The four agencies managing redevelopment of Denver’s Union Station site expect to hire an executive director at $97,000 a year to lead the effort.
Liz Orr, ex-Denver finance chief and director of special projects for former Mayor Wellington Webb, has been mentioned as the leading candidate for the post.
Owners of the 124-year-old station include Denver, the Regional Transportation District, the Colorado Department of Transportation and the Denver Regional Council of Governments.The owners have not yet chosen Orr or anyone else as executive director of the project, RTD general manager Cal Marsella said Thursday.
He said the group isn’t required to advertise the Union Station position. Marsella offered no timetable for hiring someone, other than to say the post would be filled “soon.” Money for the post will come from parking fees and office rents collected at the station.
Leaders of the four entities are weighing proposals by 11 private development teams, each of which is bidding to be master developer of the 19-acre Union Station site. Donald Trump is involved with one of the teams.
Orr, who no longer works for the city, played a prominent role in Denver’s expansion of the Colorado Convention Center and construction of a convention center hotel.
She worked on the city’s effort to find a private resort company with ski-industry experience to manage the city-owned Winter Park ski area. She also helped lead the city’s efforts to guarantee that Stan Kroenke, owner of the Colorado Avalanche, Denver Nuggets and Pepsi Center, would keep the teams in Denver.
Marsella said Union Station’s owners are looking for someone with “major development experience” and expertise in “public-private partnerships,” zoning and public finance to lead the project.
When fully redeveloped, the Union Station site is expected to be worth $800 million to $1 billion.
Staff writer Jeffrey Leib can be reached at 303-820-1645 or jleib@denverpost.com.
