1801 Colfax Avenue

A major new residential project named “Williams Workforce” has been filed for the northwest corner of East Colfax Avenue and North Williams Street.

The concept plan, designed by The Mulhern Group and submitted by Kentro Group, calls for a six-story multifamily building on the vacant site. The project sits on a 15,625-square-foot lot zoned C-MS-5, directly fronting Colfax.

Plans show 111 total units, primarily micro-units and studios under 550 square feet.

The design includes ground-level parking and amenities, plus a second-floor community patio.

Although not specifically noted in the documents, the building plans appear to show two retail spaces fronting Colfax, which would add much-needed activation at the street level.

Right-of-way improvements are also planned along Colfax and Williams to better integrate the building into the neighborhood.

Perhaps most eye-catching is the parking ratio. Despite recent zoning code changes reducing parking mandates, this project includes 32 vehicle spaces, a modest supply relative to its unit count.

This same corner was nearly home to a Jack in the Box drive-thru. That tone-deaf proposal from Kentro Group sparked plenty of head-shaking last year before being scrapped, a reminder of how out of step it was with Colfax’s momentum toward higher-density, mixed-use development.

Thankfully, Kentro has returned with a plan that makes far more sense for the corridor and for Denver’s housing needs.

If approved, the development will bring new housing options to a key Colfax intersection that has long sat underutilized.