About Denver's Stapleton

Last Sunday I had the pleasure of meeting some future clients. The brother and sister-in-law of the husband of my wife’s boss (did you follow that?) were in Denver for a long weekend. Martin and Lola currently live in California but are considering moving here in a few years when Martin retires. While in town they got to witness the Nuggets beating the Lakers after 16 straight losses, and they decided they wanted to see what Colorado has to offer in the way of “green” communities.

Back home they currently have solar hot water, they generate solar electricity and have a battery backup to deal with occasional blackouts. They have energy-efficient Bosch appliances, low-e windows, and have made various other improvements to their home in an effort to make it more “green”. So they are educated consumers when it comes to these features in a home.

When I first spoke with Martin over the phone he told me that they had been up to Boulder to look at a few homes, and they were planning a trip up around Fort Collins to look at a few others. But what he really wanted was to live in a community that integrated sustainability and energy-efficiency. I immediately thought of Stapleton!

You can find pocket of green homes throughout the Front Range. McStain has a new development going up along the Boulder Turnpike, on Sheridan Blvd. The even have some homes in the Platt Park neighborhood. There are plenty of custom home builders scraping lots throughout Denver and putting up a "green" house or two. But nothing can compare to Stapleton.

Stapleton is a neighborhood in Northeast Denver that is the largest redevelopment project in the nation. It's 7.5 square mile footprint includes residential, commercial, retail, and parks. Lots and lots of parks. In fact, you can’t go more than a couple of blocks in any direction without finding a park.

The entire community is an example of the concept of New Urbanism: with a mix of housing, an abundance of walking/bike trails and parks, town centers, a well organized neighborhood association, plenty of front porches and alleys. Yet Stapleton has taken New Urbanism to a new level by incorporating sustainability into the planning.

Every new home in Stapleton is now being built to a minimum of Energy Star certified, even though there are some builders that are going even beyond that. For example, Harvard Homes has built a Near Zero Energy Home that will cost the homeowner as little as $700 a year in utility bills. This home is not only Energy Star, but also LEED for Homes certified.

So with my buyer’s needs in mind, this is where I started with Martin and Lola. Sherri, the salesperson at Harvard, was wonderful in explaining all that they do in building a healthy, high quality, energy-efficient home. Also, builders always have such wonderful maps and she helped me explain the current layout of the community as well as the future development.

I also took them to the New Town Builder’s model homes. New Town homes are a little smaller than the Harvard Homes, but are equal in quality. And while New Town does not have a solar option on their homes, they utilized advanced framing techniques and (IMHO) have the highest standards in indoor air quality in Stapleton. We were able to tour another LEED for Homes certified home built by New Town Builders too.

We wrapped up the day by looking at some resale homes and touring the area. Driving by the dog park, through the 29th Ave town center, past a few pools, and the 80-acre Central Park, really gave them a sense of the community.

But Martin and Lola were most blown away by the quality of construction and the energy-efficient features that were standard in so many of the homes we looked at. The thoughtfulness of the master developers, from the incorporation of green space to how the various builders were dispersed among the community, has prevented this planned community from looking like so many other “cookie cutter” neighborhoods and was also a big hit.

So, while it will be a while before I can hope to see a commission, I know that when the tiem is right Martin and Lola will be asking for another tour of Stapleton. As Martin said just before we parted ways, "I'm sold on Stapleton".

Did you know that Stapleton is currently divided into five distinct neighborhoods? East 29th Ave neighborhood is where it all began. The retail stores around 29th Avenue and the aptly named Founders Green provide the anchor for the multitude of housing options. You will find apartments, lofts, affordable and senior housing, as well as a wide variety of single family homes.

Eastbridge is what they call the neighborhood on the completely opposite side of Stapleton. Eastbridge is everything located east of the Westerly Creek greenway, and will be the home to the next town center at Havana and MLK. The most recent development in the Eastbridge neighborhood has been the opening of the F-15 pool on 28th St last summer.

Located in the center of what is the current Stapleton is the Westerly Creek neighborhood. It surrounds Westerly Creek Elementary School and is bound by parks on three of it's four sides. This neighborhood is also home to the original Stapleton pool.

The south end of Stapleton is called, guess what? South End. On either side of Central Park you will find The Bladium Health Club and a the new RE/MAX building, which is home to Perk-n-Play, An's Lemon Grass Cafe, and the Sweet Life Nail Bar & Lounge, to name a few.

Lastly, the newest neighborhood is Central Park North. Located immediately north of the 80-acre Central Park, this neighborhood is also close to Quebec Square and a future light rail stop. Central Park North is now the home to most of the builder models now being offered in Stapleton.

I visited three builders today. Infinity Homes currently has no inventory homes for sale.

Harvard Homes only has one Near Zero Energy Home available. It is a Courtyard model, 3BR/3.5BA home, listed at $758K.

