Colorado Real Estate Journal - April 19, 2017
Denver Rock Drill is big cool. “You can find really cool, interesting buildings around the city, but they’re on a much, much smaller scale. This is a really unique combination of 1910, 1920 buildings but on a huge scale, which I think is going to be extremely sought-after,” said Trae Rigby, vice president of development at Saunders Development. Saunders and property owners Byron, Andy and Brett Weiss will redevelop the approximately 8-acre Denver Rock Drill Manufacturing Co. site on 39th Avenue between Franklin and High streets in Denver’s Cole neighborhood. The $250 million project will include 700,000 square feet of development: office, retail, residential and a 175-key Sage Hospitality hotel. Preleasing of retail and office space has started, and construction is targeted for first-quarter 2018. There are 150,000 sf of existing, historic structures on site, providing a unique opportunity for a user to take as many as 80,000 to 100,000 sf of creative office space. “I think it will have a look and feel like an Industry with open workstations, shared conference rooms, but I suspect it’s going to go to a handful of larger office users vs. Industry, where you can lease 200 square feet if you want,” said Rigby, referring to the highly successful Industry development in nearby River North. Denver Rock Drill is two blocks from the 38th and Blake station on the Denver Union Station-Denver International Airport commuter rail line. It’s in a neighborhood that is in the path of growth and just beginning to transform, Rigby said. “Very quickly it will feel part of the Denver fabric,” he said. With marketing underway, the first phase of Denver Rock Drill will begin to come into view. “We’ve got a basis of design, we’ve got our brokerage team in place, they’re out in the market seeking suitable tenants, and that level of interest will drive what the phasing will be,” said Rigby, who anticipates the project will develop in “fewer phases than not.” Denver Rock Drill Manufacturing Co. developed pneumatic rock drills, called Waugh drills, that were used in mining all over the world. In the 1920s, the company employed up to 600 people. Byron Weiss, a Denver native and longtime Cole neighborhood resident, bought the property during the savings and loan crisis in 1992. It currently houses his company, Porta Power, a material handling and warehouse supply business. With development of RiNo and commuter rail, Weiss and his sons decided in 2016 to seek a partner to redevelop the property. “I knew early on there was going to be light rail coming into the area, which at the time was a Denver Regional Council of Governments program, and I knew the neighborhood would eventually undergo major changes, although I don’t think I anticipated the pace of change would be so fast,” Weiss said in announcing the project. “I knew this property had enormous potential, both from a local perspective and from a cultural perspective, with its deep Denver history.” The existing machine shop space, with 28-foot ceilings, will be adapted for new office and retail uses. The rest of the redevelopment will be new construction, including an estimated 150,000 sf of office, 65,000 sf of retail, the hotel and 180 residential units. Although Rigby said residential units aren’t likely to be built at this point in the real estate cycle, “I think it would be tremendous for the neighborhood if we could deliver for-sale product,” he said, adding that is something that will be considered. Tryba Architects is incorporating courtyards, rail spurs and lanes into the design. The retail is intended to “reflect a culture of craft, production and innovation.” “There is no other place in Denver with such untouched industrial history and the ability to completely customize and repurpose three full city blocks,” said Dorit Fischer of NAI Shames Makovsky, who is handling retail leasing. “We think there are numerous food and beverage operators and cutting-edge companies that will want to be part of this unique site.” Todd Wheeler of Cushman & Wakefield, which is handling office leasing, called Denver Rock Drill “the finest example of adaptive reuse potential in the western United States,” saying it provides the opportunity to create “inspirational, compelling workplaces that offer transportation flexibility, work style flexibility and amenity mixes.”