No Vacancy: Is it too Late for Stapleton to be Integrated?

The Stapleton Development Plan created a vision for Stapleton to be an integrated community and the affordable housing plan ordinance agreed to by Forest City provides a blueprint for achieving housing diversity consistent with that vision.  However, construction to date has been so far off of the goals of the affordable housing plan that it may be time to ask:  Is it even possible for Stapleton to fulfill its vision of an integrated community?

As we discussed in our last post, the City of Denver entered into a specific agreement with Stapleton's master developer, Forest City to achieve specific goals for ensuring a diversity of housing options in 80238.  The following graph shows the specific targets for housing in Stapleton outlined in that plan:

However, as of the end of 2014 the actual distribution looks like this:

It is pretty clear that Stapleton is well behind its projected goals for rental housing and affordable housing in the affordable housing plan. When you combine the current distribution of housing with the fact that over 60% of new construction of for sale units are for homes over $400,000, it is easy to see why Stapleton is in the top 1% of zipcodes in the nation in terms of education and median income. 

The market rate for sale vs. affordable and market rate rental housing distribution is important because it provides middle income and lower income families the opportunity to live in Stapleton.  

So why hasn't SDC and Forest City not kept up with the goals?  It's not because of a lack of demand for rental housing. The current rental vacancy rate in Denver is at near historic lows.  According to the Denver Post, Denver has a rental vacancy rate of only 3.9%.  Consequently, rents are shooting up with the average monthly rent at $1145.00.  At that rate, a household with an annual income of $50,000 per year will need to dedicate somewhere between 35% and 40% of their take home pay to housing.  

These numbers beg a pretty serious question - Can Stapleton even achieve the goals for rental housing and affordable housing?  One thing is for sure - if Stapleton is to reach the goals, new construction is going to have to change drastically. 

According to The Big Picture document on StapletonDenver.com the overall plan is for a grand total of 12,000 homes - both for sale and rental in Stapleton.  With a little over 7,000 homes completed, Stapleton is about 60% of the way to reaching their target. 

If Stapleton is to achieve the goals of the Affordable Housing Plan - future construction will need to look something like this:

56% of new construction has to be rental units and 33% market rate for sale if Stapleton is to achieve the housing diversity goals.  Given current trends, it is hard to believe that this is going to happen. 

There is clearly money to be made building apartments and it goes without saying that there is plenty of demand for affordable for sale and affordable rental.  So the question is, why hasn't SDC and Forest City worked to meet this demand? It may be time to ask if SDC and Forest City can achieve the vision for integrated housing in the Stapleton Development Plan or is it time to declare failure and consider a new goal? 

As always, 80238 welcomes your thoughts.  Also, feel free to follow our facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/80238blog or on Twitter: @80238blog

80238 - Looking at the issues of social and economic equity through the lens of one community

I have been contemplating a blog that looks at the issues of economic and racial equity through the lens of my own neighborhood and the neighborhoods surrounding it in Northeast Denver. After a tumultuous fall where the issues of racial and economic equity have taken on a new tone because of Ferguson, MO and New York, I am beginning in earnest.

The blog's title, 80238, is the zip code of my neighborhood, known as Stapleton in Denver, Colorado. Why is Stapleton an appropriate lens for looking at the issues of racial and economic equity in the US?  Stapleton is a very unique American community, located on the site of the old Stapleton International Airport in Denver - it represents one of the larger infill redevelopment projects in the nation.

Envisioned in the Stapleton Development Plan or "Green Book", as it is called by locals, Stapleton is to be a "place of economic, social and environmental innovation" that is intended to be a model of urban development. The plan is for Stapleton to be fully integrated into the surrounding community. The language in the development plan describes how "Stapleton has been a fenced and secured island for two-thirds of a century" . . . that, along with the Rocky Mountain Arsenal site to the north and the Lowry Air Force base to the south, "created enormous holes in the urban fabric of Northeast Denver." As a result the vision is to reunite Stapleton to the adjacent neighborhoods in Denver, Aurora and Commerce City.

A primary goal of the Green Book was for Stapleton to retain middle income families by ensuring a diversity of housing prices, strong schools and public amenities like parks and recreational facilities. Doing so would add to the tax base and revitalize public institutions.

Fifteen years since the release of the Green Book and 12 years since the first houses were occupied in Stapleton, it is time to may be time to ask:

• Has Stapleton achieved its vision to be integrated into the surrounding community and a place for middle income families to be retained in Denver?  
• How do we measure whether Stapleton has filled the hole in the urban fabric of Northeast Denver? 
• What has been achieved and how has it fallen short? 
• Is integration with the larger community still an important goal to the people of Stapleton?  
• If so, how can Stapleton realize the vision?
• If not, what does it say about Stapleton as a "model urban development" and the future of Northeast Denver?

While offering no absolute answers to these questions - I will explore them and invite those who read to offer their insights on the past, present and future of 80238.

I look forward to writing and encourage you to join in the discussion.  Feel free to comment on the blog and share your ideas on the issues in Stapleton and the larger issues we will explore here. In encourage you to follow the 80238 twitter feed @80238blog or the facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/80238blog.

I look forward to seeing what we learn.