A few days ago I posted that the “12th and Elati” infill project in Downtown Denver’s Golden Triangle had broken ground. Since then, not only have I snapped a photo of the construction site but, thanks to someone who is associated with the project, I now have a sketch of the 10-story building’s front elevation to show you. A color perspective rendering may be available in the future, but this will do for now.
Comments to this post from the previous Blogger version of the DenverInfill Blog:
Comments:
There seems to be much less pomp and circumstance from the developers of “affordable” apartments – in this case they start construction without even having released a rendering, which I’ve never noticed happening for luxury or even mid-priced apartments or condos.
The economic reasons for this negligence are pretty obvious – there’s no rush to make sure that you have prospective buyers to fill up your units when young people in their early 20s and others at this income level aren’t likely to plan where they’ll live in advance. Plus, I imagine the pool of people at this income level is pretty large so you are more or less assured demand is there. But it sucks if you’re a building enthusiast and want to see and comment on what’s going up before it happens.
Permalink Posted by Matt Pizzuti : 1/20/2007 12:10:00 PM
I’m so glad that Ken constructed this site since I’m such a junkie for specifically ‘urban’ architecture. Even though the function of this building is rental, it will fit into the neighborhood nicely with it’s basic urban mass structure, which appears to be mostly brick and probably stucco? I wouldn’t mind if 50% of the open lots in the GT were filled with similar buildings. I’m just glad that another vacant lot is being filled with…..people!!, doesn’t matter how much $ a square foot can suck up. My fantasy is that as landlocked Denver progresses along naturally with infill development there will be more people on the sidewalks, which makes for great people watching, a big part of what great cities are all about. Then too maybe some of these poor little wonderful restaurants can stay in business for more than a year. Thanks
Permalink Posted by Anonymous : 1/22/2007 07:54:00 PM
^ THANK YOU for pointing out a basic urban tenant that most people, especially in the city departments, do NOT seem to understand. the only way to have affordability and thriving / walkable retail is to have low parking requirements and high density – after all, it’s a city not a suburb.
until then – too many people will drive for a gallon of milk and too many local stores will have to close after a year.
Permalink Posted by Anonymous : 1/23/2007 10:28:00 AM
how embarrassing…that should have read “tenet”
Permalink Posted by Anonymous : 1/23/2007 02:27:00 PM
I think it’s a chicken and egg scenario. Developers have to be confident that people want to live in the city before they make the decision to invest. I think that is becoming more accepted. Case in point; the fact that new development is able to sell quickly should demonstrate that ‘if you build it – they will come’. See Glass House for example A. Ideally, most people would prefer to live economically in a vibrant city, where they can enjoy the urban ammenities and have close proximity to whatever they need, whether it be schools, jobs, retail, or cultural attractions. In fact, most people are willing to pay a premium to live in a community like this. Of course, you could live cheaper in the suburbs and save some money, but where is the fun in that?
Fortunately, trends in urban renewal are taking place across the nation and Denver is in the midst of it, which is being recorded brilliantly by Ken on this website. Thanks again for all your efforts. However, it’s not just buildings that make a city, but what goes into those buildings that make a city interesting. For example, the 21st street of Larimer has had dilapited buildings for years, but several are being renovated and looking good. In fact, there is a new (private) grocer going in, high-end, which will have just a big of an impact as filling in a parking lot. To keep perspective -Chicago and NY went through troubled periods in the 70’s and 80’s before getting reserected and their now both considered world-class cities and attract all kinds of people, attractions, and captial investment. It just makes it a more fun place to be.
Permalink Posted by Anonymous : 1/23/2007 02:51:00 PM