2023 Plan in Action: Blueprint Denver

In 2040, Denver is an equitable city of complete neighborhoods and networks. It is an evolving city where growth complements existing neighborhoods and benefits everyone.

Blueprint Denver is a citywide land use and transportation plan for the next 20 years that calls for growing an inclusive city through:

• Complete neighborhoods and transportation networks;
• A common-sense approach to new growth;
• Land-use decisions through the lens of social equity.
• The plan also includes tools, policy recommendations and strategies to achieve the vision.

Blueprint Denver's vision captures the voice of our community and guides every component of the plan.

Blueprint Denver provides a nuanced way to handle growth and development by primarily directing growth to centers, corridors and high-density residential areas where there are transportation options.

Denver is estimated to have 715,636 residents (2023) and 664,198 jobs (2022).

State experts project Denver's population will grow by 54,137 people from 2020 to 2030. This is a slower rate than the previous decade, when Denver added 112,666 people. The State Demographer attributes the deceleration partly to fewer births and increased deaths. The latest forecast estimates that Denver will have 829,732 residents and 762,025 jobs in 2040 ( Table 3, Preliminary population forecasts by County 2010-2050, DOLA ).

To accommodate future population and employment increases, Blueprint Denver's growth strategy directs new housing and jobs to regional and community centers, along corridors, and in high and high-medium residential areas in the Downtown and Urban Center contexts.

Tracking and measuring outcomes related to the plan goals.

Many aspects of the city that are important to measure and manage—like equity, resilience and sense of place—can be difficult to quantify. The metrics below include the current condition and data (where available) and the long-term target. Most have a target date of 2040 to align with Blueprint Denver’s planning horizon.

As the primary job center for the Rocky Mountain West, adding as many or more jobs than households indicates the relative strength of Denver's job market within the metro area and has positive impacts on Blueprint Denver's goals, including access to diverse job options and reducing travel demand. A strong jobs-housing balance can result in jobs that are better matched to the area's labor force, resulting in lower vehicle miles traveled, improved worker productivity, and a higher quality of life.

The 2040 target is to maintain or improve the base year ratio of 1.8 jobs to every 1 household. The most recent data shows an increase of 2.14 jobs to every 1 household. As of September 2024, the latest data available from the Colorado State Demographer's Office is for the year 2022. This metric was selected in 2018 in partnership with DEDO to monitor if there is adequate employment to support an increasing number of households that require services in Denver.  

Tracking where private investment in Denver goes shows how well Blueprint Denver is directing new development to centers, corridors and other high-growth areas. The 2040 target of 5 to 1 is based on the historic average of directing growth to areas of change found in the 2002 Blueprint Denver. 

In 2023, Denver achieved a ratio of 5.09 to 1. This means that there was $5.09 of private investment in centers, corridors and high and high-medium residential places in the Downtown and Urban Center contexts (growth areas) for every $1 of private investment in Districts, Greenfields and all other areas of the city. This ratio is determined by looking at the location of aggregated building permit valuations from demolitions, new residential and commercial construction for the year. This is a correction from the 2020 ratio of $3.11 to $1, which was impacted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Improving the quality of design for private development advances the broader goal to foster exceptional urban design and to preserve and create authentic places that thoughtfully integrate streets, public space and private property. This metric measures the percent of the city subject to landmark preservation review, design standards and guidelines, design review, design overlays, and conversation overlays.

In 2023, 19.28 % of the city was subject to additional design-focused standards. The small increase from 2022 to 2023 was attributed to the application of design overlays along Colfax Avenue.

Denver has a  Vision Zero  goal of having zero traffic-related deaths and serious injuries by 2030. The  Safe System Approach  is the process for achieving Vision Zero, helping people in Denver make better transportation safety decisions.

In 2023, there were 83 traffic-related deaths and 425 serious injuries (508 total) in Denver. Implementing safe-system solutions such as redesigning roads and lowering speed limits in safety focus areas are important first steps to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries. To find out more on what the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure did in 2023 to improve safety, read the  2023 Denver Vision Zero Annual Report .

