Posted January 4, 200916 yr ...continued from http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18119.new.html This last part is a walking tour of the University of Colorado at Denver. The campus is on the former site of the Village of Auraria. They leveled much of the town to put up ugly 70s buildings, but they did leave behind some great historic treasures. DENVER TOUR MAP: Part 1 Morning in LoDo and Downtown http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18083.0.html Part 2 Boulder (Mountains and downtown) http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18084.new.html Part 3 Residential Boulder http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18085.new.html Part 4 Dusk in the Highlands and Downtown http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18093.new.html Part 5 The Financial District and Condo Hell http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18094.0.html Part 6 Cherry Creek Shopping District http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18117.new.html Part 7 Residential Denver http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18118.new.html Part 8 City Park http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18119.new.html Part 9 University of Colorado at Denver http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,18120.new.html DAY 4: UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO at DENVER A view from the campus to show its proximity to downtown They left "Historic 9th Street" intact. This is right in the middle of campus, and they use these houses as offices, classrooms, and conference rooms This one really interested me. As a Milwaukee native, we have a ton of buildings named after native Golda Mier. But I'd never heard of this part of her story: And here's the house The former Tivoli Brewery is now the Student Union That's it for campus. As it was our last day in Denver, I decided to detour back through Confluence Park and LoDo on the way back to the hotel. The original REI is massive and beautiful. This is the Contemporary Art Museum in LoDo. It's black on the outside, but full of natural light on the inside One more stop at the Denver Performing Arts Complex during daylight. That's it...goodbye Denver: I really had a blast on this trip. Denver was so much more than I ever imagined.
January 4, 200916 yr Thank you for all the support and patience everyone. I really had a blast touring this city. I had the idea going into it that it was just a boring conglomeration of builders homes like Phoenix. I was clearly mistaken and was blown away by the spirit and built environment of the city. I will definitely be going back in a few years when they complete their Fastracks program. From www.rtd-fastracks.com: FasTracks is RTD's 12-year comprehensive plan to build and operate high-speed rail lines and expand and improve bus service and park-n-Rides throughout the region.FasTracks includes: 122 miles of new light rail and commuter rail 18 miles of bus rapid transit service 57 new transit stations 21,213 additional parking spaces at transit park-n-Rides Enhanced bus service and FastConnects throughout the region FasTracks provides many ways to ride a bus or train. Drive to a park-n-Ride and get on a bus or train Take a bus to a rail station Walk to a bus or rail station Ride your bike to transit stations and store your bike in lockers and racks or take it with you on buses and trains
January 4, 200916 yr Absolutely beautiful photos...thanks for the extensive tour. I'm hoping to get to Denver sometime within the next couple of months, but don't know for sure if I'll be able to. The city looks like it is doing everything right (regionalism, transit, environmental, urban design) and I really look forward to seeing it in person. This photo in particular really took the cake for me. Thanks again.
January 4, 200916 yr Absolutely beautiful photos...thanks for the extensive tour. I'm hoping to get to Denver sometime within the next couple of months, but don't know for sure if I'll be able to. The city looks like it is doing everything right (regionalism, transit, environmental, urban design) and I really look forward to seeing it in person. This photo in particular really took the cake for me. Thanks again. I agree .. there's so much to like about the photos you took. It just seems like a city I'd really enjoy, although I do wonder about the ethnic diversity? I really love the aforementioned photo, too .. great development right along the river. Very nice.
January 4, 200916 yr About ethnic diversity...I saw a LOT of white people. But when I did run into pockets of African American or Latino people, they were all very welcoming and all mentioned that they felt no barriers in the city. I was astonished. Despite the general boundary-less-ness of the city, there are still distinct neighborhoods. Five Points, an area East and Northeast of downtown is predominantly African American. The neighborhood, while still a bit economically depressed, has not been neglected by city funds. The light rail runs directly through the neighborhood, there's plenty of African American public art, and they have the largest branch in the Denver Public Library system, the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library: For latino population, Denver has one of the highest in the nation. Approximately 33% of the residents are Latino, and the city's former mayor Federico Peña is highly regarded as one of the most progressive in the nation, later becoming the US Secretary of Transportation and the the US Secretary of Energy. The Latino population is strong, culturally vibrant and active. The Santa Fe Arts District is in the heart of a Latin district, and is home to the largest concentration of the city's art galleries. I wish that I had more time to explore these two neighborhoods, I walked through them, but didn't have enough time to take many photos.
