The ground shook last month as construction workers made way for a 12-story, block-long condominium project to go in across from Sloans Lake.
Lakehouse is anticipated to be the crown jewel of the Sloans complex with water views, an urban garden, aquatics room and pet spa. As of early December, 15 percent of the 196 units were under contract or reserved and were going for an average of $728 per square foot, according to Trevor Hines, CEO of NAVA Real Estate Development.
Two blocks east of Lakehouse, Koelbel and Co. and Trailbreak Partners are working on transforming the Kuhlman Building into 49 affordable housing units for people making 60 percent of the area median income or less.
The Kuhlman and Lakehouse blocks are just two of the five blocks where construction is underway or imminently expected.
The new homes and planned commercial space are transfusing new life into the former St. Anthony Hospital campus within the West Colfax neighborhood.
The Denver Urban Renewal Authority has agreed to kick in about $17.6 million across four projects on the campus, according to the organization's website. And altogether, developers could drop more than $350 million on the roughly 19-acre site, said Cameron Bertron, senior vice president of development services at EnviroFinance Group.
EnviroFinance Group is the master developer of the Sloans complex. The Colorado-based development company spent the last few years pulling in businesses and builders to transform the site.
Alamo Draft House Cinema and Even Stevens restaurant opened along West Colfax Avenue earlier this year. And Starbucks and Tap & Burger joined the complex in 2016. Together the companies created a "hub for the existing neighborhood that was always there," Bertron said.
"I feel like that's really done what we've wanted, which was begin to revitalize West Colfax and create amenities the neighbors appreciate, enjoy and use," he said. "The residential feel of this development won't ripen until late next year and throughout 2019 when more units are open and less of the site is under construction."
Alamo Drafthouse
Alamo Draft House Cinema opened its eight-screen theater at 4255 W. Colfax Ave. this summer. The nearly $14 million project anchors the overall Sloans development.
Even Stevens and Starbucks
Even Stevens opened this summer at 4245 W. Colfax Ave. The Salt Lake City-based sandwich shop donates a sandwich to a local nonprofit for every sandwich, salad wrap or burrito purchased. Next door, Starbucks opened at West Colfax Avenue and Raleigh Street in 2016, marking the Seattle coffee chain's entrance into the West Colfax neighborhood.
Sloans 1525
Denver-based LCP Development sold the recently renovated five-story commercial building at 1525 Raleigh St. earlier this year to Denver-based Centre Point Properties for $11 million. South Shore Dental opened this summer on the ground floor. The Nebraska-based engineering design firm Olsson Associates recently moved its Colorado office from Golden to the building, according to the Denver Business Journal.
Vida
Denver Housing Authority is building Vida, a 175-unit, seven-story affordable housing project for seniors near West Colfax Avenue and Quitman Street. The project is expected to include a neighborhood health clinic and a dialysis center and open by the end of 2019.
Tap & Burger and Cultura
The family behind the El Chingon restaurant is planning to open Cultura at 1565 Raleigh St. Owner Lorenzo Nunez did not return calls about the eatery, and an opening date is yet to be announced. To the immediate south, Tap & Burger has been open since summer 2016. The Denver-based burger business started in LoHi in 2010.
Regatta Sloan's Lake
The 369-apartment Regatta Sloan's Lake was completed in August 2016 and sold for $102.8 million in December 2016. The project added the first for-rent units to the Sloans development. The Regatta has been 93 percent to 96 percent leased since March, said Travis Myers, business manager at the apartments. Units available range from $1,360 for a 508 square-foot studio to $2,797 for a 1,182-square-foot two bedroom, according to the leasing website.
Perry Row
Perry Row offered the first for-sale residential units within Sloans. Kentwood City Properties started construction on the 64 row homes in 2016 and plans to wrap up work next year. The three- and four-story homes range from 1,413 square feet to 2,198 square feet and have been selling for roughly $534,000 t0 $850,000, according to Kentwood.
Chapel Plaza
The Sloans master developer, EnviroFinance Group, plans to convert the area around a small chapel built within the St. Anthony Hospital campus into a public plaza. The company is not sure how the chapel itself will be used but the space in front is anticipated to include fountains and be treated as a community gathering area. The project is expected to cost around $1 million and start in late-2018, according to the EnviroFinance Group.
Lakehouse
NAVA Real Estate Development broke ground on Lakehouse in spring 2017. The 12-story luxury condominium project near the southwest corner of Raleigh Street and 17th Avenue will overlook Sloans Lake. Work on the project is expected to wrap up in 2019.
Sloan's Lake Apartments
In November, city officials approved plans for a seven-story, 249 apartment project fronting 17th Avenue between Quitman and Raleigh streets. Hines is listed as the developer. The Houston-based firm is under contract to buy the land, according to EnviroFinance Group.
Hines did not immediately return emails about the project.
Kuhlman Building
Construction on the Kuhlman Building — 49 units of affordable housing units and 5,000 square feet of retail — is anticipated to start later this month. Work on a stand-alone retail building, public plaza and 27 townhomes are expected to start in March, according to Carl Koelbel, vice president of Koelbel and Co.
The retail and apartments are planned to be done by August 2018. The townhomes would be phased and be completed in mid-2019. Altogether, the project would cost about $35 million, Koelbel said.
Editor's note: Is it Sloans Lake or Sloan's Lake? According to city documents, it's Sloans Lake and Sloan's Lake Park. Obviously! The overall redevelopment project is Sloans, no apostrophe. For specific projects, we use the apostrophe if the developer uses it.
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Business & data reporter Adrian D. Garcia can be reached via email at [email protected] or twitter.com/adriandgarcia.
