03 17 NEW PLANS IN THE WORKS FOR TAMMEN HALL
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CATHEDRAL: SENIOR APARTMENTS & HOTEL POSSIBILE By J. Patrick O’Leary Historic Tammen Hall, East 19th Avenue and Ogden Street, will be repurposed as a 49-unit affordable senior housing apartment, possibly ready for occupancy in the fall of 2018. St. Joseph’s Hospital President Jamie Smith and representatives of developer MGL Partners revealed plans to a crowd at the January meeting of the Historic Preservation Committee of Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods (CHUN). At the same meeting, an architect shared a new owner’s plans for Cathedral High School, possibly adaptive reuse as a boutique hotel and retail. Built in 1930, Tammen served as a dormitory and training site for nurses, then administrative offices for Children’s Hospital, which moved to Aurora in 2007. St. Joseph’s purchased the site, and it has been unused and vacant since. Mike Gerber, Principal of MGL, said that the developer would own and operate the building, but lease the ground from St. Joseph’s. MGL has built two dozen redevelopment housing projects in Denver, including the Amaranth apartments at 12th Avenue and Gaylord Street. Rents would be 60 percent of area median income (AMI), according to Kurt Frantz of MGL, approximately $900 for a one-bedroom apartment, and $1,100 for a two-bedroom. Seniors 62 or older would be eligible to rent, but no assistive services, or common dining, will be provided by the operator. He explained that common areas,
If your grandma and grandpa decided to open an ice cream parlor, Sweet Cooie's might be it. Read the full rundown on this throwback establishment on page 4. Photo by J.L. Schutheis Price. which drive up costs, would be minimal. The blond, brick Art Deco-style building has sixover-one, single-hung sash windows and red brick detailing. Decorative brickwork includes arches and zigzag motifs. City Council bestowed historic landmark status on the building in 2005 after being petitioned by CHUN and Children’s Hospital. As a result, the exterior of the building must retain its original appearance and any alterations to the exterior must be approved by the Landmark Commission. The internal layout of the U-shaped building— long rooms and corridors—will be retained, allowing ample lighting through existing windows, which will
be restored. “Each will be taken out, refurbished and replaced, single-pane,” said Frantz, explaining that a “significant” $13 million budget, beyond the purchase price, allows for restoration. MGL will attempt to refinish and use the original entry doors, as well. Six two-bedroom units, averaging 775 sq. ft., will be created, and the remaining 43 will be one-bedroom, about 600 sq. ft. Only six parking spots of 49 parking spaces will be on the property, the remaining 43 will be in a surface lot across the street. Frantz said that number was continued on 8
RIVER NORTH PROMENADE STILL ON THE HORIZON By Lucy Graca Jeff Shoemaker tears up when he talks about his father, Joe’s, vision for the Platte River Greenway. At the dedication of Confluence Park on Labor Day 1975, Joe Shoemaker, the founder of The Greenway Foundation, said, “One day, the best place to live, work and play will be along the South Platte River.” “He was laughed at, of course; dismissed,” continues Jeff, now the Executive Director of the Foundation. “But today, the greatest challenge is that the parks and trails along the river are over-used.” According to Shoemaker, many of the Foundation’s park projects were originally landfills
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and dump sites: Confluence Park, Johnson Habitat Park and River North Park to name a few. The newest Foundation project is a proposal for a Promenade connecting River North Park with Globeville Landing along Arkins Court in north Denver. The Promenade will be a pedestrian path along the top of the river’s embankment—also a former dump site—with park benches, picnic areas and play structures still in the planning stage. Arkins Court, between 29th and 38th streets, will be narrowed to about 20 feet, from its current 35 feet. This means that the trucks that service the Pepsi bottling plant and other industries along Arkins Court will be rerouted to Brighton Boulevard and Ringsby
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Court, though cars will still have access. Shoemaker says the existing bike path will have to remain as is for the moment, though at over 40 years old and only eight feet wide, it is one of the oldest and narrowest in Denver. But because it is sited on a steep slope filled with rubble, trash, and a six foot, concrete sewer pipe, that project is too complex and expensive at the moment. However, Shoemaker hopes the path will soon be redone from Globeville Landing through Riverside Cemetery to the Adams County line. Gordon Robertson, Director of Park Plancontinued on 8
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