There’s a major change coming along the South Platte River in Littleton. Beginning in July, where members of the Buck family once farmed the land, theology students will live, study, reflect and pray.
It’s a change for those who run, walk, bicycle and Rollerblade along the South Platte and are used to seeing no more activity on the property than spring planting and fall harvesting. And, certainly, it’s a major change for the 55-year-old Denver Seminary, which is moving to the site from the location it has occupied in Englewood for 37 years.
Having paid just over $3 million for 20 acres of land, the seminary will complete its move to the site in July. There it will occupy new buildings totaling 96,000 square feet (up from the current 62,000 square feet). The campus will consist of an administration building, three educational buildings, a classroom, chapel, library, bookstore and student center. In addition, 92 student apartments will be located in four separate complexes.
The seminary, which has grown by 50 percent in the last five years, expects to grow still more with the move, according to President Craig Williford. From the current 925 students, the seminary eventually expects to reach an enrollment of 1,700.
But it wasn’t just the need for additional room that prompted the move, Williford says. The Littleton site was chosen because of its environment. “It’s pastoral,” he says, “with trees and the river, great mountain views and access to the trail along the Platte.” It also has a connection with Hudson Gardens, giving students “a unique place for prayer and reflection” in the midst of a busy city.
All who attend the Denver Seminary are graduate-level students working for a master’s degree in the arts or divinity, or for a doctor of ministry degree. They are a diverse group. In 2005, students came from 48 states and 17 countries, and when they leave the seminary they will serve as pastors and counselors across the United States. Many become missionaries, according to Williford, so that the seminary has “a global emphasis and a global impact.”
In addition, because the seminary emphasizes work with underserved people, many students become leaders of local and international nonprofits such as the Denver Rescue Mission or Save Our Youth.
The seminary, which describes itself as “broadly evangelical,” is not affiliated with any one church or order. For example, in 2005, students came from 50 different denominations. Support from donors pays for 25 percent of the cost of educating the students, the same as it did in 1979, when Williford himself was a Denver Seminary student.
Chris Gibbons, director of Littleton’s Department of Business and Industry Affairs, believes the seminary is a good visual fit along the South Platte River. The city’s strict design standards ensure that the seminary and a new Arapahoe/Douglas County mental health facility being built just to the south will each have a similar “open campus” feel, he says.
The mental health organization will provide internships for master’s level students from the seminary, with the internships counting toward course credits for the students.
The seminary’s move also is expected to benefit neighboring Hudson Gardens, Gibbons says. The two entities will share an entrance and a parking lot just west of South Santa Fe. The seminary needs parking during the day when students are present, and Hudson Gardens needs it at night during its popular summer concert series. In addition, seminary students and their families are expected to increase attendance at the gardens.
Although the nonprofit seminary won’t pay property taxes, Gibbons believes its presence will benefit the city as well. Its bookstore will generate sales taxes and the city hopes that students and their families will eat in area restaurants, shop in local stores, and become involved in the community.
It’s a goal the seminary shares. “We plan to be active members of the community,” Williford says. “In moving to Littleton, we feel like we are coming home.”
Susan Thornton (smthornton@aol.com) served 16 years on the Littleton City Council, including eight years as mayor. She writes on alternate Thursdays.
