The ongoing debate over a new location for the Colorado History Museum appears to be over. The Denver Post is reporting that the museum has signed an agreement to build its new facility one block south of the museum’s current location at 13th and Broadway. The new location is on Block 042-B, home to the ING Building and a bunch of surface parking lots.The new 4-story Colorado History Museum will cover about two-thirds of the vacant portion of the block, with the rest occupied by a 5-story parking garage and a 12-story, 200,000 SF for-lease office building, which will share the parking garage with the museum. Here’s a rendering from the Post article—original credit to Tryba Architects:

While I thought my idea of putting the new museum on state-owned land at Speer and Larimer on the Auraria campus was a good one, this proposed site isn’t too bad. It does keep the museum in the Civic Center area and it will certainly densify a block sorely in need of urban development. The site’s proximity to the Denver Art Museum and the Denver Public Library will also further reinforce the Civic Center as the epicenter of Downtown Denver’s arts and culture scene. On the downside, this location is unlikely to directly help the revitalization and activation of Civic Center Park itself. I am glad, however, that the issue appears to have been finally resolved, and now the state legislature can move forward with approving the funding for the museum and the other important projects linked to finding a new home for the musuem—the new Colorado Justice Center and the new State Office Building—both proposed to border Civic Center Park.

What’s also interesting and definitely welcome news is the proposed office building/parking garage co-development that will eliminate all surface parking and nicely densify the block. You may recall that back on October 1, 2007, I blogged about a possible new office building project at this location after an old auto repair shop on the site was demolished and a sign promoting a “New 170,000 SF Office for Lease” was erected at the corner of 12th and Lincoln. It looks like the two projects have come together in a mutually beneficial way.

Overall, I’m happy a site finally has been selected and we can get on with building the museum and the other State projects. Let’s hope this new mixed-use development will spur additional infill projects along Broadway and Lincoln and into the heart of the Golden Triangle. Meanwhile, the struggle to find a solution to revitalizing Civic Center Park continues.