrived! Over at DenverUrbanism, we’re going to dive in and take a look at how our city, region, and state has changed over the past 10 years.
Archive of posts filed under the Urbanism category.
DenverInfill… A 2010 Retrospective
This is the sixth DenverInfill Retrospective, our annual review of central Denver’s urban development highlights. This year it’s a little different than in the past, as 2010 represents the first full year that we’ve had a broader focus: urbanism—i.e. all the stuff that makes for great cities. At the end of 2009, we retired the original DenverInfill website and we transitioned the DenverInfill blog from a Blogger to a WordPress format, added new contributors, and expanded its focus from just infill developments to urbanism in general.
But that turned out to be just Phase 1 of the DenverInfill makeover. About two months ago, we launched DenverUrbanism to carry the urbanism torch forward and let the DenverInfill blog focus on its original mission. So far, DenverUrbanism has been going great! Its site traffic is up to almost half of DenverInfill’s regular traffic levels, which is pretty darn good for just two months on the job. DenverUrbanism’s foundation rests on an ever-expanding collaboration of local urbanists. With 2011 ahead of us, DenverUrbanism is only going to grow and get better. Then just a few days ago, we updated the DenverInfill.com website homepage to serve as a portal to all of the DenverInfill and DenverUrbanism resources, while still preserving the original website intact.
So, from both an infill and urbanism perspective, how was 2010 for urban Denver? To answer that question, I’m reminded of the first few lines from Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us…”
The Best of Times:
The half-billion dollar Union Station project is chugging along with steady efficiency. The long-term impact and significance of this project cannot be overemphasized. Some cities long for the return of their historic train stations, for they lost them to the wrecking ball decades ago. Some cities retain their historic train stations in a repurposed form, but they long for the return of their station’s original function: a regional transit hub. In Denver, we are fortunate, for we will have both: our historic train station, restored and revitalized, serving as the bustling transit hub for the region. Billions of dollars of private sector investment waits to unfold near the Union Station, while new grand public spaces around the station are being designed to welcome residents and visitors for generations. And for the play-by-play commentary on this four-year project there is really only one source you can count on: Rick, here at the DenverInfill blog. Now up to Update #48 and counting, Rick has been providing regular progress reports that satisfy the construction junkie in all of us. In 2010 we also had a chance to experience the awesome Union Station movie produced by Havey Productions, while Union Station Advocates continued to push for excellence in the project’s urban design and public space components.
The FasTracks program (expertly covered here at DenverInfill by Ryan) also made significant progress during 2010. A $300 million federal government loan for Union Station and a $1 billion-plus federal funding agreement for the Eagle P3 corridors top the list, along with major construction progress on the West Corridor light rail line. Preliminary construction is underway on the East Corridor line to DIA and the grand Calatrava-designed plans for DIA’s South Terminal Redevelopment were also revealed this past year. (By the way, our DIA post shattered the all-time DenverInfill blog record with 85 comments.)
At the other end of Downtown, there are construction cranes a-plenty as three projects, the state’s Ralph Carr Judicial Complex and History Colorado Center developments and the Clyfford Still Museum, add another half-billion dollars of investment to Downtown Denver. Along with the major renovations of the McNichols Building in Civic Center Park for Denver’s hosting the Biennial of the Americas, Better Denver Bond-funded restorations of Civic Center Park’s major historic architectural and landscape elements, and the completion and grand opening of the Denver Justice Center, the Civic Center end of Downtown wasn’t going to let Union Station get away with all the action.
We also saw in 2010 the completion and opening of several major developments, including the Four Seasons Hotel & Residences and 1800 Larimer that redefined the Denver skyline, the 18th Street Pedestrian Bridge and the Railyard Dogs park in the CPV, the new Auraria Science Building, Solera, the Embassy Suites next to the convention center, several new buildings in the Denver Housing Authority’s Park Avenue project, new medical facilities in Uptown, and many smaller projects scattered throughout the Downtown area.
Downtown wasn’t without its groundbreakings in 2010 either. In addition to the Union Station and Civic Center projects mentioned above, getting underway this past year was 1099 Osage, the final phase of Highland Crossing, and the Metro State Student Success Building. There’s also the new DaVita Headquarters next to the Millennium Bridge which got under construction right at the end of 2010 with not really a ground-breaking per se, considering the tower will be built on top of an existing underground parking garage, but more of a crane-raising. There’s also the big 14th Street Reconstruction project, and the Larimer streetscape project, that moved forward in 2010.
New projects announced in 2010 that should break ground in 2011 include 2020 Lawrence, the IMA Financial HQ next to Union Station, 17th Avenue Pavilion, the Denver Crime Lab at 14th Avenue & Cherokee (a Better Denver Bond project), and the Metro State Hospitality Learning Center.