Blueprint Denver aims to direct most new housing to the identified high-growth areas. High- growth areas are places like regional and community centers, along our corridors and high and high-medium residential areas in both the Downtown and the Urban Center contexts. The base year of 67% indicates the success rate achieved directing housing to areas of change in Blueprint Denver from 2002 to 2015.

Between 2019-2023, an average of 80% of all new housing was located within the high growth areas. This is a slight decrease from last year's average of 82%. Denver is on target for achieving the 2040 goal in directing at least 80% of new housing to areas identified as growth areas in Blueprint Denver.

Blueprint Denver aims to direct most new employment to the high growth areas found in the growth strategy.

On average, Denver has seen 65% of all new jobs located in high-growth areas. The latest available U.S. Census LODES data is from 2021, which shows a loss of private jobs in Denver compared to previous years. This is likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic finally getting reported in the 2021 data. The LODES data is private jobs, not all jobs, due to how larger organizations like hospital systems and universities spatially count and report jobs.

From 2002 to 2015, 64% of new jobs were located in Blueprint Denver's areas of change. The amount and location of new employment can vary greatly from year to year and is a net total (new jobs minus lost jobs). As the characteristics of new employment are variable, it is hard to predict whether Denver is on target to have 90% of new jobs located in high-growth areas in 2040.

The goal is to have 100% of Denver surveyed by Discover Denver and/or have an established pattern book by 2040.  Discover Denver  is a citywide building survey focused on identifying buildings that are historically, architecturally or culturally significant to Denver’s history.  The survey documents the city’s individual buildings, the histories of its neighborhoods, and the stories important to its communities. Led by Historic Denver, Inc. and the City and County of Denver, the project is funded primarily by a grant from the Colorado State Historical Fund. 

In 2023, about 30% of the city by area has been surveyed by Discover Denver or has an established pattern book. The completion of the Near Northwest NPI pattern book contributed to 2023's slight increase.

To date, pattern books for the  East , East Central,  Near Southeast,  West and  Near Northwest  Area plans have been completed.

Completed Discover Denver surveys include: South City Park, Wellshire, Sunnyside, Streetcar Commercial Districts, Cole, Regis, Congress Park, Capitol Hill, City Park West, Virginia Village, Elyria & Swansea, Globeville, Jefferson Park and Harvey Park. In 2024, Discover Denver expects to complete work in the Villa Park neighborhood. Clink on the link below for more information about Discover Denver.

As one of multiple efforts in 2023 to implement the city's equity goals, the  Advancing Equity in Rezoning project  (AEIR) aims to implement the  Blueprint Denver  recommendations through a community-driven update to the Denver Zoning Code. This project will not rezone any properties or change any requirements within existing zone districts. The goal is to modernize the rezoning process, standards, submittal requirements and criteria to help advance Blueprint Denver’s equity concepts.  

In 2024, CPD planners will develop draft language for the AEIR text amendment to the Denver Zoning Code that reflects the preferred strategy, and will conclude with the legislative process, with involves review, public hearing and votes by the Denver Planning Board and Denver City Council.

Following the West Area Plan adoption in March 2023, city planners have started the work of bringing the vision for the West Area to life through a city-sponsored legislative rezoning, completed in July 2024. The purpose of the rezoning was to put the plan's land use guidance in place in key areas where current rules do not align with the goals community members identified during the planning process.

By the 2024, Community Planning and Development will bring forward legislative rezoning proposals that implement the guidance of the Near Southeast Area Plan (adopted May 2023) and Near Northwest Area Plan (adopted January 2024).

In June 2023, the Denver City Council approved zoning code changes for accessory dwelling units (ADUs). Prior to these  zoning code changes , there was a one-size-fits-all approach to ADU design with little variation by neighborhood. The ADUs in Denver project implemented Blueprint policy by revising the standards in the Denver Zoning Code regarding the size, shape, and location of detached ADUs on a lot. Through these updates, a number of neighborhood concerns around ADU designs and compatibility were addressed and provided homeowners more flexibility for lower-cost ADU options, like reusing older, single-story detached garages.

