Fox Park developer José Carredano (left) discusses a plan of the project with Denver Mayor Mike Johnston on Thursday. (Thomas Gounley/BusinessDen)
Denver’s Fox Park project aims to have a little bit of everything from the start.
The 41-acre project at the confluence of Interstates 70 and 25 will ultimately include a mixed use development ranging from hotels to office space, apartments and even a concert hall.
And while the full construction of the site will likely take at least seven years, according to José Carredano, work on at least part of each of these components should begin early next year.
“Our main focus is to take advantage of all the uses that Fox Park will offer. We want people to understand that this is not just residential and office space,” said Carredano, who is leading the development team.
A huge building that was once a printing plant for the Denver Post is set to be given a new purpose. (Thomas Gounley/BusinessDen)
Carredano spoke to BusinessDen shortly before Denver Mayor Michael Johnston, Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Denver) and other officials arrived to speak at a ceremony marking the completion of environmental remediation work on the property.
Carredano’s group bought the property, which housed a massive building that once served as the Denver Post’s printing facility. in 2019 for $56.6 millionAt the time, part of the land was a Superfund site. The Boston and Colorado Smelting Co.’s Argo Smelter operated there for more than a century.
Carredano’s group began environmental remediation in 2022. More than 470,000 cubic meters, or nearly 32,000 truckloads, of contaminated soil were removed.
In addition to the renovation, Carredano’s group has also completed infrastructure work, including extending Fox Street to the property. He pointed to a fire hydrant and said a lot of work had been needed to get it there.
“We spent almost $30 million on infrastructure this year,” Carredano said, “so this is a big deal.”
The view of downtown Denver from Fox Park, with the extended Fox Street in the foreground. (Thomas Gounley/BusinessDen)
Fox Park is located in a part of Globeville known as Fox Island. a development restriction that does not exist anywhere else in DenverBecause the area has limited car access and the city government wants to avoid over-congestion in the area, developers are only allowed to build if they are allocated a certain number of “trips” that correspond to the additional car load their project will cause in the area.
José Carredano speaks at a ceremony Thursday to mark the completion of environmental cleanup at the site as Rep. Diana DeGette looks on. (Thomas Gounley/BusinessDen)
Last year, all available trips were already booked, so some locations could no longer be rebuilt. But more trips will be available while Fox Park’s infrastructure is being upgraded, including a possible new bridge from the property to neighboring Sunnyside.
Carredano said the rest of the year will be spent continuing infrastructure work, digging pits for a future underground parking garage and finishing up the interior of the former post office building – the only building currently on the site.
Carredano’s group and Dallas-based Trammell Crow will convert part of the building into office space, and another part will become a Virgin Hotel. Work on that and a nearby 450-unit residential project is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of next year. World Trade Center Denver has agreed to take over some of the office space.
Work on a 2,500-seat venue is also scheduled to begin in the first quarter.
Carredano said only that the venue would be run by a “well-known operator in the city,” but a map posted on site showed an area marked AEG – a clear reference to Los Angeles-based Anschutz Entertainment Group, whose existing local venues include the Mission Ballroom and Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre, among others.
“There is a lot to discuss,” Carredano said as he took the podium at the start of the ceremony. “The most important thing is: Welcome to Fox Park.”
