Longtime Denver nonprofit seeks work site for crew, supplies and summer volunteers after losing existing South Platte River site to city. Prefers to stay near downtown but is willing to relocate for partner that can meet all needs.
Brothers Redevelopment Inc. is negotiating the sale of its property at 2519 W. 11th Ave. to the city of Denver for a river-widening project. It has until November to move.
“Everything they’ve shown us indicates they want to keep it open space,” said Mary Ann Shing, president of BRI. “It is frustrating, all the back and forth. We need a space where we can do our programs and still be in Denver.”
Talks about the city acquiring the site began in 1999 but were on and off for years, Shing said. In 2006, the city called again in earnest.
The BRI parcel falls in a flood plain and is in the route of a plan to widen the river for flood safety and ecological restoration, said Bar Chadwick, special project coordinator in the city’s Office of Economic Development.
Several other properties are affected, but those are mostly government-owned or, in the case of Xcel Energy’s power plant, the city is dealing with them by trade or easement.
“The river has to be widened, the channel has to be deepened, and the banks have to be pulled back,” Chadwick said.
The Zuni Sun Valley Reach, as the $18 million proj ect on that stretch in the Sun Valley neighborhood is being called, has been pushed into overdrive by the development of FasTracks, Chadwick said.
City staff have promised to help BRI find another site, but so far it’s been slow going, Shing said. Which is why BRI has made its plight public.
The small nonprofit, with a $2 million annual budget, helps low-income and disabled residents with their homes through its Home Maintenance and Repair Program and events such as the Annual Paint-A-Thon and Neighborhood Caretakers program.
About 2,000 volunteers annually contribute 20,700 hours to BRI’s ability to serve 700 homeowners. Many stay on site, in dorms that can accommodate 32 at a time.
The site near the river has been home to the nonprofit since 1976. Now, the organization needs at least 8,000 square feet and the ability to store materials, park up to 10 trucks, keep a 30-cubic-yard Dumpster and house volunteers overnight.
“We are all for progress, but the impact of this acquisition on the programs that we provide to metro-area residents is profound,” spokesman Jeff Martinez said.
The city could have condemned any sites needed for this project but chose not to, which is why it’s taking a bit longer, Chadwick said.
“Technically, yes, it would be for public benefit, but we don’t like that,” she said. “We are doing a purchase-and-sale agreement and trying to help Brothers.”
Elizabeth Aguilera: 303-954-1372 or eaguilera@denverpost.com