Following recommendations from Blueprint Denver and building upon the ADUs in Denver project, the  Citywide ADUs zoning code text amendment  proposes to allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in all the remaining residential zone districts in the city where ADUs are not currently allowed. The code change produced by this project will help bring the City and County of Denver in compliance with the recent State of Colorado legislation around ADUs, including updating Denver’s owner occupancy requirement for single-unit zone districts. Current requirements dictate that if an owner doesn’t live on the property, the ADU is not allowed to be used. The update from this code change would still allow the ADU to be used even if the owner moved off the property. This project to change the Denver Zoning Code will be complemented by a proposed zoning code map amendment that will ensure properties are rezoned to reflect the goals of the text amendment. The proposal is expected to go before Denver City Council for a vote in the fall of 2024.

In late 2023, the Manufactured Home Communities (MHC) project kicked off and proposes updates to the Denver Zoning Code (DZC) and zoning map to encourage the continued use and improvement of Denver’s existing mobile home parks. The project introduces a new zone district, Manufactured Home Community (MHC), that would be applied to existing mobile home parks via a rezoning. The intention of the text amendment is to alleviate redevelopment pressure and explicitly allow a manufactured home community use in the zoning code. The proposal is expected to go before the Denver City Council for a vote in late 2024.

Rapid increases in housing prices mean that many families, especially lower-income and moderate-income households, are not able to live in Denver. Affordable housing with three or more bedrooms, are more conducive to larger or multi-generational households. To provide transparent and predictable investment guidelines for the Department of Housing Stability (HOST) borrowers, HOST launched additional financial incentives to encourage units with three or more bedrooms, which are more a  2024 term sheet update  that provides financial incentives in financing for affordable housing projects 3+ bedroom units.

Denver Economic Development & Opportunity (DEDO) has announced the second round of Denver's Legacy Business program. Recently, 37 businesses that have received Legacy Business status in 2023.  A Denver Legacy Business is defined as a longstanding, independent business that has contributed to community character and vitality and holds cultural significance. Among other criteria, the business has operated for more than ten years, has annual gross revenue between $30,000 and $5M, and currently has a brick-and-mortar location in the city. The program recognizes the challenges faced by many legacy businesses and the ripple effect their closures can have on a neighborhood. Denver’s Legacy Business program celebrates such businesses for their contributions and works to unlock and accelerate support and anti-displacement strategies. The complete roster of Denver’s Legacy Businesses can be found on the program registry (below). Information on the program is available in  Spanish ,  Vietnamese  and  English .

In 2025, The City and County of Denver is continuing the  Business Impact Opportunity Fund , a program that provides support in the form of cash grants of up to $15,000 and/or technical support to small, local businesses as they work on bouncing back from the economic strife. To date, 514 small, local businesses have been assisted. Four types of grants are available:

• Stabilization Grants - to mitigate specific operating challenges exacerbated by the pandemic, such as depletion of cash reserves, loss of customers due to economic impacts or continued supply chain and staffing issues.
• Activation Grants - to establish/renew leases (for a minimum of 12 months) in specific, designated commercial corridors  where business closures have produced vacancies, service gaps and/or conditions of blight. Under this grant category, existing and new businesses located in the designated commercial corridors can seek financial assistance for eligible expenses, such as security measures and equipment to provide building and surrounding security.
• Anti-Displacement Grants - to alleviate revenue losses resulting from publicly funded construction projects or to provide partial relocation assistance in cases where a business has no option but to relocate as a result of impending new development.
• Encampment Impact Grants - to support small businesses that have been impacted by an encampment within two blocks or less of their business location.

In 2023, Denver started  piloting an adaptive reuse program  in two locations: Upper Downtown and East Colfax Avenue. These pilot programs will support projects undergoing conversion to a new use or purpose by providing direct assistance to business owners, developers, and property owners as they navigate the City and County of Denver’s review and permitting system.

