Developers present two views of future for Denver Union Station

Which proposal do you like better?

The teams bidding on the redevelopment of Denver Union Station unveiled their proposals for the historic building, with one envisioning a $48 million boutique hotel and the other a $21.1 million revamp that includes a market, restaurant, bar and office space.

Both developers, who presented their plans to the Regional Transportation District and a crowd of more than 200 people Thursday evening at the Colorado Convention Center, say they would have their projects completed by the time the transit portion of the development opens in the spring of 2014. Both would use $17 million RTD has earmarked for the renovation, which includes $5 million in FASTER funding and $12 million from the recent sale of land near the station, to help finance the project.

They also will have $28 million available from the Denver Union Station Project Authority to maintain the public spaces.

Union Station Neighborhood Co. — the master developer for the entire 19.5-acre transit district that surrounds the station, the bus terminal and the rail platforms — wants to renovate the large, open train room with a restaurant, new waiting-room amenities and an information kiosk to aid travelers and visitors.

It also is proposing a walk-through food market in the building's south wing, with stalls featuring the goods of local purveyors.

Its plan also includes about 8,800 square feet of separate restaurant space in the building's north wing and about 25,000 square feet of leasable office space on the station's upper floors.

The developer already has agreements with operators for the market, restaurant and bar, said Frank Cannon, development director for the project. He declined to name who they are.

The company has identified $22 million in available funding sources that would enable work on the historic station to start immediately, Cannon said. Those include the $17 million from RTD and a $2 million equity investment from the developer. It also is lining up $3 million in historic tax credits.

Union Station Alliance, led by Sage Hospitality's Walter Isenberg and longtime LoDo developer Dana Crawford, wants to put a 130-room boutique hotel in the building, along with a restaurant and other retail uses.

The hotel, which team members described as "Denver's living room," would be affiliated with the Oxford Hotel on 17th Street, a block away, and would have access to its parking.

Development team member Jim Johnson, of GE Johnson, said the hotel would ensure the building is active 24 hours a day. "There's no lock on a hotel," he said. "We will be a place where Denver extends a welcome handshake to the world."

Financing for the $48 million project would include $11.5 million in equity, $7.5 million from the sale of tax credits, mortgage financing and the $17 million from RTD.

The general contractor for the hotel would be Milender White Construction Co., which has guaranteed the project will come in on time and on budget, according to the group, which said the project is 85 percent pre-leased.

Union Station Alliance estimates its project would create 55 hotel jobs, 70 restaurant jobs and 100 retail jobs, as well as hundreds of jobs in the surrounding neighborhood. The project also would create 15 construction jobs under RTD's Workforce Initiative Now program, which aims to provide skills training and jobs on upcoming RTD FasTracks projects.

RTD staff members intend to select one of the plans and make a recommendation by the end of the month. After that, they will negotiate with the selected developer, and the RTD board will make a final decision early next year.

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