SMDC Economic Development Group new building Trades unit hears about development in Centennial

BY FREDA MIKLIN STAFF WRITER

On June 19, over 60 business members of South Metro Denver Chamber attended the Economic Development Group’s new Engineering-Architecture-Construction-Trades unit’s first monthly meeting at the new Rodizio Grill Brazilian Steakhouse Restaurant at 7340 S. Clinton Street in DTC.

On hand to network and hear Centennial City Council Member Christine Sweetland’s presentation on important building projects around her city were businesspeople from virtually every industry, including real estate agents, architects, lawyers, engineers, general and electrical contractors, bankers, staffing consultants, representatives from flooring, equipment rental, pest control, telecommunications, roofing, signs, window cleaning, office furniture and supplies, and payroll services businesses. An executive from Comedy Works at The Landmark even showed up.

Council Member Sweetland, who is an independent appraiser in her day job, told the group that Centennial had recently moved its building department in-house. From the time Centennial was incorporated as a city in 2000 until this change, Jacobs Engineering performed that function as an outside contractor.

The District

The District, owned by Brue Baukol Capital Partners, is a “multi-family, multi-use, 36-acre transit-oriented development” next to the Dry Creek Light Rail Station in Centennial. Sweetland told the group it will have “1,800 residential housing units, 2.5 million square feet of office space, a 200-room hotel, and over 30,000 square feet of retail,” along with, “a public space and a recreation center with a two-acre roof where lettuce and microgreens will be grown…

It will be a placemaking space that will be walkable and bikeable, in addition to having close access to light rail. It may even become Centennial’s ad hoc downtown. Since it’s right next to I-25, we can build vertically without it being a problem for neighbors,” she said. For more information, go to http://www. thedistrictcentennial.com.

Westray

Westray is a new, three-building complex currently under construction at 6363 Greenwood Plaza Blvd, the corner of Caley and Greenwood Plaza in Centennial. It is in the Arapahoe Urban Center Sub-Area, “which encourages the development of mixed use, urban, walkable, transit-oriented development,” near Fiddlers Green amphitheater.

Originally approved in 2010 as two office buildings and one lower-rise multi-family building, Sweetland explained, the developer recently requested and won approval to