Apartment giant plans complex with no pool or gym
One of the largest owners of apartments in the country is targeting a retail stretch across from King Soopers in Lincoln Park for one of its newer product lines.
Virginia-based Avalonbay Communities has submitted plans to the city for a seven-story, 222-unit project dubbed “Avalon Kanso Santa Fe” in the 1300 block of Santa Fe Drive.
The “Kanso” moniker is a relatively new one for Avalonbay, which has two projects in Maryland that incorporate the word into their name. When one opened in late December 2020, The Washington Post reported that the building was designed to be more affordable than traditional luxury apartments, with no physical amenities or permanent workers on site.
The concept plan submitted to Denver doesn’t show a pool or gym, one or both of which have been incorporated into most apartment complexes of a similar scale built in the city in recent years. The Washington Post reported that residents of the Kanso building in Maryland can pay an additional charge to get access to pools and gyms at nearby Avalonbay buildings.
An Avalonbay spokeswoman declined to comment on the Denver proposal.
The building, which would have 242 parking spaces, would be constructed on 1.46 acres spanning the west side of the 1300 block. It would replace a shuttered two-story bar building, a stand-alone Mexican restaurant and a small strip center that counts among its tenants Pizza Hut and a liquor store.
The southernmost building, once home to Denver Pony, is owned by 1808 Blake LLC, which paid $1.7 million for it in 2018, records show. The remainder of the site is owned by Diamond W LLC and 7 March LLC, which paid $1.9 million in 2002.
Guy Carteng and Daniel Woodward have signed paperwork on behalf of the current ownership entities, records show. Attempts to reach Carteng for comment were unsuccessful.
The Santa Fe Drive corridor is seeing increased interest from developers.
Lenny Taub’s First Stone Development is building a five-story condo building in the 600 block, and Washington-based Holland Partner Group is constructing a five-story apartment complex in the 1000 block. Developer Leon Cisneros is working on the second of two eightstory apartment projects in the
1200 block. And Minnesota-based Opus Development recently purchased the corner of Colfax Avenue and Kalamath Street for a sevenstory project.
Avalonbay entered the Denver market in September 2017 with the purchase of a 252-unit complex in Lakewood. Its website now lists six apartment complexes in Colorado, as well as one under development in Westminster.
Not listed is the company’s planned project on the former site of Racines restaurant in Capitol Hill. The company’s only completed complex within Denver city limits is Ava Rino, which spans an entire city block at 2600 Lawrence St.