The Denver Dry Goods building is an imposing 6-story, roughly 330,000-square-foot rectangle taking up half a city block in Upper Downtown. (Courtesy Perry Rose LLC)
Denver’s Dry Goods building was built in 1888, expanded three times, and was one of the first mixed-use redevelopment projects in Denver in the early ’90s.
Now, the 330,000-square-foot building along the 16th Street Mall is under construction again. This time, the work is turning 30,000 square feet of office space and a chunk of vacant retail space into 55 income-restricted apartments.
They will join 51 existing income-restricted apartments, which are being refurbished. All will be reserved for those making between 30% to 80% of the area median income.
Work began Aug. 18. The project’s developer, Perry Rose LLC, had a groundbreaking ceremony last week with city officials.
“If you are a server downtown, or you work retail downtown, you can now live right here in your own neighborhood and get to and from work every day. So these 106 new units of affordable housing will help provide that kind of access to all parts of the city,” Mayor Mike Johnston said.
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston speaks at a groundbreaking ceremony for the building Nov. 13. (Matt Geiger/BusinessDen)
The building, which runs along California Street between 15th and 16th streets, is also being pulled off Denver’s steam heating loop and electrified. That will save residents $120,000 in utility costs in the first year alone, according to Liz Babcock, Denver’s executive director of climate action, sustainability and resiliency.
The 6-story building also has an additional 65 market-rate apartments and condominiums that were added in 1994, when a $48 million project saw the then-vacant department store converted into residences and offices, with some retail remaining on the basement, ground floor and second floor.
The total price tag this time around is $67 million, according to Chuck Perry, the managing partner of Perry Rose. Perry, who was part of the group that redeveloped the building 30 years ago, said financing was compiled from about a dozen different sources. Last time, 23 financing sources were used.
Perry expects construction to be completed in 2027. The building still has a 22,000-square-foot retail vacancy on its ground floor, at the corner of California and 16th Street.
The Denver Dry Goods building is an imposing 6-story, roughly 330,000-square-foot rectangle taking up half a city block in Upper Downtown. (Courtesy Perry Rose LLC)
Denver’s Dry Goods building was built in 1888, expanded three times, and was one of the first mixed-use redevelopment projects in Denver in the early ’90s.
Now, the 330,000-square-foot building along the 16th Street Mall is under construction again. This time, the work is turning 30,000 square feet of office space and a chunk of vacant retail space into 55 income-restricted apartments.
They will join 51 existing income-restricted apartments, which are being refurbished. All will be reserved for those making between 30% to 80% of the area median income.
Work began Aug. 18. The project’s developer, Perry Rose LLC, had a groundbreaking ceremony last week with city officials.
“If you are a server downtown, or you work retail downtown, you can now live right here in your own neighborhood and get to and from work every day. So these 106 new units of affordable housing will help provide that kind of access to all parts of the city,” Mayor Mike Johnston said.
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston speaks at a groundbreaking ceremony for the building Nov. 13. (Matt Geiger/BusinessDen)
The building, which runs along California Street between 15th and 16th streets, is also being pulled off Denver’s steam heating loop and electrified. That will save residents $120,000 in utility costs in the first year alone, according to Liz Babcock, Denver’s executive director of climate action, sustainability and resiliency.
The 6-story building also has an additional 65 market-rate apartments and condominiums that were added in 1994, when a $48 million project saw the then-vacant department store converted into residences and offices, with some retail remaining on the basement, ground floor and second floor.
The total price tag this time around is $67 million, according to Chuck Perry, the managing partner of Perry Rose. Perry, who was part of the group that redeveloped the building 30 years ago, said financing was compiled from about a dozen different sources. Last time, 23 financing sources were used.
Perry expects construction to be completed in 2027. The building still has a 22,000-square-foot retail vacancy on its ground floor, at the corner of California and 16th Street.
