There have been many questions regarding the triangular lot bound by Grant Street, 6th Avenue and Speer Boulevard. If you haven’t been around that area lately here is what’s going on: A Diamond Shamrock gas station / car wash stood on the site and has since been demolished. A construction fence is now up around the site and now there is a giant dirt lot ready to be developed. Here is a map with the site outlined.
Today I have some good news and bad news about this project. The bad news: we have no renderings, elevations, or concrete details about what is going to be built here. The good news: thanks to a handy report Denver Development Services produces every month or so, we have a good idea on what might be going up.
- The project title is “Speer Boulevard Apartments”. This is going to be an apartment building.
- The zoning for this parcel is C-MX-12 (Urban Center, Mixed Use, 12-stories). The building can rise up to 12-stories.
- There is a building permit filed with the city.
Here is what the site looks like as of today.
As soon as we get more information on this project, we will post an update.
I wonder if the apartments will be haunted long before the diamond Shamrock gas station the site was the home of the mausoleum and funeral parlor
http://cdm16079.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p15330coll22/id/35004/rec/1
The photo is dated 1005 – 1915. A hundred years ago, with a grand Speer Boulevard Classic façade, evidence that Denver was already a city. In the middle of what Ken calls The Golden Age for American Cities. Dozens — no hundreds — of these wonderful buildings, razed by developers for parking lots, then vast, multi-block demolitions by the Denver Urban Renewal Authority — which also became parking lots. Now the Infill, re-building the barren core around Downtown.
This is a major crossroads, Broadway/Lincoln/Speer/6th/Logan. These big intersections deserve prominent, iconic buildings, landmarks. Hope this developer uses the lot shape to maximize the building’s identity…
Sorry — meant to write 1905 – 1915.
http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/drmo/4330907047/
I really hope this doesn’t end up being 12 stories.
Why not?
Mostly because it blocks views of the mountains. High rises have their place, just not outside of downtown or similar areas. IMHO.
Huh? Blocks views of the mountains? How many homes in the vicinity of Speer/Grant have a view of the mountains that would be impacted by a building there? Cities do not exist to provide a handful of people with views of mountains.
Ken, you’re touching the Holy Grail — or Third Rail — for Denver NIMBYS: My Mountain View. As a planner, you well know how almost the entire city has been flattened by View Planes. In so many of these comments, it seems that for some, mid-rise limits everywhere but CBD are not flat enough, because The City dares to block Country Viewpoints. These are conflicted people, who seem to resent the city all around them.
It’s a big piece of land; almost a full city block. I would rather see a couple of high rises than one big 4 or 5 story building.
I am actually slightly bummed out that a gas station won’t be included (or maybe it still could…probaby not). It was the first reasonably priced station out of Cherry Creek (the Conoco a few blocks away was always strangely overpriced). Ah well, nothing lasts forever that lot was mighty big for one business.
I wouldn’t mind two towers in an L-shape facing 6th and Grant. Leave the Speer side as a “pocket park.”
How bout a Denver version of the Flat Iron Building.