Sports-led developments could reshape Denver's housing market

Denver’s downtown is poised for a dramatic transformation as the Ball Arena redevelopment, and a wave of new sports facility projects move forward.

In October, the Denver City Council approved several ordinances and development agreements that advanced the project to its next phase, according to Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, which owns Ball Arena and its sports teams, the Colorado Avalanche and the Denver Nuggets.

“This development will create thousands of jobs and new opportunities for many and will be part of the vibrant transformation we see across downtown Denver,” KSE's owner, E. Stanley Kroenke, said in a statement.

KSE is proposing a development of up to 12 million square feet on the 55-acre site in downtown Denver. According to the company, the development will feature 6,000 housing units, 10 acres of green space, including a park and four pedestrian bridges that will connect the development to adjacent neighborhoods.

“The redevelopment will be a catalyst for Denver’s vibrancy by increasing the access and connection of the Ball Arena area development to the rest of downtown, adding an early learning center, thousands of units of housing including over 1,000 that are affordable, and ensures that our Nuggets and Avalanche will continue thrilling Denver fans in a world-class sports district in the heart of our city until at least 2050,” Mayor Mike Johnston said in a statement.

In addition to Ball Arena, the project also calls for new stadiums for the Denver Broncos and Denver Summit FC of the National Women’s Soccer League, as well as the development of the surrounding areas, highlighting a trend of sports-anchored mixed-use districts and their impact on Denver’s housing market.

Stefan Chavez-Norgaard, a teaching assistant professor at the University of Denver who teaches courses related to urban planning, said these projects have piqued the interest of community members.

“Through the community engagement process, there was a lot of support for mixed-use development and new housing," Chavez-Norgaard told Homes.com.

Despite the stereotype that communities do not support development, the process with Ball Arena revealed significant support.

“We saw with the Ball Arena development, [that] the public meeting process and the public comment and the participatory process revealed that a lot of people are very open to creating housing alongside other amenities like bike lanes and open space,” Chavez-Norgaard said.

One promising approach to community engagement is the use of Community Benefits Agreements, which might play a key role in upcoming projects such as the Broncos stadium, the new home of women’s soccer, and the transformation of Ball Arena, he said.

“CBAs are about communities negotiating the terms on which new development happens so that it can benefit local residents,” Chavez-Norgaard said. “I think it is really important. It can do things like prevent displacement or ensure that housing is available at various levels of affordability.”

Chavez-Norgaard pointed to a similar development in Denver: Auraria Campus, developed in the 1970s.

“They displaced hundreds and actually thousands of residents from the Auraria neighborhood,” he continued. "They were displaced for a lot of surface parking lots and the campus buildings … A lot of those residents lost their connection to the community and were scattered throughout the metro area and beyond.”

Chavez-Norgaard said this is the scenario KSE needs to avoid.

“It’s a cautionary tale of how not to proceed with mega projects,” he said. “I also think that, especially with this [KSE] entertainment district, the focus on walkability and connecting across neighborhoods will be important.”

The KSE project, which stretches from Interstate 25 “adjacent to Empower Field at Mile High, to Speer Boulevard, creates a corridor of pedestrian-friendly spaces connecting three major sporting venues — Empower Field, Ball Arena and Coors Field,” KSE said.

This strategy isn’t just about infrastructure; it’s about creating a dynamic urban experience that supports both residents and visitors, Chavez-Norgaard said.

“It will actually help the Nuggets and the Avalanche and all of the local people living there, too,” he said. “Whenever there's a game, you want walkable restaurants, you want walkable entertainment and nightlife right there.”

This kind of urban design can generate significant tax revenue and support small businesses, especially on game nights when tens of thousands of people flood the area, Chavez-Norgaard added.

But current planning around major venues like Empower Field and Ball Arena falls short. “The football stadium is … surrounded by surface parking lots, and you basically got that at the current Ball Arena, too,” he said.

While KSE plans to add 6,000 housing units to Denver’s urban core, there are concerns about affordability, Chavez-Norgaard said.

While increasing the overall housing supply may be a step toward accessibility, he said it could have the opposite effect by driving up prices and making downtown even less attainable for working residents.

“I think it's a major concern across Denver,” he said. “Market-rate housing … in areas close to downtown, where there are high land values, are not going to be affordable for a lot of working Denverites.”

As of September, the median sales price in the Denver metropolitan area was $585,000, a $11,000 increase from last year. The median sales price for condos was $303,000, according to Homes.com data.

“Things like mandatory inclusionary housing can really help,” Chavez-Norgaard said.

KSE said about 18% of the new homes will be affordable housing, including a portion that must have two or more bedrooms to accommodate families.

“There’s a good business case for [KSE] to realize they’re going to want a diversity of housing options … so that a diversity of people can be in the neighborhood,” Chavez-Norgaard said.