Rendering courtesy Gables Residential.

ARA, a Newmark Company provided brokerage services on the sale of the 1.28-acre site where this project will take shape.

Denver-based Executive Managing Directors for ARA Colorado’s Land Services Team, Chris Cowan and Steve O’Dell, served as lead brokers for the seller in marketing the development site.

“The new Cherry Creek District Zoning that was approved and implemented in 2014, created tremendous development opportunities for the high-profile site,” stated Steve O’Dell. “While many qualified groups had the vision to build on the site, Gables Residential was the best fit considering their adjacent project.”

This project will contain 242 apartment units and represents the 3rd phase of Gables Cherry Creek. The other two phases are the project between 3rd and 4th Avenue at Monroe, and construction on the first development near Alameda and Monroe Street is nearing completion where units slated to be ready for residents this fall.

Gables Residential is also developing the apartment project at Speer Boulevard and Sherman Street that is currently under construction. This project recently reached its full height at six floors.

Rendering courtesy Gables Residential.

Area Vice President of Investments, Josh Landry represented Gables Residential, the buyer, in this transaction. 

“We selected Denver as an emerging apartment market where we believe our product type is in high demand. The city has welcomed us and has been a pleasure to work with over the past several years,” said Landry. “Gables Cherry Creek has been built to cater to multiple demographics seeking an enhanced lifestyle with concierge services and first-class amenities. The response to our first phase of Gables Cherry Creek has been overwhelming. Closing on our third phase allows us to continue delivering a highly desirable product to the Denver market.”

Houston-based Ziegler Cooper is the architecture firm that designed this project.

Construction is expected to be completed on Gables Jackson in 2018.

Rendering courtesy Gables Residential

The post Cherry Creek apartment project announced appeared first on Denver Urban Review.

The 250 Columbine project is a mixed-use development in Denver’s Cherry Creek neighborhood located on the block of 2nd and 3rd Avenue on Columbine Street. The project includes 30,000 square feet of retail space, an 80,000 square foot office building and a for-sale condo project with 71 homes.

The office portion of 250 Columbine.

DUR: Why did you elect to go with a condo project when so few developers are going that route due to the current construction defects laws?

Roy Kline: Our mantra is build it really really well, and warranty it really well, and be a friend to your owners—we are all in this together. With Columbine at the price point we are at, you can afford to have peer reviews, you can afford to have the people double checking and looking over each other’s shoulders. We knew that if we build it well enough and protect it, we will be good.

David Steel: You want to stand behind your product. The intent is to live and work here for quite some time. You can ruin your reputation in about three and half seconds unless you stand behind what you do.

DUR: With certain projects there has been an anti-density sentiment around town, did you encounter any resistance or grumpy neighbors with this development (250 Columbine) ?

Roy Kline (left) and David Steel, managing directors of Western Development Group.

David Steel: I don’t agree with that. The millennials in particular are driving the live, work, play sentiment and I think that is what everyone wants. But here (Cherry Creek) it is a different demographic, it is a little bit older, but people like it here. It is like a little village and you pretty much have everything you need and you don’t have to get in your car if you are working here. We have created a bit of a tailwind and so now what is happening is all these other developers are coming in who have never been here before and try and buy, but they are a little late to the parade and they are going to have to pay a lot of money in land acquisition. Roy and I are always puzzled how they (other developers) can make the prices work with the price of land.

Roy Kline: Initially there was a huge pushback. We went through traffic studies and all sorts of density issues, but we do mixed-use which is super efficient and that is the mantra of the new growth. So when we were approved for the new zoning, everyone voted for us form the staunchest conservative to the greenest liberal and for all these different reasons they all like mixed-use.

DUR: How are the leasing and sales going with the 250 Columbine project?

The residential portion of 250 Columbine nearing completion.

David Steel: From the office perspective, we are moving in our main tenant as we speak and they will begin operating as of next Monday. We have more following in behind that and we are about 85 percent leased. There is a lot of people that want to be here and a lot of people feel they have to be here for business reasons. On the residential side we are at about 85 percent pre-sold. They have all been for cash; we would not accept any kind of financing. It is a different type of demographic. We are at about 70 percent leased on the retail side. There are many amenities with the project, and we list amenities, but the neighborhood is the amenity. You are right here in the heart of all the action and it is a fun place to live.

Roy Kline: We are using an energy efficient heat pump system on the residential side and every unit will have an outdoor space. The views from the western facing units are spectacular.

DUR: You see projections out there that indicate another million people will move to the Denver metro area in the next 20 years. Do you see anything on the horizon that will slow that down?

David Steel: There is always peaks and valleys with these types of things. There could be geopolitical issues on the other side of the world, so who knows. But right now it clearly seems to be the place that everyone wants to come to and live here for all the reasons we live here. There is going to be some constraints in terms of the infrastructure and its ability to handle all of this. We see it now in spades going up to the mountains and on I-25 going from Fort Collins all the way to Colorado Springs. There is just constant traffic and that’s what lends itself to more multifamily mixed-use projects, but you can’t put ten pounds in a five pound bag. That is what this area (Cherry Creek) struggles with and 60 percent of the traffic is people just passing through on there way to other places. I don’t see a trolley system along Speer to downtown coming anytime soon.

