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Arapahoe Square Charrette

PROJECT Project Title: Arapahoe Square Charrette
NominationDate: 1/12/2012 2:41 PM
Local Government: City and County of Denver
Cooperating Government: Downtown Denver Partnership
Summary:
In January, 2011, the City of Denver and the Downtown Denver Partnership collaborated to conduct a week-long design charrette for Arapahoe Square. Arapahoe Square is a subarea in the larger Northeast Downtown Neighborhoods Plan, which has since been completed and adopted. It is a unique area along the northeastern edge of Downtown Denver that is rife with both opportunities and challenges. The purpose of the charrette was to provide a hands-on forum to work with the public and all interested stakeholders to establish a shared vision for the future of the area, and to begin identifying the steps and bold actions that are necessary to achieve that vision. The Metro Vision plan has numerous goals that can be accomplished, in part, through pursuing design-based solutions for the urban environment similar to those explored at the Arapahoe Square charrette. These goals include: •Locate 50 percent of new housing and 75 percent of new employment within urban centers •Reduce the percent of trips to work by single-occupant vehicle to 65 percent by 2035 •Reduce regional per capita vehicle miles traveled (VMT) 10 percent by 2035 •Reduce per capita greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector 60 percent by 2035
Problem:
Arapahoe Square is an underdeveloped district within Downtown Denver that has the potential to be The City’s next great urban neighborhood. Currently, land uses within the area are dominated by vacant land and surface parking lots. There is also a host of other complex issues at work within the area, including mobility challenges, real estate complexities, and a highly visible concentration of social services. Due to the complexity of the issues there were a number of city agencies, perspectives and expertise needed to thoughtfully and comprehensively analyze and address the defined problems. The project team included members of several city departments and agencies in order to capture the broad range of expertise. The project team tackled these issues through the use of an intensive, collaborative, public charrette process.
Description:
The vast majority of Arapahoe Square is located within a designated Urban Center (Denver CBD). The key tie-in between the charrette and Metro Vision is that the charrette resulted in the identification of a strategy, now codified in the form of an adopted small area plan, which will help revitalize and densify Arapahoe Square. If realized, this would greatly aid in meeting multiple Metro Vision goals related to growth and VMT (see response to #1 for additional detail). The charrette was held January 17-21, 2011. The schedule engaged varying levels of participation crossing a broad a range of city staff, community leaders, business owners and residents. There were three tiers of engagement: •Charrette Team/Client Team: Consisting of 46 members representing Community Planning and Development (planning, permitting, inspections), Public Works (waste water, stormwater, traffic, policy planning, capital projects), Parks, the Office of Economic Development (housing and economic), Department of Finance (funding and budget), Denver Urban Renewal Authority, Downtown Denver Partnership, Regional Transportation District •Arapahoe Square Working Group: Consisting of 20 members representing core neighborhood leaders and City Council offices •Public: Open invitation to all members of the public. Attendance at the three public meetings ranged from 150-200 participants at each meeting The schedule involved daily check-ins, feedback loops, meetings and work sessions as follows: •Day #1 – Charrette Team Tour and Team Meeting #1, Work time •Day #2 – Charrette Team Meeting #2, Working Group Meeting #1, Public Meeting #1, Work time •Day #3 – Charrette Team Meetings #3 and #4, Public Meeting #2, Work time •Day #4 - Working Group meeting #2, Charrette Team Meeting #5, Work time •Day #5- Charrette Team Meetings #6 and #7, Public Meeting #3, Work Time Public meetings were held on the evenings of the 18th, 19th, and 21st in the unfinished retail space of the Solera development at the corner of 20th & Lawrence. At the end of the charrette process, the project team had the raw material and draft concepts in place that later formed the basis for the Arapahoe Square recommendations and catalytic projects in the Northeast Downtown Neighborhoods Plan. The NEDN Plan was adopted by City Council on May 23, 2011.
Modification Details:
The charrette system has cemented its place in the planning profession’s toolkit of best practices, but the term is often misused and henceforth misunderstood by many. Many use the term “charrette” to refer to any meeting featuring a design-based approach to planning. A true charrette is an intensive, multi-day collaborative design process with recurring feedback loops and open participation by all interested parties. In the end, a charrette should be a very efficient use of time and resources: an intensive effort that accomplishes a lot in a short amount of time. Often, a planning process can focus on big picture land use and design concepts and the team is heavily represented by urban planners and designers. The charrette approach for Arapahoe Square brought together in one room, in one concentrated process a broad range of expertise to thoughtfully analyze and address the complex issues of the area in “real time”. More specifically, the project team included in total of 46 members representing Community Planning and Development (planning, permitting, inspections), Public Works (waste water, stormwater, traffic, policy planning, capital projects), Parks, the Office of Economic Development (housing and economic), Department of Finance (funding and budget), Denver Urban Renewal Authority, Downtown Denver Partnership, Regional Transportation District and consultants. As described above, the Arapahoe Square charrette spanned a full five days and featured a series of meetings and work sessions, with each meeting serving as a feedback loop with the public to check in on previous work, refine that work, and move forward with the further advancement of concepts and ideas. Acquiring the services of a design team for an entire week’s worth of work is an expensive undertaking. Early on, the City of Denver and the Downtown Denver Partnership recognized that they could accomplish more by working together than they could by working alone. By jointly working on the Arapahoe Square component of the Northeast Downtown Neighborhoods Plan, and furthermore splitting the cost burden of the charrette, the parties were able to structure the event so as to address the mutual needs and interests of both organizations.

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