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Chair: Kirk Monroe, Vectra Bank Colorado
Vice Chair: Amy Cara, East West Partners
Treasurer: Bruce O'Donnell, Starboard Realty
Group, LLC
Executive Director: Michael Leccese
Director: Kacey Wilkins
Senior Associate: Sarah Franklin
Community Outreach Manager:
Cindy Christensen, Christensen Consulting, LLC
Impact Awards Committee Members:
Brian Cohen, Taylor Kohrs
Cathaerine Ferguson, EKS&H
Kylee Gurney, Kephart
Tyler Ideker, Short Term Funding
Tom Kooiman, Brinkmann Constructors
Jackie Sciarra, KTGY Group
Cyndi Thomas, Etkin Johnson
The Equitable Building
730 17th Street, Suite 750
Denver, CO 80202
Phone: 303.893.1760
Fax: 303.893.1762 Beverly Carlson
First American Title Insurance
Co-Chair,
2015 Impact Awards
Stacy Stout
STOUTStrategies
Co-Chair,
2015 Impact Awards
Until 2011, The Amherst on South
Federal Boulevard was a forlorn,
81-unit 1973 apartment building
plagued by everything from bedbugs
to crack dealers. Then called Loretto
Manor, the Amherst has been
reborn as an affordable haven where
hardworking, low-income families
can raise their children. The owner-
founders of BMC and BLDG, Matt
Joblon and Darren Everett, took this
on as their first project together. Three
quarters of financing came from a loan
from Collegiate Peaks Bank, with the
rest coming from BMC and investors.
A $315,000 investment freshened
the building, but the bigger issue was
improving the safety of the complex.
The new management group worked
with the Denver Police Vice Squad
on a joint undercover to evict drug-
dealing tenants. The Amherst has now
been cleaned, painted and gated with
durable play spaces for the 70 kids
who live here (up from less than five
when BLDG took over). BLDG also
partnered with City Square to provide
breakfast and lunch for the children
in the building. The renovation met a
need for safe housing and has attracted
tenants who take care of the property.
It also proved to be a smart financial
move. BLDG purchased The Amherst
in 2011 for $4.07 million and invested
$315,000 in its renovation. This year
BLDG sold the property for $5.6
million, a boosted value of $1.5 million
or $18,889 per unit.
Developers: Darren Everett, President,
BLDGManagement and BMC
Investments. Owner: Matthew Joblon,
CEO, BLDGManagement and BMC
Investments
Wow factor: A setting out of “The
Wire” becomes a great place for kids and
their families.
1175 Lee Hill is Boulder’s first “Housing
First” community. Located on one acre
in North Boulder next to the Boulder
Shelter for the Homeless, this $7.6 million
building offers furnished one-bedroom
apartments and case management services
for 31 residents who were once chronically
homeless. The modern two-story building
features energy-efficient design with private
indoor and outdoor gathering spaces,
raised garden beds, an upstairs common
area complete with computers and media
lending library, a laundry room, covered
bike storage, and easy access to local hiking
trails and public transit. Additionally
there are six offices and meeting spaces
for Housing First case managers. Since
1175 Lee Hill’s residents moved in
without belongings, BHP created an
Adopt-A-Room Campaign to raise money
from local donors to purchase furniture,
linens, and other items needed to make
a new apartment a home. In addition to
complex financing,
1175 Lee Hill faced
strong community
opposition. About
500 people signed a
petition against the
development and
many North Boulder
residents asked City
Council to block
approval of the
project. BHP worked
diligently with the
neighborhood groups,
listened to concerns, and ultimately
created the Good Neighbor Statement
of Operations (GNSO), a framework for
how the building will be operated and to
manage community concerns. 1175 Lee
Hill is the first phase in BHP’s 10-year
plan to build 100 Housing First units in
the city.
Developer/Owner: Boulder Housing
Partners Architect: Humphries Poli
Architects Engineers: JVA, CTLThompson
Debt/Equity Participants: City of Boulder,
Boulder County, Colorado Department of
Housing, RHFF funds, Fannie Mae funds,
and 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credits
granted by the Colorado Housing Finance
Authority (CHFA) and purchased by the
National Equity Fund Others (counsel,
contractors, public sector participants):
Boulder City Council, Boulder Shelter for the
Homeless, Deneuve Construction
Wow factor: Huge mural enlivening the
façade on Broadway.
Denver Union Station (DUS) Neighborhood and
Transit Hub turned an abandoned rail yard into a
nationally recognized urban center that links Denver
and its suburbs to the world. The core comprises
the 22-bay underground bus terminal, light rail
train platform, the under-construction train to
DIA, and the renovated historic Union Station.
Surrounding the hub is 19.5 acres of commercial
and residential development where 13 buildings
are under construction, totaling more than 4
million square feet of commercial and residential
space. The development provides downtown
Denver with nearly 2 million square feet of office/
commercial space; 266,500 square feet of retail;
2,000 apartments, including affordable housing that
exceeds the zoned requirements; 400 hotel rooms,
and 15 acres of plazas and public space.
Using incredibly complex financial sources, Union
Station Neighborhood Company assembled a
large team to deliver the nearly $500 million
DUS infrastructure project. DUS also will feature
downtown's first commuter bike station. It has been
estimated that the redevelopment of Union Station
equates to $3.8 billion in total economic impact
as well as a continuing economic impact of $2.9
billion, including tens of thousands of construction
and permanent jobs created.
Developers: Mark Smith, Principal, East
West Partners, Mark Falcone, CEO, Continuum
Partners Architects: Marilyn Taylor, former
partner of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill Owners
representative for Denver Union Station Project
Authority: William E. Mosher, Senior Managing
Director, Trammell Crow Co., and Mike Sullivan,
Vice President, Trammell Crow Co., Engineers:
Alden Raine, VP and Practice Leader, AECOM
General Contractor: Kiewit Construction Debt/
Equity Participant: Giles Flanagin, Senior Asset
Manager, Division of Real Estate, City and County
of Denver Others: Elbra Wedgeworth, President,
Denver Union Station Project Authority Board of
Directors; Marla Lein, General Counsel, RTD;
Diane Barrett, Chief Projects Officer, City and
County of Denver Plaza Landscape Architect:
Hargreaves Associates
Wow factor: Wynkoop Plaza, where they unpaved
a parking lot and put up paradise (apologies to Joni
Mitchell).
SPOTLIGHT
A project has the most impact when it creates a lasting influence on its environment and greater community.
Category 3: Influence Sponsored by
Photo: BLDG Management
Photo: Ryan Dravitz
Page 22AA — COLORADO REAL ESTATE JOURNAL — March 18-March 31, 2015