From Kathleen Genereux’s front yard, the unobstructed view of Sloan’s Lake and the Front Range gives new meaning to the words “million-dollar scenery.”
Mature trees dot the landscape, and sunlight ripples off the lake’s surface as joggers and walkers make their way past Genereux’s lot. A Realtor with Keller Williams, she bought a 1,100- square-foot 1950s ranch there in 1996. Though the view was breathtaking, the house was like many in the area – small and outdated.
She and her husband rented it out for a few years while looking for a better home in Park Hill and Mayfair. Ultimately, they decided to build a 2,400-square-foot house on their lot and have lived there happily ever since.
Like many of her neighbors, Genereux is an urbanite who wants to live near downtown but keep the suburban view. The Sloan’s Lake neighborhood offers another bonus: R-2 zoning that allows owners to buy a home and scrape or pop it, for less than they would spend in Washington Park, said Genereux.
“With the median price of a house at $247,000, and add-on or building costs of $100 to $175 per square foot, you still come out ahead,” she said.
The neighborhood was settled before the turn of the century. By the 1920s, a large group of Orthodox Jews had moved in, wanting to live near the synagogues they had built.
In the 1970s, many of those same families moved to southeast Denver, and a strong Hispanic population replaced them in the small red-brick bungalows and ranch-style houses.
Today, the neighborhood is a rich mixture of young professionals looking for starter homes, aging boomers looking to downsize, old-timers who never left, a smaller-but-still-present Jewish population and a large group of Hispanic residents. People like Larry Ambrose, president of the Sloan Neighborhood Association, say the neighborhood offers great urban living with rich ethnic and socio-economic diversity.
Underperforming schools is the most common complaint, but that may soon change. Brown Elementary is already implementing an International Baccalaureate program, and Lake Middle School is applying for another, said Elisa Cohen, who has worked on the DPS Collaborative School Committee.
The relocation of St. Anthony Central Hospital from its 16-acre campus on Colfax Avenue also will have a major impact on the neighborhood.
“A task force is in place to discuss its redevelopment,” Genereux said, “and though nothing specific is spelled out, it will be mixed use.”
In the meantime, the area has attracted small developers who are scooping up R-2 lots and building modern duplexes and triplexes.
Two years ago, Genereux sold a 13,500-square-foot lot with an unobstructed lake view to a builder for $545,000. Today, two duplexes are going up, and all four units sold quickly, each in the $600,000 range.
Development aside, water is the neighborhood’s lure. Sloan’s Lake is home to water sports, wildlife and festivals, including last weekend’s Dragon Boat Festival. Those attractions make neighbors want to get out and walk – and talk.
Sloan’s Lake
Boundaries: West Colfax to West 29th avenues, Sheridan Boulevard to Irving Street
Who lives here: Young couples; older, long-time residents; professionals; Orthodox Jews; Hispanics
Why it’s cool: Million-dollar views of Sloan’s Lake, Front Range and the downtown skyline; proximity to downtown and the mountains; more R-2 lots than anywhere else in the city; predominantly brick construction; more bang for the real-estate buck in Denver
Why it’s not: Small houses (1,000-square-foot average), often not updated; low-performing public schools; rental properties (duplexes, triplexes) that often are poorly maintained by absentee landlords
Schools: Denver Public Schools, including Cheltenham and Colfax elementaries and Brown elementary, which has a new International Baccalaureate program; Lake Middle School; and North High School
Rentals: A house on the lake: $2,200/month; half a duplex: $900-$1,200/month
Housing: Median home price $247,050; average price per square foot: $212.90
– Sally Stich
