Denver Downtown Development Authority To Spend $5.2M Upgrading The Pavilions
The Denver Pavilions will soon have an upgraded parking garage and a fixed roof, thanks to planned investments from the property’s new owner, the Denver Downtown Development Authority.
The development authority will spend $5.2M to repair the shopping center’s parking garage and roof, as well as pay for management services, according to the Denver Business Journal.
Construction is expected to start within 30 days and take 18 months, Bill Mosher, Denver's chief projects officer, told the DBJ. Half of the garage will be open throughout construction. On top of structural repairs, the garage will get an upgraded gate and payment system.
In December, the development authority purchased the Pavilions for $37M, with an additional $8M dedicated to property improvements, leasing and redevelopment planning. It also purchased two adjacent parking lots for $23M with plans to redevelop them into mixed-use properties with parking.
The garage improvements are estimated to cost $3.8M, and the roof repairs will cost $390K. Other improvements planned are upgraded signage and a new mural, for which $325K is budgeted.
The development authority is also paying Sperry Advisory $200K for asset management and Gart Properties, the former owner of the Pavilions, around $380K for property management.
Revenue from the Pavilions’ retail tenants and parking is enough to pay for the planned repairs, Mosher told the DBJ. The shopping center was 60% occupied when the development authority purchased it.
In addition to the property improvements, the development authority convened a group to reimagine the Pavilions and the surrounding two-block area, including the adjacent parking lots. That group’s work will inform an Urban Land Institute advisory services panel scheduled in April.
The development authority, authorized by voters in 2024 to spend $570M on downtown revitalization efforts, has so far dedicated around $157M to other projects, including office-to-residential conversions, individual business support loans and a downtown safety plan.
Last month, the development authority approved its biggest commitment to date: $63M to support the redevelopment of a two-tower office complex at 621 and 633 17th St. from 1M SF of office into a mixed-use space with more than 700 apartments.
The Downtown Denver Partnership’s February report shows pedestrian activity reached 89% of 2019 levels and three new ground-floor businesses opened. An additional 38 businesses are in the pipeline to open downtown.
