Sentinel
LAKEWOOD 12.20.12
Lakewood
Jefferson County, Colorado • Volume 89, Issue 19
December 20, 2012
A Colorado Community Media Publication
ourlakewoodnews.com
Villas at Wadsworth Station purchased ULC buys property for workforce housing By Clarke Reader
creader@ourcoloradonews.com The West Rail Line will bring a lot of people to Lakewood, and the Urban Land Conservancy wants to make sure that workforce housing is available along the line. The conservancy has partnered with Rocky Mountain Communities and the Colorado Resources and Housing Development Corporation to purchase The Villas at Wadsworth Station, a 100-unit rental property located at the Wadsworth Light
Rail Station. The Villas are located at 1330-1337 Yukon St. The two apartment buildings have one- and two-room apartments, and a community building. “It’s a critical location for transit-oriented people to live,” said Aaron Miripol, conservancy president. “Part of our mission is to find projects that will have a long-term community benefit and make sure they can be developed responsibly.” Urban Land Conservancy, a nonprofit, was created in 2003 as a way to use real estate to benefit urban communities. It buys and maintains properties for workforce housing, nonprofit office space, community centers, schools and other community needs. According to information from the conservancy, “the Villas at Wadsworth Station was purchased with support from a
Citywide Banks $5.6 million loan and the Colorado Division of Housing, which is providing a $1.3 million, low-interest loan from the Colorado Housing Investment Fund. This loan is the first made from the $13.2 million CHIF, funded through the $51.17 million mortgage servicing-foreclosure processing settlement recovered by the Colorado Attorney General earlier this year.” Now that the property has been purchased, Rocky Mountain Communities and the Colorado Resources and Housing Development Corporation have two years to get the financing settled so they can take over ownership of the Villas, according to Al Gold, executive director of the development corporation. “It’s an exciting partnership, and these days partnerships are extremely impor-
tant,” he said. “They’re a good option to look at when looking at property.” Gold said that the nearness of the line and the ability to prove housing for a lot of families were the key reasons they invested in the Villas. Miripol said that Lakewood’s government has been extremely helpful in the process, especially with all the efforts it has been making on the light rail. “The city has put a strong emphasis along the rail line, and it’s great to have a local government that’s really invested with long-term strategic thinking,” he said. Rocky Mountain Communities and the Colorado Resources and Housing Development Corporation will take over ownership of the Villas in 2014-2015. For more information on ULC, go online to www.urbanlandc.org.
Art set to brighten up rail stations RTD seeking artists By Clarke Reader
creader@ourcoloradonews.com
Santa Claus skates with children at the Belmar Plaza ice rink in Lakewood Saturday. Photos by Andy Carpenean
HITTING THE ICE
The West Rail Line will not only bring passengers to Lakewood, it will also showcase new pieces of art at its stations. The Regional Transportation District (RTD) is hosting a competition from which 12 artists will be chosen to design artwork for the stations along the route. The goal is to add individuality and character to each station. To make the selection and design process more efficient, RTD officials divided the competition into three rounds, with four stations in each round, according to Brenda Tierney, public information manager for the West Rail Line. “The call goes out and artists can apply, and we have a selection committee that helps us pick the artists,” she said. “We’ve had an average of 90 to 100 applications per station.” Tierney said the committee examines what kind of work the applicants have done before and then narrows the group down to about 20 finalists. From there, the group is narrowed even further to three or four finalists, and they create proposals for what they would like to do at each station. Then a winner is chosen. The selection committee is made up of core members from the RTD Board of Directors and other artists. For each station, they reach out to residents and neighbors near the station to get their input on what kind of art would fit with the identity of the area. “For each station we look at who is affected — businesses, residents and groups (like the 40 West Arts District) — and we want people who understand the ins and outs of public art,” Tierney said. “The community representatives give us the ability to understand the station and the area.” The city of Lakewood has been involved with art in the design of several of the stations, and helped to increase the budget for the Lamar, Lakewood-Wadsworth and Oak stations. “We want to take advantage of the opportunities at different stations,” said RTD continues on Page 7
Jess Parrish, of Cool Hand Ice Carving, shaves ice with a chainsaw during an ice carving contest at The Belmar Plaza ice rink in Lakewood Saturday.
Cali Johnson keeps warm under a blanket while visiting the Belmar Plaza ice rink in Lakewood Saturday.
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