{"id":824,"date":"2025-07-31T11:45:42","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T11:45:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.agencywebdesigners.com\/?p=824"},"modified":"2025-07-31T14:25:22","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T14:25:22","slug":"denver-may-soon-have-multiple-stadium-districts-along-the-south-platte-river-can-the-city-support-them-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.agencywebdesigners.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/31\/denver-may-soon-have-multiple-stadium-districts-along-the-south-platte-river-can-the-city-support-them-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Denver may soon have multiple stadium districts along the South Platte River. Can the city support them all?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before the industrial age, before railyards and steam plants and I-25 melded a concrete jungle around a polluted river, the South Platte was the genesis of Denver<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The riverbanks were mined for gold. The river itself was used for irrigation for farmlands. For over a century, a cycle of neglect and refurbishment<\/a> has flowed through the currents. Members of the Denver City Council formed the South Platte River Committee last year<\/a>, dedicated to properly review all legislation impacting a long stretch of property lining the rushing heart of the city.<\/p>\n

The council took action, as Councilwoman Jamie Torres said, because they knew what was coming. The future of development, in Denver, lies in the ripe hundreds of acres along this snaking corridor.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can be revitalized,\u201d Torres told The Denver Post, \u201cin ways that we\u2019ve not seen it in our own lifetime.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a town dominated by fandom, a mix of sports ownership groups has now planted their flag at various stops along the Platte. Start with Coors Field, the centerpiece of LoDo. Continue a mile down the river, where Kroenke Sports & Entertainment is investing in the sprawling River Mile district<\/a> and a new-look entertainment redevelopment<\/a> around Ball Arena. Down I-25, owners of a new NWSL franchise plan to integrate a new soccer stadium with an entertainment complex at Santa Fe Yards<\/a>. And a heap of evidence points to the Broncos\u2019 interest in a new stadium site at Burnham Yard, with the franchise connected to a string of land purchases around the railyard<\/a> in the past year.<\/p>\n

But between plans for Ball Arena and a new NWSL team, and the possibility of Broncos redevelopment at Burnham, that\u2019s three potential stadium districts in a constricted five-mile radius \u2014 not even including Coors in LoDo. The issue for Denver is whether enough demand exists to properly support so many sports-anchored developments in such a tight space.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a boon,\u201d Torres said. \u201cIt is also kind of blasting open the doors for everybody else\u2019s interests as well. And that can happen \u2014 that can kind of steamroll community, in a lot of ways that makes me really worried.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clustering such districts, as Riverfront Park Homeowners Association president Don Cohen put it, could theoretically boost foot traffic and tax revenue in the area. But many experts are concerned that overlapping amenities could sap benefits to Denver \u2014 and inflate housing costs for surrounding communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think this is monumentally important,\u201d said Brad Segal, president of Denver planning firm Progressive Urban Management Associates, \u201cto the future of the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u2022\u2022<\/p>\n

In the past couple of years, the Broncos\u2019 quest for the next-best stadium fit has taken them to inspections of sports entertainment districts across the country. They\u2019ve been to Wrigleyville, the ballpark district around Wrigley Field in Chicago. They\u2019ve been to Hollywood Park, the KSE-owned district around the Rams\u2019 gleaming SoFi Stadium.<\/p>\n

Owner Greg Penner even tagged along on a trip to see The Battery Atlanta \u2014 the staple area around Atlanta\u2019s new Truist Park.<\/p>\n

What they\u2019ve seen: The trend of a stadium surrounded by a \u201csea of asphalt surface parking,\u201d as president Damani Leech said, is going away. Replaced, now, by the idea of a sports-anchored community.<\/p>\n

Mike Neary, KSE\u2019s executive VP of business operations and real estate, believes the numerous plans for stadium districts \u201cshow how bullish the market is on the future of Denver.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have seen with comparable highly desirable mixed-use projects, including our own in other cities, that when these districts are anchored by pro sports venues, they create their own high demand,\u201d Neary said.<\/p>\n

\"Fans
Fans are seen walking through the Battery Atlanta prior to Game Five of the National League Division Series between the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals at SunTrust Park on Oct. 9, 2019, in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Carmen Mandato\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n