A mixed-use development, including 300 housing units, will soon rise on two empty acres of the Auraria Campus.
That's where Metropolitan State University, the Community College of Denver and the University of Colorado Denver currently operate a commuter campus on land that was once a city and later a naturally affordable Denver neighborhood of its own that was torn down in the name of higher education.
This new project will include the first residential development to come to Auraria since the owner, the Auraria Higher Education Center, began exploring how to use development to boost the schools' connections to the local economy, downtown life and likely future developments in the 55-acre Ball Arena parking lots and along the River Mile, where Elitch Gardens currently stands.
The new development, a partnership between campus owner Auraria Higher Education Center and the developer Columbia Ventures, will bring a commercial building and a residential building to 11th St. and Auraria Parkway, near the planned 5280 Trail.
The project's name, Ballfield at Auraria, honors the land's former use as a baseball field.
"Together, with the mission-aligned organizations investing in this project, we'll create new spaces for accessible housing opportunities, early and higher educational programs and continue to support workforce development," said Colleen Walker, CEO of Auraria Higher Education Center, in a statement. "Ultimately, this development will shift our campus from being a place where people gather during the school week, to a vibrant, thriving community all week-long. We are excited to see the impacts of this project on our campus, for our students and surrounding communities."
Here's what the project will look like.
The residential building will include more space for the Auraria Early Learning Center to educate kids from 12-months to 5-years old and expand enrollment by 30%. The move promises new jobs for teachers, more playground space and proximity to the Tivoli Quad.
At least 300 units of mixed-income housing will serve people making between 60% and 120% of the area median income, or $52,140 and $104,244 for an individual. Some of these units will be set aside for faculty and staff of the colleges and universities.
The commercial building will include the Community College of Denver's Classroom to Career Hub. At that center, potential employers and industry experts will work with faculty and students to address the state's major workforce issues by connecting people with jobs.
AHEC will also centralize its offices in the building and use it to fulfill its master plan to transform the campus into a mixed-use urban environment rather than just a higher-education campus.
"This Ballfield at Auraria project offers an adept opportunity for us to be an economic catalyst for our community and contribute to the sustainability of our campus, both key pillars of our strategic plan," said Janine Davidson, president of Metropolitan State University of Denver, in a statement. "Not only are we aiming to support MSU Denver employees by providing access to affordable housing, but we hope to be a leader in the reinvention of community in downtown Denver."