January 4, 200916 yr Denver looks very progressive and clean. I love the use of the old buildings on the campus of Colorado at Denver, though I think I would choose to go to Boulder instead.
January 4, 200916 yr Cool pics. AJ you have family there or something? Or you just went for the architecture conference? Was it AIA?
January 5, 200916 yr It was the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) Forum. AIAS is affiliated with the AIA. Forum rotates cities every year. It was in Milwaukee last year, Boston the year before, and Cincinnati before that. Next year it'll be in Minneapolis. Other than the conference, I have no affiliation with the city.
January 5, 200916 yr the whole series was great. thx for bringing me up to date on denver. still seems kind of bland, but flashy isnt everything. they are doing things right and i see a lot of construction activity. so count me as a fan, even though it's probably not a place for me personally. the neighborhood housing stock reminds me of the older columbus styled brick homes, w/ cleveland's oc gingerbread thrown in (or any small ohio town blocks of nice homes, like say just for example wellington). i was surprized at how familiar it looked, i guess i thought it would be more unique. speaking of unique, did you notice or is there any housing style on the order of cleveland doubles that is unique to the denver area? hmm, i suppose maybe ski lodge styles?
January 5, 200916 yr Much of Denver has a pretty eclectic mix of houses, but I did find some unique ones. Here's a link talking about the Denver Foursquare: http://www.leonardleonard.com/neighborhoods/styles_square.shtml I took a picture of one of those houses on the linked page. It's in my "Residential Denver" section. Also, the Golda Meir house explanation in the "University of Colorado at Denver" section says that it's a "Denver Double" style.
January 5, 200916 yr I would love to live in an eclectic (architecturally) neighborhood like that. Screw uniformity. I'm all about chaos and conflict :P I love bungalows. They make the neighborhood feel intimate and cozy. That's one of the reasons why people love German Village so much. I'd love to see new bungalow neighborhoods. I guess the only problem with that is people demand garages and homes with over 2000 sq. ft. which makes it challenging to make a 1 story.
January 5, 200916 yr I would love to live in an eclectic (architecturally) neighborhood like that. Screw uniformity. I'm all about chaos and conflict :P I couldn't agree more. :)
January 5, 200916 yr Residentially, Denver is a mixture of Northwest (Seattle, Portland) with random brick Midwest (notably, Kansas City). There are areas of Denver that are similar to old Columbus (Capitol Hill, City Park, Five Points) but other than that, it's mostly Western US bungalows. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
January 6, 200916 yr Outstanding tour!!!!!!! Denver is a great city and has put many of the important pieces of urban life together. I am very excited to start my new job in the Denver area in two weeks. Mass transit, mountains, and 300 days of sunshine.
January 6, 200916 yr Much of Denver has a pretty eclectic mix of houses, but I did find some unique ones. Here's a link talking about the Denver Foursquare: http://www.leonardleonard.com/neighborhoods/styles_square.shtml I took a picture of one of those houses on the linked page. It's in my "Residential Denver" section. Also, the Golda Meir house explanation in the "University of Colorado at Denver" section says that it's a "Denver Double" style. ah ha now i see, thx. those do have some enough unique enough elements, although still reminds me of stuff around columbus. yes the meir double seems like a new twist or style for sure (vs. ohio). Residentially, Denver is a mixture of Northwest (Seattle, Portland) with random brick Midwest (notably, Kansas City). There are areas of Denver that are similar to old Columbus (Capitol Hill, City Park, Five Points) but other than that, it's mostly Western US bungalows. yeah thats what i figured. that's why the stuff he showed surprised me, it looked familar and grander rather western bungalowish, although that was there too. i've never been around denver neighborhoods, only around downtown. for some reason i was expecting a lot of utterly unique housing, i dk why, i guess because denver is so isolated.
January 9, 200916 yr ProkNo5, thanks so much for the tours! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Especially this one and City Park. I love how they kept "Historic 9th Street" and are using the buildings.
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