DENVER | Main Development Thread #7

[derek.berardi]

New renderins, ya'll! Lookin rill nice!

[Keesy9]

Have to say those micro units might be the highest and best use of that site. A hotel could go 12 stories on that site as well, but I don't think you could get enough parking for any other uses at 12 stories.

[rds70]

Construction has started on the Gables Jackson Street project in Cherry Creek East:

http://zieglercooper.com/confidentia...aldevelopment/

[Matt]

1144 15th Street, June 25, 2017

We should start to see the crown taking shape any day now. I really wish they would just keep climbing up far and above Republic Plaza, but I guess all good things must come to an end. Denver is incredibly lucky to have pulled this off; it is easily the most elegant skyscraper we have. I've noticed even pedestrians and passers-by look up at this tower in amazement, all with positive reactions.

The weather was fairly overcast today, but it was a nice chance to see how the glass facade reacts under gray skies with heavy cloud cover.

[comoneymaker]

It is one of the best here. Would have been 1000% sexier if it was 10 more floors and didn't have that awkward base. Looks like a piece from a 70's building.

[Matt]

Originally Posted by comoneymaker

It is one of the best here. Would have been 1000% sexier if it was 10 more floors and didn't have that awkward base. Looks like a piece from a 70's building.

I definitely agree on both accounts. We only had 112' to go in order to make this our new tallest - if they didn't want to take the risk on additional floorplates, they could have at least added more verticality to the crown to make up the difference (with the added bonus of the crown going above Four Seasons and being illuminated as it rightly should be).

Also agree about the base - but honestly, nearly everything built in Denver has strong characteristics of 1970s design aesthetics. Cantilevered roofs, sharp angled edges and facades that slope outwards (as opposed to tapering inwards), protruding balconies instead of recessed balconies, strong over-reliance on granite, stucco, pebblestone and various other masonry materials, extensive use of "rustic" colors, and the narrow, vertically-oriented windows that make buildings look like prisons. I've often thought how Denver seems to be a testing ground for experimental 1960s and 1970s design attempts that just end up looking awkward - where we show the rest of the world what to avoid in designing new structures.

All that aside, 1144 is a solid winner in my book, and is already making our city more thrilling to look at from both the street level and from afar. Just wish that crown could be lit...

Here's hoping Block 162 turns out to be another stunning addition to our skyline.

[fleury]

Now if Four Seasons PH II would get started that would create the best block in town. Can't seem to post the pic, but it looks great!

[CastleScott]

^ Yeah that Four Seasons phase II looks like a gorgeous tower from past renderings.

[EngiNerd]

Originally Posted by bcp

great photos - thanks for sharing them ...

this building looks great - three things I love:

1) the 70s (but more refined) base...I think it's killer
2) the way there are "breaks" in the facade that taper, instead of just one long-a$$ taper
3) that recessed "zipper" on the NW side of the building - didnt know it would be that deep, really like that

I definitely think this base option has a lot more going for it than the other "Colotecture" option we saw in some of the early renderings...that would have looked a lot more awkward in my opinion.

[Mountain man]

Originally Posted by EngiNerd

I definitely think this base option has a lot more going for it than the other "Colotecture" option we saw in some of the early renderings...that would have looked a lot more awkward in my opinion.

Where could I find an early rendering of phase II?

[twister244]

I absolutely love how 1401 Lawrence and 1144 compliment each other in some of those pictures. That's something I was really looking forward to that we never saw in the renderings. It's turning out to be really nice.

[denconyny]

Originally Posted by Mountain man

Where could I find an early rendering of phase II?

I think that maybe this?

http://skyscraperpage.com/forum/show...postcount=6954

[enjo13]

Originally Posted by bcp

there is something really attractive about 4S2 .... sadly, there won't be an alley in sight on this block (maybe already gone?) ... this will result in at least:

- 6 curb cuts for cars
- 3 massive curb cuts for loading / deliveries

how's that for pedestrian life?

Yep there's no alley today.

