Developer Buzz Geller cleared another hurdle Thursday to building a residential tower on Speer Boulevard.
The Lower Downtown Design Review Board approved a historic urban edge district that will allow Geller to build a 375-foot residential tower at Speer and Larimer Street.
The board did not approve the project itself.
The district’s design principles and guidelines are focused on the pedestrian experience and streets, said Dee Chirafisi, a member of the board.
The City Council still must approve the district. Geller said the process should be complete by the end of February. Then, he said, he’ll have architect David Tryba draw up plans for the project.
“This will get the ball rolling,” said Geller, who estimated the project cost at $75 million.
It won’t be the last time Geller appears before the Design Review Board. He still must get the board’s blessing for the project’s design.
Chirafisi said the board will closely scrutinize the design because it will be the gateway to LoDo.
Geller got the site in a deal in which Mayor John Hickenlooper’s administration gave up prime land near 14th Street and Speer in exchange for property it needed for a new justice- center complex.
Geller has been trying to get the project approved since 2005, when he and partner David Paderski proposed a 375-foot condominium tower and open space for its residents on half of the parcel. A shorter retail and restaurant building is proposed for the other piece, with Bell Park becoming a larger public park that would slope gently down to Cherry Creek.
A group of area stakeholders began meeting in 2005 to establish design principles and guidelines. They proposed creating the special review district between Wewatta and Larimer streets, and Speer and 14th Street.
Staff writer Margaret Jackson can be reached at 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com.