Finally, one of the biggest pro-urbanism policy accomplishments, in not only 2010 but in many years, was the approval of the new form- and context-based Denver Zoning Code. Whether you love it or not, the reality is that the new Denver Zoning Code, passed by City Council in June 2010, fundamentally alters the way we guide land development in Denver. Since the 1950s, Denver has regulated development through a zoning code that was based on an “old urbanism sucks!” and “automobiles rule!” philosophy. Now, our new zoning code is based on a philosophy rooted in a respect for the city’s existing urban forms and patterns while encouraging new development and higher densities near transit and in redeveloping areas. I give major kudos to Denver Community Planning & Development for the huge 5-year effort to redo the zoning code and zoning map for the entire city. While certainly not perfect in every detail, the zoning code overhaul finally aligns our land use and transportation plans with our implementation and regulatory framework. This will serve Denver very well for the next several decades.
Finally, no overview of the best of 2010 would be complete without a mention of Denver B-Cycle. With about 50 stations and more coming next year, Denver B-Cycle, the first major bicycle-sharing program in the country, added a new urban vibe to the city in 2010 and may represent the tipping point in a cultural shift towards alternative transportation. Already more bicycle lanes were added to Downtown Denver’s streets in 2010 than probably in all previous years combined. In 2030, when hundreds of miles of bike lanes and cycle tracks criss-cross the city, we may look back and say “It all began in 2010.”
The Worst of Times:
Well, what can I say that everyone doesn’t already know: the economy tanked, the boom is over, and we’re in a period of “transition” (that’s a nice way of saying there’s not going to be a lot of private-sector real estate development in the next few years). But from a city-building perspective, things could be worse. Private sector development is only one aspect of city-building. It is during these low points in the real estate cycle that we plan for the future, make public infrastructure investments, improve our development policies, and generally get ready for the next boom. That is exactly what we are doing in Denver.
Looking Ahead:
Despite the gloomy economy, it is easy to remain bullish on Denver. Almost all cultural and demographic trends point to a bright future for our country’s urban centers, and particularly for a place like Denver which already has a strong physical and economic foundation and an optimistic and progressive citizenry that believes in investing in its city. It may be many years before the pace of infill development approaches that of this past decade, but our journey towards excellence in urbanism for the Mile High City continues in 2011.
Introducing… DenverUrbanism!
There’s a new blog in town! DenverUrbanism is the next phase in our campaign to help push Denver to new heights as a great urban center.
DenverInfill will go back to focusing primarily on infill projects and sustainable development in Denver’s urban core (including Rick’s exceptional Union Station updates). Meanwhile, DenverUrbanism will push a decidedly pro-urban agenda for Denver and feature content from a broad coalition of urbanists.
DenverInfill = urban infill projects. DenverUrbanism = progressive urban agenda.
Say hello to DenverUrbanism!
CBD Sprawl
Before I get to the point of this post, let me be clear that I totally and enthusiastically support all the development that has occurred in and around the Central Platte Valley. From the Riverfront Park and Union Station districts to the powerhouse that is Lower Downtown, the scale and quality of development that has occurred over the past decade to the northwest of Denver’s Central Business District has been nothing short of phenomenal.
However, having said that, I am concerned that the attractiveness of these areas and the intensity with which they are drawing new development is resulting in what I call CBD Sprawl. A Central Business District is generally defined as the place where primarily office and commercial uses concentrate, supplemented by residential, hotel, and other uses, at a scale unmatched in the city. The definition of sprawl is generally considered to include, among other things, new development occurring in outer areas while good sites are still available in inner areas.
Denver has, to our good fortune, a strong and sizable CBD, commonly defined as being bounded by Speer, Colfax, Sherman, 20th Street, and Larimer. I argue that the development taking place in Lower Downtown and Union Station represents the expansion of the CBD into these areas. The fact that Gates, IMA Financial, DaVita, Van Gilder, and other firms have chosen LoDo/Union Station for their corporate headquarters and that LoDo/Union Station is the new hotspot for traditional 17th Street-type firms in general, is evidence of this trend, and given the public investments being made in these areas, that trend is likely to continue and accelerate. In fact, the appeal of the Union Station district is so strong that it may capture an overwhelming percentage of whatever commercial development Downtown Denver is likely to see for the next decade or more. Then there is Arapahoe Square, the 30-square-block annex to Downtown that is so ripe for redevelopment, it hurts. Planning is underway for Arapahoe Square that will position it to be the next Central Platte Valley.
Meanwhile, our existing Central Business District has no shortage of development opportunities. Because of the parkinglotification of Downtown that occurred during the last half of the 20th Century, by my count, there are at least 40 sites within Denver’s CBD (as defined above) that are vacant and suitable for high-rise development. Depending on the footprint of a project, that number could be closer to 60. The checkerboard distribution of parking lots in Downtown Denver results in a Central Business District that is remarkably vibrant and successful notwithstanding, but lacking a single cluster of blocks where there is an uninterrupted and cohesive fabric of development. With the exception of the half-block-long Cheyenne Place, there is not a single named or numbered street in Downtown Denver that doesn’t have at least one vacant lot fronting it.