In addition to the pilot programs, in 2023, Denver completed a study evaluating the compatibility of underutilized office buildings for potential conversion to residential uses. The study identifies 22 downtown buildings that are “good candidates for conversion.” Some of the factors used to determine whether conversion is feasible include: walkability, proximity to transit, natural light, the shape of the building, existing window to wall ratio and ease of window replacement. The study can be found online  here .

In April 2023, Denver's Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI), finalized  Denver Moves Everyone  (DME), the citywide strategic transportation plan that aligns resources with our collective goals to achieve Denver's transportation vision. The plan also provides a number of program and policy recommendations to prioritize capital transportation improvements in the near-, mid-, and long-term to result in increased safety, more connected and efficient travel options, reduced emissions, and greener streets.

See how DOTI is advancing Denver's transportation goals between now and 2030 on  this interactive map . This map illustrates DOTI's Six-Year Capital Plan, which indicates priorities for transportation improvements based on alignment with the goals and vision set forth by the community in Denver Moves: Everyone.

This map also highlights active projects that are in motion as of 2024 and are in an active plan, design, or construction phase. A construction phase indicates the project is either under construction now, anticipated to begin soon, or is procuring construction in 2024-2025.

The   East Colfax Avenue Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project   is entering the final contracting phase before construction.

In July 2024, the East Colfax BRT team held a community webinar proving updates on the complete design, curbside area management plan, parallel streets safety study and small business outreach. The 100% design advances the project goals of safety, accessibility and comfort by:

• Added area of rescue assistance to center platforms.
• Enhanced crossing for pedestrians and cyclists
• Added protected left turn lane locations
• Widened curb ramps leading to BRT platforms
• Added secondary egress to center platforms
• Improved bike crossings
• Enhanced tree canopy and soil cell system
• New pedestrian lighting

Construction is anticipated to start by the end of 2024, with service starting in 2027.

Updating the Future of Biking and Rolling in Denver

In Fall 2023, Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) launched  Denver Moves: Bikes Update , a citywide planning effort to update DOTI’s recommended bike network, which was last updated in 2015. This update will help DOTI build more comfortable and connected bikeways and develop an ongoing program to upgrade Denver’s existing bikeways over time. The project will extend through December 2024 and will include citywide public meetings, online mapping tools and community surveys, and grassroots engagement in partnership with local community members. The project is broken into two phases: an assessment phase and a recommendation phase. When complete, the updated plan will guide a future vision and provide tangible recommendations for bicycle network improvements across the city.

In 2024 and 2025 the city will install another large construction package of bond-funded bikeways. This will include more than 25 miles of high comfort bikeways such as protected bike lanes and neighborhood bikeways including projects such as the Kearney/Krameria neighborhood bikeway, the N. Perry Street protected bike lane, and the E. 26th Avenue protected bike lane project. Several bikeways will be installed in conjunction with upcoming VZ safety projects such as the E. 21st Avenue neighborhood bikeway that intersects with York Street. 

Implements Mobility Recommendation 3.A: Ensure safe pedestrian crossings, especially along the High Injury Network identified by Vision Zero (p. 109) and Support the safe routes to school program (p. 112).

In 2023, the Vision Zero program implemented over 371 projects throughout the city with a particular focus on equitable access to safe modes of transportation.

A total of 4 intersections were updated with new design features to make conditions safer, such as medians or new striping:

• 28th East of Welton – Converted to two-way 
• Champa Street at 24th – geometric improvements and striping  
• Stout Street at 24th – geometric improvements and striping 
• Five Points Intersection – expanded Pedestrian Plaza

DOTI and its contracted crews installed 53.7 new miles of bike lanes in 2023, meeting its ambitious goal of installing 125 miles by 2023 by the second quarter of the year. In addition, 2.31 miles of bike lanes were upgraded.

Approximately 5.1 miles of new sidewalks were funded through city projects in 2023. This does not count the new miles of sidewalks built through private construction projects/permits.

