New Downtown coming along

BY LUKE ZARZECKI LZARZECKI@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

e WYND Flats at 90th and Westminster Blvd. in Downtown Westminster will be the city’s rst condos in over a decade.

“ e rst condominiums constructed within the city in well over 10 years due to complications that previously existed with the Colorado construction defects laws,” Economic Development Director Lindsey Kimball said.

e news came from the May 15 study session meeting updating the council on the progress of Westminster’s new downtown. It’s at about 30% built out, Kimball said, and more progress is coming.

John Burke, P.E., Economic Vibrancy Manager, said the area has long been important to Westminster. In the 1980s, the Westminster Mall was a regional destination. In 1994, it generated 40% of the sales tax revenue for Westminster.

When the Flatiron Mall opened a few miles north on U.S. 36 in August of 200, sales tax revenues at the Westminster Mall declined from $7 million to $541,202. Macy’s, Mervyn’s, Sears, Dillards and the AMC eaters all closed. e city acquired the mall in 2011 and held public meetings asking what residents would like to see in the space. at is where the vision for Downtown Westminster came from, he said.

Positives, and negatives e site also has access to the US 36 Sheridan RTD station, which is a 15-minute ride to Denver and 25-minute ride to Boulder.

Since Westminster owns the land, Burke said the buildings must be LEED Silver certi ed. He said that led to one of the buildings using 43% less water than anticipated.

Between 2009 and 2045, Kimball said that expenditures like infrastructure and land acquisition cost about $208 million. But revenues come in at about $414 million and the city is expected to break even in 2033. ose numbers are conservative, she said.

To build resilience, Kimball said the ‘secret sauce’ is the mixed uses built patiently. ere are multiple developers building block by block, instead of one.

“We are trying to build resilience against market shocks and changes and trends or tastes in shopping so that we can organically develop and eventually in (the future) it will redevelop again,” she said.

Kimball said plans call for stepping building heights down, with taller buildings in the center of the site, to better integrate it into the surrounding 92nd Ave and e developments and retailers already up and running include Alamo Draft House, 8877 Eaton Street, Hope Pediatric Dentistry, Lash & Company, 100%

Westminster Blvd. neighborhood.

Some of the new developments for 2023 to 2025 include condominiums, housing for 55+ active adults, townhomes and Marczyk Fine Foods.

According to the meeting’s agenda, future developments underway include Woonerf Townhomes, WYND Flats, Townhomes on 92nd, Marczyk Fine Foods, VH Companies and Vertical Collaborative Active Adult Development, Center Park, Bonchon Korean Barbeque, Alley Tea, Edward Jones, Vatos Tacos, and Inks and Drinks.