From exotic dancers to blighted structures, the corner of East Colfax and Valentia Street has seen some things.
Now, families and children will be the familiar sight at the intersection.
On Wednesday, Mercy Housing, Mile High United Way and other stakeholders celebrated the opening of The Rose on Colfax, a new apartment complex that will provide affordable housing and childcare services to residents in the East Colfax neighborhood and beyond.
The Rose is a five-story, 119,000-square foot complex with 82 units of affordable one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units.
The apartments are income-restricted for those making between 30% through 70% of the area median income. For a family of three, that income would be between $33,550 and $78,190. According to a press release from Mercy Housing, the building is fully occupied and all residents have received free public transit passes.
The project has been in the works for years and the area was regularly a concern for nearby residents. The site was once home to PT's All Nude II, a strip club that closed in 2016, roughly a year after someone was fatally shot on the premises. Then, it sat vacant until it was purchased by the city for $1.3 million and later sold to Mercy Housing.
The project meets an affordable housing need as more than 55% of renters in the East Colfax area are cost-burdened, according to a statement from Mercy Housing. That means they're spending more than 30% of their income toward housing costs.
The Rose complex will also meet another need: more childcare options.
On the first floor is the 5,600-square-feet Mile High United Way Early Childhood Education Center, an education, health and family support center for kids as young as six weeks to as old as four years old. The center will offer early Head Start and Head Start programming provided by Mile High Early Learning.
There's also a 2,400-square-foot outdoor play area. The center will be able to provide childcare services to 48 babies and toddlers and it will also be subsidized depending on income levels.
"This part of Denver is considered a childcare desert, which means either there's no childcare or there's more than three children needing a spot for every licensed spot available," said Dr. Pamela Harris, president and CEO of Mile High Early Learning, in the press release. "Many of the families we serve experience housing instability along with challenges of accessing quality, affordable early care and education. The Rose on Colfax will support families by meeting these two critical needs."
The Rose also offers wraparound services, like health and behavioral health services, financial literacy training, job training and food and nutrition education. As residents settle in, Mercy Housing will later survey them to see what other onsite services might be needed.
Funding for the complex came from Mile High United Way donors, Mile High Early Learning, the Colorado Housing & Finance Authority and $3.5 million in financing from the Department of Housing Stability.
During the grand opening ceremony, Gov. Jared Polis and Mayor Mike Johnston praised the development as an innovative way to incorporate basic needs. There's house, childcare and access to public transit.
"The new Rose on Colfax is a great example of a public and private partnership that will help make Denver more affordable to residents, including making sure hardworking families who need access to childcare can get access right on site," Johnston said in the press release. "These are the kinds of projects we want more of to reach our goal of 3,000 units of permanently affordable housing each year.
