The corner of 21st and Lawrence streets, with Coors Field visible in the background, where a developer has proposed a 37-story residential building. (Thomas Gounley photo)
A Chicago-based residential developer is looking to move into Denver — specifically Arapahoe Square and Ballpark — in a big way.
KMC Cos. this month submitted development plans to the city for two major local projects: a 37-story building in the 2000 block of Lawrence Street and a 25-story building in the 2200 block of California Street.
Additionally, records show the company has spent millions in recent years on properties in the 2200 block of Stout Street.
The sites are within half a mile of each other.
CMK did not respond to multiple requests for comment last week. The company has developed a number of residential projects in Chicago, according to its website. He does not appear to have previously worked in Denver.
21st and Lawrence
CMK’s development proposal, submitted to the city in mid-May, calls for a 37-story tower with 500 residential units and 350 parking spaces at the corner of 21st and Lawrence streets.
The project would be built on a 0.62 acre site that currently houses a parking lot and single-story brick buildings. One of the structures is occupied by the Mexican restaurant La Popular, known for its tamales.
CMK does not currently own the site. The parking lot is owned by Jay Soneff’s Soneff Family Trust. The buildings belong to an entity affiliated with the family that owns La Popular.
Dan De La Torre in front of La Popular, his family-owned Mexican bakery and grocery store that has operated in Denver’s Five Points neighborhood since the 1940s. (Joe Amon/The Denver Post)
Contacted by BusinessDen last week, family member Dan De La Torre confirmed that a developer was looking to buy the La Popular property, but urged caution, saying “we’ve had at least three starts like this here where nothing happens”.
“Until this check is signed…we don’t have a deal,” he said.
The ground floor of CMK’s proposed building would include approximately 7,300 square feet of retail space, as well as rental space and a lobby. The residential units would be located on floors 2 through 36. The 37th floor would include a swimming pool and other shared amenity spaces.
Gensler is listed as an architect on the plans for the project.
The “Los Limousines” bus station at the corner of 22nd and California streets. (BusinessDen File)
2215 California Street
Another development proposal submitted by CMK calls for a 25-story, 646-unit residential building at 2215 and 2243 California St. It would have 396 parking spaces and approximately 8,500 square feet of retail space.
The project would include two towers rising above a shared podium.
The 0.75-acre site is home to El Paso-Los Angeles Limousine Express Inc., a bus company whose routes typically serve the southwestern United States and Mexico, according to its website.
The company appears to already own the property. 2215-2243 California Street LLC, which uses an office address affiliated with CMK, paid $8.4 million in late December, records show.
The site was previously considered by a development company called Scenic Investments, which submitted plans to the city in 2020.
The 2200 block of Stout Street, with the X Denver 2 apartment complex under construction in the background. (Thomas Gounley photo)
2200 block of Stout Street
CMK appears to have another brewing project in the 2200 block of Stout Street.
An entity affiliated with the company has spent $6.3 million in three transactions since late December for about 0.56 acres on the odd-numbered side of the block, records show.
No development plan has been submitted for the site. And there’s likely at least one more deal to come, as three plots in the middle of the CMK assembly are still under separate ownership, records show.
This side of the block usually houses one- or two-story structures.
