COMMERCE CITY — The once- proud Mile High Greyhound Park is now a physical wreck and will soon be declared blighted by the city, which is a key move toward redevelopment of the 65-acre facility.
The park was built in 1946 and was, for a time, one of the premier dog-racing venues in the country. But racing ended in 2008, and in 2011 the city paid $3.3 million for the park.
Officials hope to turn Mile High into a mixed-use development and have in hand more than 700 suggestions gleaned from meetings last year about how it should be revamped.
The city is expected to accept a $70,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development program later this year. It will be used to help fund a $140,000 market- feasibility study of the park.
The study will look at how the residents’ comments can be used to market the former racetrack to potential developers, spokeswoman Michelle Halstead said.
So far, the only redevelopment partner for Mile High — located near East 62nd Avenue and Dahlia Street — is the Boys & Girls Clubs. The nonprofit group is building on a 2-acre parcel and expects to serve about 1,800 members.
In the meantime, the city is moving ahead with plans to have the park declared blighted in order to get tax-increment financing to pay for redevelopment, Halstead said.
A survey of the park showed that it meets nine out of 11 criteria needed for blight designation.
“There are some pretty severe issues with the site,” Halstead said.
At the park, the survey found:
• Slum or deteriorated structures.
• Inadequate and faulty lot layout.
• Unsanitary or unsafe conditions.
• Overall deterioration of the site.
• Inadequate public improvements or utilities.
• Life-endangering fire conditions.
• Unsafe buildings.
• Substantial underutilization or vacancy.
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907, mwhaley@denverpost.com or
