Interior Design/Tenant Improvement: Best Project: Downtown Denver Partnership Tenant Improvement

Downtown Denver Partnership Tenant Improvement
Denver
Best Project

Owner: Downtown Denver Partnership
Lead Design Firm: Gensler
General Contractor: JE Dunn Construction
Structural Engineer: Apex Engineering
MEP Engineer: MDP Engineering Group
Key Subcontractors: Arapahoe Fire Protection; Concepts in Millwork Inc.; Engineered Demolition Inc.; Greiner Electric; Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc.; National Coatings; Spacecon Specialty Contractors

Downtown Denver Partnership’s new headquarters on the 16th Street Mall gives the organization a literal window on local business. It is adjacent to the historic D&F clock tower, with a first-hand view of both the opportunities and challenges of 21st-century urban environments. Simply put, the mall location provides the kind of literal two-way transparency to the community that symbolizes how DDP works.

But building it wasn’t easy. The as-built drawings for the previous tenant didn’t match reality. As a result, the team had to adjust designs to accommodate ceiling heights and work around mechanical systems. Problems with the substrate also had to be overcome. But thanks to creativity and coordination, the project came in on time and on budget.

The scope included 11,540 sq ft of office space with seven private offices, 38 open workstations, three huddle rooms, four conference rooms and six collaboration spaces. The main conference area can hold up to 40 people and looks directly out onto 16th Street with a full-window wall that makes it visible to the community.

Working on the ground level of an occupied building in the middle of the 16th Street Mall brought a bundle of challenges. But the team made sure the project went as smoothly as possible by keeping communication open with everyone involved and treating all stakeholders as partners.

During the build-out of its new space, DDP was housed in a temporary third-floor space. The proximity to the project fostered efficient decision-making. If an issue required DDP’s input, the contractor could quickly find the right people for an answer.

Another challenge came through a slight delay caused by a construction project directly above DDP’s space. The respective contractors held multiple meetings to schedule the work and keep both projects safe, on time and within budget.

DDP’s new space makes the urban-service organization more accessible to the public and gives Denver’s downtown community leaders a venue where they can work together to continue building a vibrant and sustainable urban core.