16th Street Mall rebrands as its 4-year makeover approaches finish
Downtown’s main corridor, originally known as the 16th Street Mall, has received a fresh identity to go along with its new pavers, trees and light fixtures. Skip the formalities, drop the last name, just call it 16th Street or for those who want more, call it “The Denver Way.”
That’s the message from city officials and executives at the Downtown Denver Partnership, who argue that dropping “Mall” was long overdue. A major renovation now in its fourth year offered a good time to rebrand.
“16th Street is not only the signature spine of our downtown, but the heart and the soul of our city, where our communities take center stage,” said Kourtny Garrett, president and CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership, during a press conference Tuesday.
The 1.25-mile stretch of storefronts, restaurants, hotels and office towers has received a $175.4 million makeover on its original 13 blocks. The project, which started in April 2022 on Market Street, is nearing the home stretch on Broadway and should wrap up in the fall, a year behind schedule.
Rather than waiting for the crisp autumn air, the city, the Partnership and Visit Denver are hosting a series of events throughout the summer, starting with a 16th Street opening block party on Memorial Day at Welton Street, one of three newly permitted common consumption areas downtown where alcohol can be consumed and carried around in a designed zone.
DJ Fisher is the headliner in a concert lineup which will include other electronic dance music artists. Garrett said the outdoor concert is expected to draw thousands of younger fans.
The 16th Street Summer Kickoff will follow on May 31 and June 1, the weekend after next. Among the events on tap are the IFSC World Speed Climbing World Cup; the 16th Street Grand Bazaar, featuring local crafts, clothing and food; the Skyline Beer Garden; and bands, buskers and art installations up and down 16th Street.
“We will now describe this great jewel in Denver as 16th Street, which is a name everyone knows, everyone loves. But we dropped the ‘mall’ because it is so much more than just one retail location or one block. It is an entire mile of experience,” Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said Tuesday when announcing the name change.
As a teenager in the late 1980s, Johnston said he often confused the 16th Street Mall with the Tabor Center, which was a mall. Back then, bad fashion was in vogue — he wore giant breakdancing pants and three Swatches — and so were suburban malls.
Downtown leaders attached Mall to 16th Street when it opened in 1982 in an attempt to lure visitors to an area that had served as a retail hub in the decades prior to suburban flight.
Mall was hip then, it is anything but that now, to the point that retail center owners avoid the label even when it fits. When Park Meadows opened in Douglas County in 1996, it branded itself a “retail resort” rather than a mall. Colorado Mills, FlatIron Crossing and Orchard Town Center don’t claim the last name. Even Cherry Creek Mall, one of the most successful malls in the country, rebranded itself as the Cherry Creek Shopping Center.
The 16th Street Mall, which never really was a mall, was a little late to the rebranding wave.
Spokeswoman Britt Diehl said the Partnership is constantly fielding calls about when the Mall will open. The follow-up questions are usually along the lines of “Where can I buy socks?”
The vision for “The Denver Way” is that the city’s and region’s best eateries, retailers and entertainment venues will place an outpost on 16th Street. Locals and tourists can sample the best Colorado has to offer before heading out to other areas or visiting the original, Johnston said.
As part of the rebranding, the green signs that say 16th Street Mall will be replaced with ones that say 16th Street. Denver artist Brayan Montes-Terrazas, known as YAMZ, is designing the icons and motifs that will be used along the corridor, creating a consistent design theme.
And while RTD’s Free MallRide isn’t going anywhere, the shuttle service will rebrand as the 16th Street Free Ride, said RTD deputy CEO, Angel Peña.
Heavy construction and delays have resulted in a long list of retailers closing their doors along 16th Street. They include Colorado’s only Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo, Panera, Mellow Mushroom, Hard Rock Cafe, Banana Republic, Sephora, McDonald’s, TJ Maxx, Ana’s Norwegian Bakeri, Jason’s Deli and Sofia’s Roman Pizza.
The storefront vacancy rate along 16th Street was 27% last year, compared to 16% for all of downtown. But Garrett said with several blocks reopened, the vacancy rate has fallen to 21% and several high-profile leases are in the works, which should bring that number lower.
Ryan Schmidt, vice president and district manager for PCL Construction’s Denver office, said unexpected infrastructure finds, including a brick tunnel deep beneath 16th Street, contributed to delays early on. Digging went down 20 feet and new utility lines were run with spare capacity to future-proof the corridor from major disruptions down the road.
Another source of delays came in the balancing act of trying to maintain as much access as possible for businesses, Schmidt said.
Several fixes were made to address problems in the original design by the world-famous architect I.M. Pei. Trees constantly died on the original Mall because their roots didn’t have enough room to expand. That problem has been fixed, which should allow for trees to mature and form a more robust and verdant canopy.
None of the original trees on the Mall were healthy enough to transplant, but their struggles were not in vain. Their wood remains on 16th Street in benches and other furniture.
Pavers were another problem point addressed. The original ones, over time, went out of alignment, tripping people. When it rained, they became slick, increasing slips and falls. The new pavers, about 1 million of them, are smaller in size and have a surface with more traction. The rattlesnake pattern that Pei came up with was modified but maintained. And the light fixtures, while new, are a throwback to the original ones, but with color changing LED lights.
Schmidt said the lessons learned in reconstructing the early blocks allowed for a faster pace on the later blocks, which had more modern infrastructure from the 1980s rather than the 1890s and contained fewer surprises.
PCL expects to finish up by Labor Day, Schmidt said. After that, furniture, planters, signage and other items will be installed. 16th Street should finally become “The Denver Way” minus any obstructions by late fall, said Amy Ford, executive director of the Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure.
Downtown’s main corridor, originally known as the 16th Street Mall, has received a fresh identity to go along with its new pavers, trees and light fixtures. Skip the formalities, drop the last name, just call it 16th Street or for those who want more, call it “The Denver Way.” That’s the message from city officials…