Hotel developers are bullish on Downtown Denver.
White Lodging, a national hotel developer based out of Merrillville, Indiana recently announced plans to construct a 21-story hotel at the corner of 14th Street and Glenarm Place in Downtown Denver. White Lodging also developed the Embassy Suites Downtown Denver/Convention Center hotel at 14th and Stout that opened in late 2010. The new project will be located across the street from the Denver Athletic Club and next door to the small but historic Colorado Press Association and Denver Press Club buildings. Here’s a Google Earth aerial where I’ve outlined the project location:
The project will be a dual-branded Hyatt Place and Hyatt House property, with a total of 346 rooms. While an official rendering of the project is not yet available, here is a site plan the developers recently submitted to the city as part of the development review process:
What this site plan tells us is that the hotel’s main entry will be off of 14th Street, with a drop-off/valet lane to the right of the bike lane, similar to the condition at the Hotel Teatro at 14th and Arapahoe. Also, the streetscape will be upgraded in front of the tower to include the enhanced 14th Street landscaped planters, plus additional streetscaping along Glenarm and sidewalk canopies along both 14th and Glenarm, which will greatly improve the pedestrian environment.
This project is significant not only for the fact that it is a new 21-story tower in Downtown Denver, but also that its location is in a part of Downtown—sometimes referred to as the Silver Triangle—that hasn’t seen a lot of private-sector development in many decades. This project represents the expansion of developer interest into a part of Downtown ripe with development potential.
Here’s the site:
According to White Lodging, construction will begin late this year and be completed by Spring 2015.
This is great news for Downtown Denver! We will keep you posted as the project works its way through the development review process with the city and when official renderings of the tower are available.
How would this project, specifically the drop off/valet lane impact the planned protected bike lane on 14th?
Good question, Steve. How does it work in front of the Hotel Teatro? That’d be your model.
Steve, I’m not aware of a protected bike lane planned for 14th. I believe the recently announced protected bike lane is planned for 15th.
The bikes and cars will have to, you know, be aware of each other. Kind of like how they do along the entire corridor since you’ve got on-street parking to the right of the bike lane on almost every block. I imagine the valet lane will go where the on-street parking lane should be. In fact, the wider sidewalk and lack of on-street parking in front of this particular property is due to the two curb cuts servicing the parking lot.
And another parking lot bites the dust.
I am glad that something useful will go up on this parking lot, but how many more hotels does downtown Denver need? Some apartments and shops would be more needed than yet another hotel.
At this point I think we should take what we can get. Obviously what you think is needed and what someone else is willing to put millions of dollars into due to their perceived need differs. That is kinda what makes downtown fun. Thank gods its a parking lot and not another perfectly fine building 😉
Happy to see another parking lot disappear. As Ken posted, I also hope this marks the beginning of a new era for the Silver Triangle.