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March 18-March 31, 2015 —
COLORADO REAL ESTATE JOURNAL
— Page 5C
N
ew residents are moving
to Downtown Denver
and its surrounding
neighborhoods in record numbers.
Downtown Denver’s core residential
population is projected to grow from
18,914 by 14.3% in the next five
years and Downtown’s City Center
neighborhoods are projected to
grow from 69,872 by 10.6%. In the
core of Downtown there has been
a 164% increase in residents since
2000. The City of Denver is one of
the fastest growing cities in the U.S.
In the past three years, Denver’s
population has grown by 8.2%.
Downtown Denver’s residential
real estate market reflects this strong
population growth. As of January
2015, over 3,973 residential units
were under construction or planned
in Downtown Denver and its City
Center neighborhoods. Apartment
vacancy rates are at a record low
of 4.6% and the overall residential
real estate market is surging.
New rental projects are being
developed throughout Downtown
and range in scale from smaller infill
developments in Capitol Hill like
the 64 unit, 6 story, MOTO project
to entire city blocks in Uptown like
the recently completed One City
Block, a 4 building, 5 story, 292 unit
development.
A unique aspect of the current
residential development cycle for
Downtown will be the delivery of the
first high rise apartment towers to be
built in the core in decades. The first
of these towers, Cadence, recently
completed construction and started
welcoming its first residents and is a
13 story, 220 unit apartment building
located at 17th & Chestnut in the
Central Platte Valley neighborhood.
Another tower, Platform at Union
Station, is a 21 story, 290 unit
apartment community that is under
construction and scheduled for
completion later this year. The tallest
rental project in Downtown’s history
will be The Confluence which is a 34
story, 288 unit tower that recently
began construction and is scheduled
for completion in early 2017. The
newest high rise tower to break
ground is Skyhouse Denver, a 26
story, 354 unit apartment project
that is being constructed on a site
in the Central Business District.
These new towers will set the stage
for the next chapter in Downtown’s
residential market evolution that will
offer increased density on smaller
sites allowing future residents even
better access to all of the amenities
that are attracting people to live in
urban spaces.
Recently three highly sought
after amenities were added or
announced that continue to enhance
the quality of life for Downtown
Denver residents and will spur the
future development of additional
residential projects. The Downtown
Denver Expeditionary School (DDES)
welcomed it first students in grades
K-5 and opened in its permanent
home at 1860 Lincoln in April of
2014. A new urban format 47,000
SF King Soopers grocery store will
open at 19th & Chestnut as part
of the Elan at Union Station project
that is adjacent to Denver Union
Station later this spring. In November
of 2014, Whole Foods Market
announced that they would open a
new 56,000 SF flagship store that
will serve as the retail anchor for the
640 unit apartment 17W project
which is scheduled to open in 2017
and will provide another grocery
option for consumers in that quickly
emerging neighborhood.
Image courtesy of Greystar and The Nichols Partnership
Elan at Union Station, a 5 story, 314 unit apartment project that will be anchored by a 47,000 sf urban format King Soopers, under construction in the Central Platte Valley/Denver Union Station neighborhood that is scheduled
for completion in mid-2015.
The Douglas, a 5 story, 310 unit apartment project in the Ballpark neighborhood that recently completed construction.
Elan at Union Station
The Douglas
RESIDENTIAL