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A Field Guide to RiNo: Not Your Mother’s Beach Club

F inding opportunities for users in a land-lord-driven market requires ingenuity and timing. While the central business district

and especially the LoDo micromarkets’ asking rates are quickly escalating, there are pockets of oppor-tunity sprinkled throughout the area providing unique tenant amenities at value rates. One example is Denver’s River North district.

Originally an owner-occupied, think LoDo pre-1990s, industrial area, the district nestled just north of down-town Denver was desolate just a few years ago. Today, it has quickly transformed from its blighted origins into

a vibrant community stimulated in large part by an eclectic arts scene and an influx of highly creative companies. Anchored by Brighton Bou-levard, and bounded by Interstate 70 to the north, I-25 to the west, Park Avenue West to the south and Arapahoe to the east, RiNo is leaving behind its former roots as it caters to a new generation of tenant.

RiNo’s conversion into a burgeoning inventive district was initiated by early pioneers like Mick-ey Zeppelin with the Taxi project. In 2007, Zeppelin Development transformed

the previous Yellow Cab dispatch center and corpo-rate headquarters at 3455 Ringsby Court into flexible work spaces for creative us-ers. Early occupants includ-ing Fuel Café and live/work spaces created a shift in viewing how artistic compa-nies could share space. Taxi II quickly followed in 2008, with 60,000 square feet of mixed-use space. The third mixed-use project is dubbed “Freight,” due to its former use as a 550-foot long ship-ping terminal.

Fast forward just a few months and current RiNo trailblazers include Indus-try at 3001 Brighton Blvd., a 120,000-square-foot creative work space. More than just co-working space, Industry is an evolving and active eco-system. A multitude of spe-cial events, work and social gatherings, and other busi-nesses ensure its reputation as a pacesetter for collabora-tive working environments.

New retail destinations, particularly on the eastern side, are activating pedestri-

an traffic. Restaurants, coffee shops, breweries, distilleries and wineries have embraced the community, further fostering the eclectic scene. One of the first was Crema Coffeehouse, which opened in 2009 at 2862 Larimer St. and immediately became a neighborhood hot spot. An-other is Populist, a communal restaurant at 32nd and Larimer, which was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal. The Source, another Zeppelin project, located in a former 1880s brick foundry at 3350 Brighton Blvd., houses an artisan food market with award-winning restaurants, including Acorn.

Other notable examples include Great Divide Brew-ery, and its new $38 million facility opening at 35th and Brighton Boulevard later this year; Infinite Monkey Theorem, an urban winery at 3200 Larimer St.; and the recently announced Blue Moon Brewery, which will an-chor Menalto LLC’s five-acre mixed-use proposed enter-tainment district along the South Platte River and front-ing 38th Street. Expected to open next year, the tasting house and brewery will occupy approximately 26,000 square feet of space in the project, which can include

TRENDS in Tenant Representation

Andrew Blaustein

Managing Director,

Newmark Grubb

Knight Frank

Matt Davidson Managing

Director, Newmark

Grubb Knight Frank

JUNE 2015 \ BUILDING DIALOGUE \ 43

an additional 80,000 square feet of retail, 400,000 square feet of office space and 400 parking spaces, and is expected to signifi-cantly increase activity in the neighborhood.

Perhaps one of the best markers of the diverse and hip vibe is the RiNo Beach Club at 35th and Walnut streets. Not your mother’s beach club, this pop-up urban beach is made up of 10,000 square feet of sand, beach volleyball courts and a giant above-ground pool. The neighboring EXDO Event Center and Hall at 1399 35th St., in the historic Goldberg Brothers Building, hosts a variety of community functions, from corporate events to roller derbies.

The Industry collaborative team also announced its latest project: Stride, Colorado’s New Health Tech Ecosystem – a pub-lic-private venture bringing workspace and amenities to RiNo and activating the 38th and Blake Station of the new East Rail Line. Phase I will attract a mix of health care-related companies from around Colorado and the U.S. The open floor plans with community kitchens, lounges, conference rooms and strategic amenities will foster interaction and collaboration, hallmarks of the RiNo community.

Additional proposed area redevelopments include Porta Power, also known as the Rock Drill Site, and Westfield’s Mid-town Industrial at 4044 Brighton Blvd. Westfield acquired Mid-town Industrial in 2013 with an eye toward a large and long term redevelopment. Currently a 368,000-square-foot mul-titenant project featuring short-term leases, Westfield has the ability to develop up to 1.2 million square feet of product with a variety of uses. Given the proximity to the 38th Street com-muter rail station and immediate access to I-70, this project is expected to attract large corporate users wanting a campus en-

vironment, as well as smaller creative and start-up companies. Currently a warehouse for used industrial racking and furni-ture equipment, Porta Power is a historic 270,000-square-foot facility located at the north end of RiNo. While development plans are under consideration, the existing building’s unique character and strategic location offers nearly endless possibili-ties for the right users.

The city of Denver’s thought leadership and investment in Brighton Boulevard will ensure that updated street infrastruc-ture fosters pedestrian access and sustainable growth. The city’s North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative guarantees integrated planning and deliberate connections between RiNo and its five converging neighborhoods – each playing a unique and signifi-cant role in neighborhood revitalization.

Multifamily development is a vital element in the creation of a well-rounded and vibrant 24/7 community and in RiNo, multifamily developers are showing no signs of slowing, with four projects currently underway. Projects like Crossing at De-nargo Market and Broadstone RiNo create a premium residen-tial environment that millennials and artistic types gravitate toward.

As Denver grows and changes character, the metro area is evolving the neighborhood mosaic and transforming older communities into vibrant live/work/play areas. Indeed, RiNo is not your mother’s neighborhood – it is a vibrant new urban center at the forefront of this conversion, and expanding Den-ver tenant options. \\

ablaustein@ngkf.commatt.davidson@ngkf.com

TRENDS in Tenant Representation