McStain, on the other hand, has several inventory homes. In their Casita paired homes product, there is a 2BR/2BA Cielo listed at $290K and a 2BR/2BA Luna listed at $250. Both are approximately 1000 square feet and come with an attached 2 car garage.

McStain is also running a special on three penthouse units on Xenia St. The Alcott, a 3BR/3.5BA (including two master suites) has been reduced to $435K. The price of the 4BR/3.5BA Franklin has dropped $47K to $450K. While the largest of the three units, the 4BR/4BA Grove is now only $525K.

Lastly, McStain is selling a Lincoln row home near the dog park for $350K. The Lincoln has 2 bedrooms and 2.5 baths.

SUN Announces 2009 Board Elections

By Bryan Penny

Are you new to the neighborhood? Have you hoped that more voices from the community would be represented in development decisions? Want to help make Stapleton a better place to live and work? Do you have talents and skills that could be put to good use in planning future development in Stapleton? Are you a current resident who has been looking for an opportunity to get involved with neighborhood issues? If your answer is “yes” to any of these questions, please consider running for a leadership position in the Stapleton United Neighbors Board of Directors.

The first Board of Directors of SUN was elected in the spring of 2004. During the past five years, much has been accomplished. SUN developed By-laws and established non-profit status. Several community forums have been held and a neighborhood watch program has been started. SUN has also supported alternative transportation planning and active living in the community. SUN now hosts regular forums with Forest City representatives and officials from the City to help keep Stapleton residents up to date on the state of our neighborhood. SUN also organizes the annual Block Party Day and the Kickball Tournament, to help bring new neighbors together, and build the bonds that are critical to strong communities. Now it is time to make plans for another year of progress with the election of members of the SUN Board of Directors. Of the 15 seats on the SUN Board, seven are up for elected this year. As Stapleton is always growing, SUN is committed to including on the Board residents from all areas, including newly built homes.

A nominating committee has been formed to identify members of the Stapleton community who are interested in becoming more involved in the effort to organize the neighborhood. Please consider sharing your voice and experience by becoming a candidate for the SUN Board of Directors.

Stapleton United Neighbors Board Election FAQs

What is SUN, and what role does it play in the neighborhood?

The mission of SUN is to work for the betterment of the Stapleton neighborhood and the City and County of Denver by providing: (i) a forum for residents living within the boundaries of SUN to discuss and resolve issues; (ii) a network of communication; (iii) a means of acting on matters of importance to the community as a whole. Check out the SUN website at www.stapletonunitedneighbors.com for more information.

What do SUN Board members do?

SUN board members are responsible for helping bring the mission of SUN to life through work in the community. That entails at least the following responsibilities: Attendance at 9 or more of the 11 SUN board meetings each year (currently scheduled at 7:30pm on the fourth Monday of January through November). Chairing or serving on a SUN committee (transportation, education, outreach, safety and communication), serving as a SUN liaison on a Stapleton Citizens’ Advisory Board (CAB) or Stapleton Development Corporation (SDC) committee (parks advisory group, zoning and planning, housing diversity, community communications and design review) or serving as a SUN liaison to InterNeighborhood Cooperation (INC). Authoring at least one article per year for the SUN Spot section of the Front Porch and Tower Ledger. Attending and helping out with SUN sponsored community events and forums. Promoting the work of SUN and the ethos of SUN’s mission in the community.

What is the time commitment involved?

Monthly board meetings typically last an hour and a half to two hours. SUN, CAB and SDC committee meetings are usually once a month and run about an hour to an hour and a half and INC meetings are the second Saturday of the month for three hours. Beyond that, keeping up with voice mail, email, authoring a SUN Spot article and attending other events and meetings can add as little as a few minutes to as much as several hours per week. Board members should also monitor Grapevine posting on StapletonOnline.com weekly for issues relevant to the committees they are a part of or attend. As a general rule, SUN will involve about 10-15 hours a month of time March 2008 Stapleton Front Porch commitment, and potentially more depending on the calendar of events.

What do I need to do to run for the Board?

The application process entails submitting a 200 word statement of interest and bio to Bryan Penny (bryanpenny@gmail.com) by April 1, and attending the SUN Forum and Election on May 5th. The statement of interest and bio will run in the May issue of the Front Porch and Tower Ledger and be posted online on SUN”s website at www.StapletonUnitedNeighbors.com.

How are the elections determined?

In the past, there have been just enough candidates to fill each slot, but in the event of more candidates than slots, each voter has 7 votes and the top 7 vote gatherers are elected to the board.

Some pretty smart people at StimulusWatch.org have posted an interactive list of "shovel ready" projects as submitted by the US Conference of Mayors. They allow citizens can vote on which projects the feel are critical or not.

For example, you can vote on the proposed I-70/Central Park interchange or whether or not you think it's important for 56th Ave to connect between Quebec and Havana.

The point being, once the stimulus package is signed into law the Mayors will then apply for grants to pay for the most critical projects.