Building FasTracks is crucial to raising Denver’s status to that of a first- tier city, according to a panel of real- estate experts.
“FasTracks is a symbol of Denver emerging as a first-tier city,” said John Greenman, vice president of investments for development firm Corporex Colorado.
Greenman spoke Wednesday at the South MetroDenver Economic Development Group’s 14th annual Real Estate Breakfast at the Marriott DTC. The panel, moderated by Denver Post editor Greg Moore, included Byron Koste, executive director of the University of Colorado Real Estate Center; and Martin Newburger, principal of KSL Capital.
It’s also crucial that the region figures out a way to share sales-tax revenue from the shopping centers that will be built near FasTracks stations, Koste said.
Otherwise, communities along the line will be competing for the same retailers, and each stop will look the same, he said.
About $1.4 trillion in real-estate debt is set to mature over the next four years, but it’s unclear how that debt will be restructured, Greenman said.
“Lenders are hoping if they just stall, they won’t get the property back — they don’t want the property back — and the economy will get better,” he said.
At $6.9 billion, FasTracks is the largest transit expansion in the country, a network of rail and bus lines the Regional Transportation District hopes to complete by 2017.
Margaret Jackson: 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com
