TAXI will be on a tour next week sponsored by ULI Colorado.
Urban grit in Denver cleans up nicely, an Urban Land Institute Colorado tour will show.
The TAXI development, which is gaining international attention for its cutting-edge design and its transformational impact on what for decades was a forgotten and over-looked industrial swath of Denver, as well as a number of luxury apartments under construction or on the drawing board in the burgeoning River North district along the South Platte River, will be the focus of an Urban Land Institute tour next week.
The tour, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 23, is part of the Explorer series of ULI Colorado.
It will include a panel discussions, a bike tour and a reception examining five projects, including TAXI, being developed by Mickey and Kyle Zeppelin.
TAXI has been nominated for an international ULI Award for Excellences. The mixed-use development, which last month was toured by about 75 real estate reporters attending the National Association of Real Estate Editors’ conference in Denver, includes more than 60 businesses with 400 jobs under six roofs with more than 225,000 square feet of space. TAXI also includes condos, a daycare center, the Fuel restaurant.
“Guided by the key players creating these new neighborhoods, land-use professionals will see from the inside the emergence of the South Platte Greenway as a community and recreational link,” said LaDonna Baertlein, co-captain of the event with Steve Durian.
“They will also learn of new business opportunities in this corridor,” Baertlein added.
This is how Ken Schroeppel, an instructor at the University of Colorado Denver – College of Architectural & Planning described River North on his DenverInfill.com blog: “Almost entirely industrial in nature, for decades the River North district has been isolated from the rest of the city by a tangle of rail yards and viaducts, keeping it out of the public spotlight and off the radar screen of the development community.”
But Schroeppel notes that times have changed.
“The River North area has recently been discovered for its fascinating mix of authentic industrial grittiness and an historic urban feel that, along with the amenity of the South Platte River and a location remarkably close to Downtown, has made it one of the city’s hottest emerging districts,” Schroeppel wrote.
In addition to TAXI, the tour will include:
- Denargo Mark – Developed by Texas-based Cypress Real Estate Advisors, the Denargo Market is a 29-acre master plan for a mixed-use development on the Platte. The first phase is a 301-unit apartment community, scheduled to open in 2013.
- Manhattan Tower + Lofts – Boston-based Windsor Communities is developing the second phase of what is considered a pioneering project in Riverfront Park.
- 20th + Chestnut – As part of the Denver Union Station redevelopment, Denver-based Nichols Partnership plans to bring the first full-service grocery store to the area to serve downtown residents. In addition, 312 apartments are planned above the retail base.
- Cadence – The latest green high-rise building by Denver-based Zocalo Community Development, will be constructed just west of Union Station. Cadence joins other Zocalo development including Solera and 2020 Lawrence.
B Cycles will be available free to the first 25 to registe. Others may join the tour using their own bicycles, pedicabs, car pools or in a ULI van. Those wishing only to attend the panels can register separately.
Speakers on the panels include:
- Chris Archenbach, Zocalo Community Development.
- Chris Crosby, the Nichols Partnership.
- Mickey Zeppelin, Zeppelin Places.
- Ed Wendler, Cypress Real Estate Advisors.
- Todd Wenskoski, Community Development and Planning at the City and County of Denver.
- Britta Evans, CoBiz Financial.
Other speakers may be added.
The event is being put together in partnership with the Downtown Denver Partnership and sponsored by Brickman Construction, B Cycle, CoBiz Financial, Cypress Real Estate Advisors, GE Johnson, JE Dunn, Steve Dynia Architects and Windsor Communities.
For more information and to register, please visit: http://colorado.uli.org
Have a story idea or real estate tip? Contact John Rebchook at JRCHOOK@gmail.com. InsideRealEstateNews.com is sponsored by Universal Lending, Land Title Guarantee and 8z Real Estate.com.
Note: The registration for the full event is $85/person for non-members and the Panel only is $45/person for non-members. No idea what the member price is since they didn’t list that on their registration page.