Downtown Denver’s $570 Million Recovery Plan Receives Strong Voter Support | Company

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s first major initiative to revive downtown after the pandemic downturn received strong support from eligible voters.

More than 81% of voters chose to expand the Downtown Development Authority — created to fund the 2014 restoration of Union Station through tax increments — to the rest of downtown Denver, generating nearly half a billion dollars for financing projects throughout the city center.

“As cities across the country struggle to return their downtowns to pre-pandemic levels, Denver has decided to tackle this seemingly insoluble challenge head on and bet on our cultural, social and economic core by passing 6A with more than 80% support,” Johnston said in a statement Wednesday.

City estimates showed that about 2,500 people were eligible to vote on moving the boundaries. State law only allows voters who live, own property or operate a business within the current Downtown Development Authority boundaries to vote on the expansion.

Turnout in the preliminary elections fell short of estimates, with a total of 807 votes counted as of Wednesday morning. According to the preliminary results, more than 650 voted yes and 150 voted no.

Denver’s election results won’t be certified by the Clerk and Recorder until Nov. 22.

“I am cautiously optimistic that our ballot issue will pass,” Doug Tisdale, Regional Transportation District board member and chairman of the Downtown Development Authority, posted on LinkedIn Tuesday evening.

A Downtown Development Authority is a public financing vehicle that uses future tax revenue from development projects to pay off debt or finance new projects.

Denver’s DDA — created in 2008 for the major renovation of the iconic transit hub — currently generates about $40 million annually and was at risk of dissolution as it came close to paying off Union Station’s loans, city planner David Gaspers said to the Denver Planning Board in September.

The city worked on an accelerated timeline to preserve the DDA and the $40 million it already generates as downtown struggles with rising office vacancies, lagging pedestrian traffic and disruptive construction on the 16th Street Mall.

Johnston announced the expansion plan for Union Station in Maysaying it would help downtowns get out of the economic “doom loop” that plagues many city centers in the US. The expansion is expected to generate approximately $570 million over the next ten years.

“The successful expansion of the Downtown Development Authority gives us the resources we need to invest in the transformative projects that will revitalize Downtown Denver. The funding will help deliver new opportunities for downtown and beyond – from new housing to revitalized public spaces to economic opportunity and growth,” Johnston said in his statement Wednesday morning, thanking City council, local partners and residents for their help in implementing the expansion.

In a statement, Kourtny Garrett, president and CEO of Downtown Denver Partnership, said the organization couldn’t be more proud that 81% of voters voted yes to the expansion.

“As we engaged with the electorate to educate about the measure, we were encouraged to find not only strong support for 6A, but also widespread optimism for downtown among residents and businesses alike,” Garrett said. “The passage of 6A represents both an exciting milestone for the renewal and expansion of the Downtown Denver Development Authority and a vote of confidence in our future from our downtown community.”

What should downtown Denver look like in twenty years? The work is beginning to shape the official vision

The Downtown Development Authority still needs City Council approval to change its “Development Plan,” a document that sets the parameters on which tax revenue can be spent. Currently focused on supporting growth around Union Station, an amended plan draft shifts the focus to post-pandemic economic revitalization.

The City Council is expected to vote on the design at its Dec. 9 meeting.

Once approved, the mayor’s office said the city will open applications for downtown revitalization projects and funding is expected to be rolled out in 2025.