Two New Developments Begin To Shift Shopping To Colorado Blvd. Corridor As Downtown Retail Struggles
by Glen Richardson
Multiple Housing Styles: Boulevard One is known for numerous types of bungalows, apartments, townhomes, and condos. Photo is of project’s Modern Row Homes.
Two of the Valley’s high-profile retail projects along the Colorado Boulevard corridor — the 9th & Colorado and Boulevard One at Lowry developments — have hit major milestones as they near completion, ramping up the shift in shopping dynamics away from downtown Denver.
Denver workers were thrust into a sudden, chaotic experiment in working from home when the pandemic shut down the city’s urban nucleus known as downtown. Moreover, as 2022 begins, that experiment isn’t close to ending.
The downtown real estate market remains in turmoil. Covid has dealt a huge blow to its vibrancy, destroying office and restaurant business that served as its lifeblood. When the pandemic is finally over, one in six workers are projected to continue working from home or co-working at least two days a week, according to a survey by the Harvard Business School.
Covid Is Culprit
Covid-19 was already shifting shopping eastward along the Colorado Blvd. corridor. As more Valley shoppers decamp from downtown to retail sites along the corridor, they are already stimulating the addition of new shops and restaurants.
The Chronicle looks at the status of the two retail undertakings nearing completion that are already drawing retail away from Denver’s downtown core as new businesses rush to open:
9th & Colorado
New Restaurant: Culinary Dropout’s first Colorado location opened in November at 4177 E. 9th Ave. in the 9+CO development. The restaurant is known for its hearty and classic American-fare, with options ranging from sandwiches and burgers, to fried chicken and 36-hour pork ribs.
The redevelopment of 9th and Colorado has been moving forward. Most of the blocks now have completed projects on them, leaving only a few open parcels left. Overall, this 26-acre development provides over 2-million-sq.-ft. of infill making this a major mixed-use urban center in the Hale neighborhood.
While only being a single-story structure, Block-1 contains seven retail pads, with considerably more than half of them filled. A 10-screen movie theater has moved in on Block-2, anchored by AMC. In addition to the movie theater, more retail resides around this block totaling 44,000-sq-ft. Dubbed Ella CityHomes, 35 for-sale townhomes occupy Block-3. Most of the homes have already sold.
Block-4 contains a seven-story parking garage, providing most of the structured parking for the redevelopment. The garage is partially wrapped, with a 64,000- sq.-ft. office building to the south. Ground-floor retail also wraps around the entire ground floor.
There are no concrete proposals on Block-5, however, earlier master plans envisioned a hotel and more mixed-use buildings. Block-6 contains the nurses’ dormitory from when this area was a medical campus. Currently, there are plans to rehabilitate the building while adding additional residential units toward Ash St. plus additional open park space.
Art Of The Draw: Project draws retailers by adding art such as the piece above titled “A Living Wall” by Kiri Leigh Jones.
Now named Theo, Block-7 South was the first project to be completed in the redevelopment providing 275 apartment homes plus 40,000-sq.-ft. of ground-floor retail. One of the few existing structures in the Block-7 wrap is the north parking garage. The east side of this garage is wrapped with a three-story structure containing 17 townhomes-apartments. Milo Apartments occupy Block-7 East. This project provides 319 homes in an eight-story building.
Blocks 8-10: In blocks 8-10, only Block 8 is currently under construction. Most of the block is complete with the new Hale Park. The other portion is near completion with two single-story retail spaces. Preliminary plans for Block 9 call for a condo building. Greystar recently finished Overture, an eight-story building providing 208 age-restricted homes in Block 10. Residents over 55-years-old are moving into this building.
A variety of restaurants surround the 9+CO development including Postino, Pizzeria Locale, Frank & Roze Coffee, Hopdoddy Burger Bar, and Gelato Boy. The latest additions are Culinary Dropout and its new, next-door sister restaurant Blanco Cocina + Cantina which opened late last year and are owned and operated by Fox Restaurant Concepts, a company based in Arizona.
In addition, retail is popping up including CVS, M. Vince’ Nail Spa, Chase Bank, and Elevation Cycles. When completed, there will be close to 50 retail shops and restaurants occupying the former home of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center which originally opened in 1924.
Boulevard One
Lowry On Target: Retail seems to be on target, with the grand opening of Boulevard One planned for the first half of this year. Development has signed about 20 retailers including a small-format Target.
The grand opening for Boulevard One at Lowry is planned for the first half of this year (2022). Shopping, dining, and entertainment are designed to be a local affair at this site, with a major retailer and grocer already announced. Residents can walk or cycle on neighborhood paths to their favorite hotspots within the Exchange Building, the shopping space in the development.
Kelmore Development — in collaboration with Confluent Development — planned and built the mixed-use retail area at the northwest corner of E. Lowry Blvd. and Quebec St. The five-acre site contains 175,000-sq.-ft. of commercial space designed by Norris Design and Open Space Architecture. The Exchange Building — with 20 retailers already signed — features restaurant, retail and office space, plus a restaurant sitting on the community park across Lowry Blvd.
About 500 parking spaces, 231 of them in an underground parking garage, are at the site. Woven among the boutiques and entertainment venues, there are inviting outdoor seating areas, shared courtyards and landscaping, with the community park directly across the street.
A small-format Target is the anchor tenant for the development, occupying approximately 30,000-sq.-ft. of custom-designed space. The store is about one-quarter the size of a traditional full-sized Target and offers a shopping experience to meet the needs of Lowry residents, including same-day pick up and drive up.
Grocer Is Co-Anchor
Exchange Building Co-Anchor: Boulevard One development will feature Denver’s first Clark’s Market.
Colorado-based specialty grocer Clark’s Market is the co-anchor in the Exchange Bldg. Located at Lowry Blvd. and Pontiac St., the 25,000-sq.-ft. store is the seventh Colorado location but the brand’s first in Denver. The store is expected to open in the first half of this year.
Shoppers can look forward to natural, organic, and gourmet foods, including artisan baked goods, beef, a fresh fish ice table, chef-prepared meals, specialty cheeses, stone-fired pizza, a circular gelato wheel, plus a liquor store. Envisioned as a gathering hub for Lowry residents, Clark’s Market plans to pour draft beer for shoppers on site.
