DENVER — As part of Zocalo Community Development’s ongoing effort to bring more affordable housing to the city, the developer has plans to build a new hybrid condo and affordable housing development across from Denver’s Sloans Lake.
The development, located at West 17th Avenue and Newton Street, is yet to be named. Plans will need to go through the city approval process, which requires the project to be presented to Denver Planning and Community Development and the City Council. Once approved, the unique hybrid development will be Zocalo’s first condo community in Denver in almost a decade.
“Zocalo’s Sloan’s Lake project is an opportunity and an innovative strategy to replace a surface parking lot with much-needed housing, providing for-sale condos and for-rent apartments for individuals and families across the income spectrum and in a neighborhood beset by displacement,” said Ted Featherstone, developer at Zocalo Community Development.
The designer and master site plan architect for the hybrid development is Shears Adkins Rockmore Architects and the workforce, affordable-housing portion will be designed by JG Architects.
The 16 story, 515,40-square-foot energy efficient condo tower will feature approximately 170 for-sale residential condo units, of which eight to 12 will be affordable, along with approximately 170 affordable workforce rental units. The project will also include 12,000 square feet of office space for Zocalo and other office users, about 5,000 square feet of restaurant/retail space and up to 6,000 square feet of community-serving retail that will be leased to a community-serving purpose at no rental cost.
Market-rate condo units will provide economic support for the affordable rental units.
“Denver is in the midst of an affordability crisis, and with today’s unflagging construction-cost increases, building affordable projects is becoming borderline impossible. Marrying the for-sale condo building with the affordable rental project on the same site, however, allows Zocalo to build more than 50 percent of the total units as affordable and do so in a desirable location that, without a little creativity, would otherwise likely have none,” said Featherstone.
The project will provide approximately 600 total parking spaces as well as a public gathering plaza at the corner of 17th & Newton, outside of the retail spaces. Additional community-serving retail and greenspace options are to-be-determined with continued neighborhood input.
Construction is scheduled to tentatively begin in Summer 2019.
Rendering courtesy of Zocalo Community Development
