The Galvanize 2.0 project in Downtown Denver’s Lower Highland district is moving forward! Today, we have an update and some new renderings. Visit our first post for an introduction to the project.

Galvanize 2.0 is a new 4-story mixed-use office/retail project with 76,000-square feet of rentable space near 17th and Platte Street on the eastern border of Denver’s Lower Highland district—right along the western edge of the South Platte River. Galvanize is a collaborative office community and entrepreneurial co-working environment for innovative/start-up companies.

The small building that previously occupied the property has been demolished, and the site is being readied for construction of the new building, starting December 2013. The project is scheduled for completion in late 2014. Some of the exposed steel and accent wood from the old building has been salvaged and will be featured in the new building.

Here are two new renderings of the Platte Street side of the building, courtesy of Nichols Partnership and Open Studio | Architecture (click to embiggen).

This project has many exciting components. The ground-floor side facing Platte Street includes a space for a restaurant to engage with the vibrant Platte Street frontage, and the Platte River side/garden level will serve as the new home for the Galvanize gSchool program. Galvanize will also occupy Floors 3 and 4, with the Platte River/Cherry Creek bike path system providing a strong link to their Golden Triangle facility at 11th and Delaware in the historic Rocky Mountain Bank Note Building. The remainder of the building will be available for lease to other new start-up companies, and also includes a fitness center and a bicycle facility.

The building will have two front doors, fronting both Platte Street and the Platte River, with terrace and patio spaces facing the river and providing great views of the Denver skyline, along with improvements to the trail along the west side of Platte. Galvanize 2.0 should be finished by late 2014.