DENVER -- When Elitch Gardens moved from northwest Denver to the Central Platte Valley, it was hailed as a great use of land that had been vacant for years.
Now, it turn out, that Elitches may have just been an "interim" use of that land.
The owners of the property bounded by I-25, Speer Boulevard and the Auraria Parkway, plan to redevelope the area into a brand new neighborhood.
The River Mile
On Tuesday, they unveiled several renderings of what they call The River Mile, a new, vertical, densely populated neighborhood that would be linked to the South Platte River.
On the project's website: https://www.rivermiledenver.com/ Rhys Duggan, of Revesco Properties, noted that metro Denver is expected to add more than a million people in the next 20 to 30 years.
He said, "The river is a focal point of the new neighborhood, and the name kind of came naturally," River Mile.
While many residents wonder if the development means the end of the road for Elitch Gardens, Duggan said the amusement park will remain at its current location for the "foreseeable future."
Denver Community Planning
No redevelopment can happen until the city signs off on plans.
City planners are reworking the 2007 Downtown Area Plan, to help "guide" redevelopment in the Central Platte Valley, to build upon the area's assets and to reflect the community's vision of a prosperous, walkable, distinctive, diverse and green downtown.
Neighborhood Planning Supervisor Steve Nalley said it's important to firm up a vision for the future of that area.
"There's so much development pressure across the entire city," he said. "As you can imagine, there is development pressure for this particular site. (Community Planning and Development) really prefers to get out in front of that development and get a plan in place that will 'inform' future development, as opposed to just letting that development happen."
Nalley said the "Plan" is comprehensive in nature.
"It's about streets, parks, access to the river itself and the trail system," he said. "It's about how people get around this place, the types of uses people want to see, opportunity for affordable housing and opportunity for community services."
Public Input
Nalley said city planners want the public to weigh in.
He said they can read a draft of the plan and then take a survey.
There will be a series of meetings where residents can learn more about what the property owners want to do, and what city planners have written up as guides.
- March 13 – 6:30 PM - Jefferson Park United Neighbors / Riverside Baptist Church, 2401 Alcott St
- April 4 – 3:00 PM - Planning Board Public Hearing / City & County Bldg Room 389
- April 10 – 10:30 AM – Denver City Council Land Use, Transportation & Infrastructure Committee / City & County Bldg. Room 391
- March 28 – 6:30 PM – La Alma Park Neighborhood Association / Museo De Las Americas, 861 Santa Fe Dr.
- April 30 – 5:00 PM – Denver City Council Public Hearing
