The architect who helped design New York’s Freedom Tower and Denver’s distinctive art museum extension displayed a vision for Civic Center on Wednesday that Mayor John Hickenlooper called audacious.
“I say ‘audacious’ in the best sense of the word,” Hickenlooper said at an unveiling of Daniel Libeskind’s anticipated design. “It’s going to push us to be more than what we were.”
The plan includes a large water plaza, a bridge connecting the center to the 16th Street Mall and a 72-foot focal- point structure, all in the unique fashion of Libeskind’s Frederick C. Hamilton art museum extension.
The plan, however, preserves the historic features of the 88-year-old park, such as the sculptures and promenade.
“It is important to bring the whole city to the park, not just drive by it in a car,” Libeskind said. “We believe that it has to be a very bold, interesting place that truly works in the heart of Denver.”
Libeskind’s design is only a model meant to “ignite and inspire public comment,” Denver Parks and Recreation spokeswoman Tiffiany Moehring said.
About 700 people packed a Colorado Convention Center conference room Wednesday night to see the design and listen to Libeskind’s description.
A nonprofit group working for the redesign hopes the attention will also inspire generosity as it looks to raise the tens of millions needed to overhaul the park.
Hickenlooper said that because of the plan’s early stages, there is no fixed price tag, but he said, “We know it is going to be a large number.
“We know that similar efforts on similar-size pieces of land can go north of $100 million,” Hickenlooper said.
But the mayor said that whatever the price, a significant part of it will be paid with private funding.
And Libeskind said he tried to design changes that were fiscally realistic.
“I created a plan which can be implemented,” he said. “It’s not something over the top. It’s not something which requires immense scale of resources.”
Reclaiming “front yard”
The mayor compares the area’s potential to LoDo – and says the city will deal with the homeless separately.
Hickenlooper credited the Civic Center Conservancy, a nonprofit group, for pushing for change at the park. And he said the group will help raise private funds.
“We are single-focused activists, focused on this park,” said Elaine Asarch, the group’s president. The group “believes that private citizens can partner with the public sector to make a lively gathering place.”
Hickenlooper also addressed Civic Center’s current reputation as a haven for transients and the homeless.
He compared the city’s goal for the park with the way Lower Downtown was reinvigorated.
“The folks who have stumbled in life and are homeless and are really struggling aren’t going to feel comfortable, and they will go somewhere else,” he said.
He said the city will deal with homelessness as a separate issue.
City officials are inviting the public to comment on the design at a series of town meetings running through Oct. 17.
Downtown Denver Partnership vice president John Desmond said the plan was exciting, but he withheld judgment.
“There are certainly lots of ideas in here, and it’s visionary and artistic and provocative,” he said. “We quite honestly need a lot of time to sort of study and analyze this to see how it actually accommodates the issues.”
Steve Turner, with Historic Denver Inc., said he was concerned with the functionality of water playing such a key role in the design. He noted that the water features that are currently at the park often are dry.
Area residents Derek and Lisa Avery said they were thrilled with the design, but Derek Avery was frustrated that there is no timeline for completing the project.
Golden Triangle Neighborhood Association president and Civic Center Conservancy member Dennis Humphries said the park is his neighborhood’s “front yard,” but he doesn’t use it.
Libeskind’s design would change that, he said.
“There are so many ideas here that are extremely brilliant that will make the park more accessible, and it truly will become a front yard,” he said.
Staff writer George Merritt can be reached at 303-954-1657 or gmerritt@denverpost.com.