In 2023, DOTI put an enhanced focus on pedestrian improvements at 215 locations across Denver, including adding pedestrian refuge islands, curb extensions, traffic circles, diverters, and various other pedestrian crossing improvements at intersections. This also included several projects located directly adjacent to schools for DOTI’s Safe Routes to School program, including Maxwell Elementary, DCIS at Ford, Cole Middle & High School and at  McAuliffe International Safe Routes to School Project  with sidewalk and pedestrian refuge islands along 23rd Ave., 25th Ave. and 26th Ave. and Kearney Street.

In 2023, DOTI adjusted signal infrastructure to improve safety for all users, with a variety of treatments.  Signals were updated at over 182 intersections, including 13 new full signals, 17   Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons   (RRFBs), 5   High intensity Activated crosswalk  (HAWK) signals, 1 bike signal, and 26 signal rebuilds.  31 intersections were upgraded to larger signal heads and 329 intersections received updates to Hi-Viz backplates – both proven safety counter measures to reduce crashes by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Additionally, 12 school zone approaches were marked to assist driver awareness of being in a school zone with on street markings. 

In the summer of 2024, Denver announced its SPEED program targeting several speed reduction actions that will take effect in the next 18 months on Federal Boulevard and Alameda Avenue, two streets with high safety risks.

In 2025, School Zones will be implemented with a static School Zone Speed Limit of 20 miles an hour. Additionally, DOTI will work to develop a year-over-year implementation plan for school zone flashing beacons at schools adjacent to busier roadways, as funding is approved by Denver City Council. 

Protecting and Expanding Denver's Urban Forest

In 2023, the first   Urban Forest Strategic Plan   kicked off and was finalized in August 2024. The plan not only implements Blueprint Denver recommendations, but achieves several Game Plan goals, including incorporating urban heat analysis, making recommendations on emergency response and evaluating our role in street tree maintenance.

In 2023, DPR grew and improved the health of Denver’s urban forest by pruning 4,000 public trees and planting 3,700 new trees, compared to removing 1,683 trees reversing the trend of removing more trees than planted. An additional 1,200 trees were distributed to residents in high need neighborhoods through partnership with The Park People’s Denver Digs Trees program. In total, there is an estimated 2.2 million trees citywide on public and private property.

Forestry staff assisted with one of our longtime Partners,    The Park People   , in a new workforce development program, called    TreeForce   . The program is funded through a    Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO)    Stewardship Impact grant and will continue through spring 2025.

A public   Tree Inventory Update   is underway with anticipated completion in late 2025. Last completed in 2016, the goal of the inventory update is to identify trees that have been removed, along with other information such as newly planted species, locations, detailed sizing, and current tree conditions. An accurate inventory is critical to planning for the urban forest. In addition to serving as a day-to-day management tool, the inventory update will provide information on the impacts of various efforts to expand the city’s urban canopy, along with the effects of extreme weather events, changes in species selection, and the health of newly planted trees.

In 2025, Denver's Department of Community Planning and Development will kick off a comprehensive landscape code update.

The  Shared Streets Program  outlines a path to building and maintaining shared streets in prioritized locations throughout the city. The Program lays out types of shared streets based on the surrounding land uses: Commercial, for streets mostly surrounded by businesses and commercial uses: and Community, primarily serving homes and residential along the streets. Through a year-long program development process in 2023, DOTI developed:

• A design framework for three types of shared streets; quick-build, curb-and-gutter permanent, and curbless.

• Shared Streets Design Guidelines: design requirements and recommended elements for shared streets including gateway treatments, signing and markings, volume and speed reduction measures, walking and biking amenities and placemaking and urban design elements.

• The top 10 priority locations for potential future Commercial and Community Shared Streets based on feasibility, neighborhood context, and community feedback. These top 10 priority locations serve as a planning-level starting point to further communicate with the neighborhood and investigate engineering feasibility. If the community is supportive and construction is feasible, DOTI will work to implement several of these priority locations by 2030. DOTI received funding to start the design process for two shared streets in 2024.

Thank you for reading. If you use assistive technology and need help accessing or reading any of this content, please contact  CPDCommunications@denvergov.org .