Roy Kline: From a quality of life standpoint you can’t beat Colorado for weather, for environment, for outdoor activities. There are a ton of employers that get it and as long as the business environment stays positive compared to the coasts, which we all know are imploding just because of how unbelievably difficult they make it to do business there.

The post Western Development Group directors discuss Cherry Creek project and Denver market appeared first on Denver Urban Review.

Pictured above is the 200 Columbine office project that is nearing completion. This project will feature ground floor retail and above that sits 7 floors of office space. 200 Columbine was built in concert with a residential portion titled 250 Columbine photographed below. According to the 250 Columbine website, 80 percent of all units are under contract. Ground floor retail is also included in this development.

Above you can see below grade work is currently taking place at the 245 Columbine hotel project. Some of you may recall that this was the site of the Cherry Creek post office. BMC Investments and Sage Hospitality are developing this $70 million hotel and retail project. The structure will have 155 hotel rooms and space for two ground floor restaurants. It was announced in late 2014 that Departure by Sage Restaurant Group will be filling one of the available spaces. For more information on this project take a look at the article DUR wrote back in February.

Photographed below is the construction site of the future Room & Board retail store. This project is taking shape at 2nd Avenue and Detroit Street.

Above is the 100 St. Paul office development. The last few panes of glass have yet to be installed. This project will add 135,000 square feet of office space to Cherry Creek and 14,000 square feet of retail space. A FirstBank branch is set to occupy space in this Building. 100 St. Paul is seeking LEED Gold certification.

The 218-unit Steele Creek Apartments has just about wrapped up construction at the corner of 1st Avenue and Steele Street.

Over at the northeast corner of 1st Avenue and Steele Street is the Coda Cherry Creek apartment development that will rise to 12 stories once completed. Work is now beginning on the 6th floor. This project will add 185-units to Cherry Creek. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2016.

Pictured above is the Gables Cherry Creek apartment project which has topped.. This development sits at 360 South Monroe Street adjacent to the Cherry Creek bike path.

The Restoration Hardware that is under construction at the Cherry Creek Mall is shown above. This was the one time site of the Saks Fifth Avenue store.

All photos were captured on 5/17/15.

The post Cherry Creek construction update appeared first on Denver Urban Review.

The structure will have 155 hotel rooms and space for two ground floor restaurants. It was announced in late 2014 that Departure by Sage Restaurant Group will be filling one of the available spaces.  The first Departure restaurant is located in Portland Oregon at the Nines hotel.

Rendering of the hotel and retail project at 245 Columbine located in Denver’s Cherry Creek North neighborhood. Image courtesy Sage Hospitality

Denver residents will recall that this location was the one time home of a US Post Office. The hotel will be an independently named luxury hotel, and the name will be specified at a future date. 

The project will include:

• A roof deck pool and bar
• 6,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space
• 100 percent valet parking in the two below grade parking levels

“We are very excited to deliver what we expect to be another transformative project not only in Cherry Creek but for the Denver hospitality market as a whole. We’ve assembled an incredible team that has worked tirelessly to get the project to the groundbreaking, and they will deliver a successful and impressive product upon completion.” says Matt Joblon, CEO of BMC Investments.

The general contractor is Mortenson Construction, JG Johnson and Klipp Architects are the architects for the project. New York based AvroKO fashioned the public spaces and the rooms. AvroKO also designed the Great Hall public space in Denver’s newly renovated Union Station.

Denver-based real estate investor and developer BMC is developing the $108 million Steele Creek luxury apartment project in Cherry Creek North and is planning to develop a $70 million medical office building in the Fitzsimmons medical campus area.

Sage Hospitality operates more than 65 hotels. Today, Sage Hospitality manages hotels under the Marriott, Starwood, Hilton and Hyatt brands in addition to operating a growing number of independent, non-branded properties.

“This project will mirror the big changes that have been taking place in the Cherry Creek North neighborhood,” said Walter Isenberg, president and CEO of Sage. “The hotel and restaurant we have planned will deliver the luxury experience for locals and visitors, we’re proud to bring these concepts to Denver.”

This project joins several others that are under construction in Cherry Creek North. For more information on the projects under construction, take a look at Denver Urban Review’s recent Cherry Creek Update. 

The post Construction commences on $70 million Cherry Creek North hotel appeared first on Denver Urban Review.

The 200 Columbine office project in the foreground and the 250 Columbine residential project are nearing completion. Denver Urban Review Feb. 2015

Glass is being installed to 100 St. Paul. Denver Urban Review Feb. 2015

Steele Creek apartments at the intersection of 1st Ave. and Steele are expected to be completed this summer

Above grade work is now taking place at the Coda Cherry Creek project which will include ground floor retail and above that ten floors of apartments. Photo taken from 1st Ave and Steele. Denver Urban Review Feb. 2015

There are not too many original homes left in Cherry Creek North that are primed to be scraped off for new development however, here is a new home under construction at 4th Ave. and Detroit. Denver Urban Review Feb. 2015

The Gables Cherry Creek apartment project has toped off at Monroe and Cherry Creek North Drive. Denver Urban Review Feb. 2015

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