It’s not that our CBD didn’t see a decent share of development activity during the recent boom. Spire, Four Seasons, 1800 Larimer, Solera, Embassy Suites… they all greatly added to the cohesiveness of Downtown. There were many others, like 1401 Lawrence, 999 17th Street, 1501 Tremont, Makovsky’s Block 162, Two Tabor Center, and the DAC Hotel & Residences, that fell victim to the economy or, for whatever reason, failed to materialize. But my concern is for the dozens of other parcels in our Central Business District that have not been proposed for development in decades. Just to name a few:
- The corner of 17th and Welton (Block 174), where the old Kenmark Hotel once stood, that has been sitting vacant since the mid-1990s. Owned by Gary Cook, infamous for his refusal to do anything with his properties, ever, the weedy gravel lot sits smack-dab in the middle of the “Wall Street of the Rockies”.
- Block 176 (the “Shelby’s block”) located one block from a light rail station. Nothing.
- 16th and Lincoln (Block 029-B) located one block north of the state capitol, owned by the Dikeou family (the other infamous family known for their unwillingness to do anything with their properties). Zilch.
- The depressing Block 207, owned by a half dozen different property owners, across the street from the Webb Building. Nada.
- Block 159, also a block from the 20th & Welton light rail station. TOD anyone?
I could go on as there are dozens more to choose from, but I won’t. My point is… we need to have a strategic plan for where private sector development occurs in Downtown. I’m not saying we need to delay the development of areas like Union Station and Arapahoe Square until the CBD is complete, or to usurp the entire free market system but, on our current trajectory, 30 years from now we will end up with a Central Business District twice the area of the one we have today, but it will still be a fragmented checkerboard of buildings and parking lots. We need to target key parcels in our historic CBD and do whatever we need to do to get them developed so that the positive impact of development is spread strategically across the entire CBD to maximize the overall vitality and success of Downtown. It just doesn’t make sense for parcels at prime locations in our historic CBD to sit fallow for decades and hinder the fulfillment of Downtown’s promise while billions of dollars are spent to create what are essentially new extensions to the CBD. With some calculated thinking and political fortitude, we can simultaneously complete the infill of our historic CBD to allow it to finally achieve the greatness to which it is so close, while still giving new life to places like Arapahoe Square.
To accomplish this effort, to purposefully direct where some of the private sector development goes in Downtown Denver, strong leadership will be necessary. While that leadership will certainly come from a variety of sources, at the top of that leadership chain must be the mayor of Denver. That is one of the characteristics I’m looking for in our next mayor: to express the political will to do what it takes to capitalize on the huge investments made in Downtown Denver and to realize the great opportunity that our Downtown holds by ensuring that infill development occurs where we need it. This is not the only initiative our next mayor will need to take to move Downtown Denver up a notch on the urbanity scale, but it is an important one.
Union Station Walking Tour This Saturday
I’ll be leading another one-hour walking tour of the Union Station project site this Saturday, November 6, from 10:00 to 11:00 AM. Meet in front of the historic station at 17th and Wynkoop at about 9:50 AM. Suggested donation is $10 (cash only please) and all proceeds go to the non-profit Union Station Advocates. Tours are offered the first, third, and (when applicable) fifth Saturdays of each month.
We had a great turnout last time, and this Saturday the weather looks like it will be perfect for a morning walk. See you Saturday!
Explore the West Corridor with ULI
Once a quarter, Urban Land Institute (ULI) Colorado hosts an Explorer series event that includes both a panel discussion and tour relating to an urban development topic, project, or site. (I’m co-chair of the committee that organizes these events). This Thursday, September 2, our Explorer event is “A West Corridor Story” where we will focus on RTD’s West Corridor light rail line currently under construction.
The panel (held at the Denver Athletic Club downtown) will focus on the corridor and the land use plans, projects, and impacts associated with the new transit line. The tour will then trace the route of the West Corridor line, with a stop and tour of the new St. Anthony’s hospital next to the Federal Center station in Lakewood. The tour will continue on to Golden, where we’ll see many of the great infill projects in Downtown Golden, ending with a reception on a terrace along the banks of Clear Creek.
For more details about the event and to register, please go to this page at the ULI-Colorado website. Tickets are going fast and there are only a few seats left for the tour portion.
By the way, you’ve probably seen all the West Corridor construction activity along Sixth Avenue, with the dramatic bridge over the highway by the Federal Center and the flyover at Indiana Street. But now the construction is closing in on Downtown Denver. Here’s a photo I took yesterday of a new light rail bridge just south of Colfax across from the Auraria West Campus station:
The West Corridor light rail line will open in 2013.