[corey]

1401 Lawrence and 1144 make do look awesome together and make that corner of downtown look so much better. 4S2 in its current design would just take it all over the top. I love the combination of building styles from the late 1800's to today in that area. I No I can't wait for Bell Park and adjacent parking lot to be redeveloped. Then with the new builings planned around the DCPA just down the street and hopefully Tabor2, that whole area will be so vibrant. Could you then imagine if the entire Federal Reserve Block could get redeveloped? What I would love to see is the Pepsi Center replaced with an arena that is part of the Federal Reserve multi-use project. Two or more towers, one at least as Denver's tallest. It would be like Madison Square Garden, but hopefully not ugly.

[sagehen47]

1) Madison Square Garden is a terrible place
2) Why would Denver need to replace Pepsi Center anytime before 2060?

Originally Posted by corey

1401 Lawrence and 1144 make do look awesome together and make that corner of downtown look so much better. 4S2 in its current design would just take it all over the top. I love the combination of building styles from the late 1800's to today in that area. I No I can't wait for Bell Park and adjacent parking lot to be redeveloped. Then with the new builings planned around the DCPA just down the street and hopefully Tabor2, that whole area will be so vibrant. Could you then imagine if the entire Federal Reserve Block could get redeveloped? What I would love to see is the Pepsi Center replaced with an arena that is part of the Federal Reserve multi-use project. Two or more towers, one at least as Denver's tallest. It would be like Madison Square Garden, but hopefully not ugly.

[Curtis Park]

Originally Posted by sagehen47

1) Madison Square Garden is a terrible place
2) Why would Denver need to replace Pepsi Center anytime before 2060?

These days the expected life span of a sports arena is about 30 years. It makes sense that Kreonke bought up Elitche's so that when he does replace it he has enough realestate to build a new one on his property while keeping the old one active.

[Cirrus]

I suspect corey is mainly talking how the Pepsi Center & Madison Square Garden fit into their neighborhoods, while sagehen47 is specifically talking about being inside the arenas themselves.

Anyway, I really have no idea the Pepsi Center's expected lifespan. But those surface parking are definitely not ideal for a downtown arena.

[CherryCreek]

Originally Posted by Cirrus

I suspect corey is mainly talking how the Pepsi Center & Madison Square Garden fit into their neighborhoods, while sagehen47 is specifically talking about being inside the arenas themselves.

Anyway, I really have no idea the Pepsi Center's expected lifespan. But those surface parking are definitely not ideal for a downtown arena.

The prior arena, McNichols lasted 24 years from opening to closing. Pepsi Center opened in 1999 and thus has an expiration date of 2023. Given the lead time for new projects, now is the appropriate time to talk about its replacement.

I was there earlier this year for the first time in probably 5 or 7 years and was surprised at how run down and dated if felt. I always had a poor view of the original project.. the stucco clad, pinkish exterior is FUGLY and the overall look and feel is the epitome of mediocrity in arena design.

For future land use, I would put any new arena on the far southern/southwestern parking lots of the existing footprint and redevelop the existing Pepsi Center and Elitches as the "next Union Station/Riverfront" with offices and residences. The one square block Federal Reserve space is not large enough - but can be the future site of Denver's tallest office building.

(As an aside, and by comparison, Coors Field is a semi-masterpiece both in design and in fitting into its neighborhood (it's only fault is its too big). This is reflected by the Rockies long-term extension there. Compare that to Atlanta, where Turner Field, a stadium newer than Coors Field has already been abandoned or to the Texas Ranger stadium opened at almost the exact same time as Coors Field which is now planned for demolition and replacement).

[mhays]

Madison Square Garden is on a block I'd guesstimate at 500' x 600' based on google maps. The Denver Federal Reserve is on what, 300' x 450'? That's too small for an arena, and way too small to add anything next to it.

You might be able to Fenway a solution on that site but it wouldn't be the normal new arena layout with wide concourses full of retail etc, and the seats might be steeper or a few more than usual at the ends vs. sides.

Maybe take a side street, with a narrow alley and sidewalk remaining and most circulation in a walkway inside the first set of columns? That would still be tight but it might make it plausible.

[Curtis Park]

Originally Posted by CherryCreek

For future land use, I would put any new arena on the far southern/southwestern parking lots of the existing footprint and redevelop the existing Pepsi Center and Elitches as the "next Union Station/Riverfront" with offices and residences.

I'd put it on the north end, right up against Speer so it connect better with Lodo and pedestrians don't have to walk through the parking lots. Put all the lots on the S. side.