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/ BUILDING DIALOGUE / SEPTEMBER 2015
purpose more than patterned placement.
Atypically, rental options include a block of
two-story townhomes with private garden
entrances. Internally, each unit is unique
with spaces designed to attract a diverse mix
of residents ranging from families with small
children in larger units to penthouse suites for
the perpetual bachelor or empty nesters look-
ing for affordable close-in living. Smaller apart-
ments are designed to attract younger renters
who want to be close to the city’s vibrancy with-
out sacrificing green space.
For architect Stephen Dynia of Dynia Archi-
tects, Freight Residences is the fourth commission
on the Taxi site following his successes at Drive I
and Drive II and Freight, a high-impact rearticu-
lation of a former mid-century, brick, dock-high
shipping terminal into highly functional, creative
work spaces. Dynia was quick to point out that on
Zeppelin projects, the challenge is always to advance
the edge of design a step further.
“Capturing the Colorado experience means working
to diminish the division of interior and exterior spac-
es – offering immediate access to light, sound, air and
city or mountain views,” shared Dynia. Operable garage
door openings with countertop bars are integrated into
every unit so each space can be opened to everything
city living is about. A large open space just beyond the
eastern garden units will feature turfed play areas, ringed
by native and adaptive species in an elegant xeric-homage
to post-industrial overgrowth. It’s a theme that resonates
throughout the site, barrowing industrial aesthetics from
former purposes and materials and celebrating them in
new ways.
“An important part of all of the buildings on the Taxi site
is their ability to offer something of human value, commu-
nal spaces designed for the common good,” continued Dynia.
Freight Residence’s contribution to Taxi’s community offer-
ings will be a children’s art studio and display space built into
the lobby. It will make a great complement to the Early Child-
hood Education center located just steps away at Freight. Other
common amenities dispersed throughout the Taxi site include a
gym, multiple conference rooms, coffee shops, large kitchens and
gathering places, a community pool made from former shipping
containers – the list goes on. “Residents are going to be getting an
amenities package well beyond what is generally available to a 48-
unit development while also joining an already well-developed
business, retail and cultural community with creative sensibili-
ties,” continued Dynia. There is even a planned pedestrian bridge
over the Platte to provide direct access to Source, an artisan and
craft market place just across Brighton Boulevard, which also was
developed by Zeppelin and designed by Dynia Architects.
Like all of the buildings on the Taxi site, Zeppelin’s development
strategy is to build and hold rather than stabilize and flip, which
reinforces the importance of designing and building a long-term
viable addition to the firm’s portfolio.
“Zeppelin Development has always been about seeing change
in the market place coming and staying ahead of the curve,” fin-
ished Woldum. “Mickey was developing properties in LoDo and
the Golden Triangle well before general development interest. He
has a passion for seeing the beauty and potential in what feels
like forgotten places and injecting new life into them through ex-
ceptional design centered on the long-term human experience.”
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/ Breaking the Mold, Again /
PREVIOUS PAGE:
Rendering of Freight Residences interior
ABOVE TOP:
Freight Residences under construction
ABOVE BOTTOM:
Exterior rendering of Freight Residences
PROJECT TEAM
DEVELOPER:
Zeppelin Development
GENERAL CONTRACTOR:
Brinkmann Constructors
ARCHITECT:
Dynia Architects
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER:
KL&A
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT:
PLOT Landscape
