North of downtown, there's an empty 17-acre field near the South Platte River. It's surrounded by new apartment buildings and the Salvation Army's Crossroads homeless shelter.
On Thursday morning, as U.S. Marshall handcuffed a woman outside Crossroads and apartment dwellers walked their dogs, Mayor Mike Johnston, City Councilmember Darrell Watson, lobbyists and developers came together, wearing their wrinkle-free suits, to nibble on hot donuts and shovel some dirt.
They were there to break ground on Denargo Market, a massive new development that will include apartments and condos, office buildings, shops, restaurants, entertainment venues and open space.
When Denargo Market is finally complete, it will bring thousands of new residents to the city center.
"This is the largest urban downtown infill investment, probably to date, in Denver's history," said Sean Campbell, the CEO of the project co-developer, Formativ. "This represents 3 million square feet of new building, lots of new parks. That equates to about $1.5 billion dollars worth of investment."
The first phase of the 17-acre project, developed by Golub and Formativ, will be the creation of four acres open space that residents can enjoy.
The project will eventually include a mix of income-restricted and market-rate housing, 80,000 square feet of retail, hospitality and more.
Here's how the project is branded:
Based on the most recent renderings, the project will include plazas, open-space offices and outdoor dining areas. Children will have plenty to enjoy, including a water pad, a massive skeletal rhinoceropolis with rock-climbing grips to crawl up, and a riverside playground adjacent to the South Platte Trail.
Johnston celebrated the project as a major economic generator for the city.
"It will both bring thousands of new units and new residents downtown," he said. "It will activate commercial space. It will have an amazing hotel. It will bring vibrance to all of this neighborhood and community. It will add greatness. In that way it will affect all of the city."
But Johnston also applauded the project's inclusion of affordable housing, including 56 units for young people coming out of the foster care system who had a nearly 50% chance of becoming homeless within 18 months.
He spoke about his work with such young people in the foster care system and and residential treatment centers, often victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse.
When those kids turned 18, they lost all state support.
"What does that mean?" Johnston asked. "That means almost 50% of these young people, within 18 months, end up homeless in the city and around this state."
The development, as he sees it, will help 56 young people coming out of the most traumatic experiences of their lives.
"Those young people now don't end up homeless," he said. "They end up housed. And that's a very big deal."
Johnston spoke about how urban density would have a significant impact on climate and allow for more walkable and bike able city.
"I think this project was intentional from the beginning," Councilmember Darrell Watson told Denverite at the celebration.
He celebrated the project launching with four acres of open space in collaboration with Denver Parks and Recreation, incorporating affordable housing into the project, creating space for community and ensuring the area is connected to River North, the RiNo Arts District, the Ballpark neighborhood, Union Station and the rest of downtown.
"That's why I highlight this development as one the developments that we should be paying attention to with the city to see long term intentionality, long term planning on connectivity and long term focus on community and uses for wider community beyond the folks who can simply afford to live here," Watson added.
