After buffing and coiffing customers in its many salons and spas, the Cherry Creek North shopping district may be getting a makeover of its own.
The Cherry Creek North Business Improvement District plans to ask property owners, merchants and the handful of residents who live within its boundaries to approve an $18 million bond offering to fund improvements in the area, bounded by East First and East Third avenues, University Boulevard and Steele Street.
If these voters approve the offering in November, improvements could begin early next year, said Christina Brickley, a spokeswoman for the business district.
The bond would be repaid by future revenue from the district, which gets its funding from a portion of the property taxes generated within its 16 blocks.
The district has worked with Boulder-based Communication Arts Inc. to come up with an updated design that’s being referred to as the Garden District. Plans call for improved lighting and crosswalks, new signage, additional planters and flower beds and improvements in Fillmore Plaza. The improvements would be restricted to public spaces because the business district does not own any of the buildings in the district.
“It has been almost 15 years since we installed the original improvements, and it’s time to bring them up to date,” said Marc Schtul, the district’s president and chief executive. “I don’t think the area looks run down … but you’ve got to keep up.”
The plan does not address parking – a sore spot for some customers and tenants since paid parking was introduced in 2004 – but additional signs would be put up to direct customers to what Schtul described as “underutilized parking.”
Denver City Councilwoman Jeanne Robb will host an informational meeting to review design concepts for the district at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 2 at Good Shepherd School at East Sixth Avenue and Elizabeth Street.
The proposed bond offering would be the second for Cherry Creek North. A bond issue was completed to create the business improvement district in 1989. It was paid off in 2001.
Whether or not district members approve the bond issue, Cherry Creek merchants are considering a variety of other intitiatives to help the district remain competitive. Concerns about its direction have recently surfaced following the departure of five longtime fixtures, including the Tattered Cover and Cook’s Mart.
Some merchants have noted a decline in foot traffic. Last weekend’s annual sidewalk sale generated fewer visitors than the previous year, although sales volume remained at the same level, Brickley said.
At a meeting Wednesday morning, store owners and representatives planned to form committees to examine marketing and promotion ideas. The group also is considering launching a concierge service that would help shoppers navigate the district more easily.
Staff writer Kristi Arellano can be reached at 303-820-1902 or karellano@denverpost.com.
Bringing them North
The Cherry Creek North Business Improvement District plans to spruce up its public areas in an attempt to lure shoppers. Its “Garden District” plan includes:
Improved lighting
Additional planters and flower beds
Improved signage
Unspecified improvements to Fillmore Plaza
