1675 Broadway
A new health and wellness concept is preparing to bring life to three floors of downtown Denver's Energy Center. HUMN, a 32,312-square-foot premium health club founded by Denver entrepreneur Omar Romero, plans to open in summer 2027 on floors 1–3, combining fitness, coworking, recovery services and independent health practitioners under one roof.
The approximately $5.7 million project represents a significant investment in Upper Downtown, where property owners and city officials are working to reposition aging office buildings and attract more consistent activity beyond traditional business hours.
We toured the future facility with Romero, who detailed his plans for the three-floor concept, the challenges of converting office space into a modern health club, and his vision for downtown Denver.
Unlike a conventional gym, HUMN is designed as an integrated destination where members can work, exercise, recover and connect without traveling between multiple facilities.
Three Floors, Three Distinct Experiences
HUMN's concept divides the building into three interconnected uses, each serving a different component of its membership experience.
The first floor will focus on coworking and collaboration. Plans include private meeting rooms, phone booths, lounge seating and flexible workspaces for remote workers, entrepreneurs and professionals. The design emphasizes a contemporary, hospitality-inspired environment rather than a traditional corporate office.
A publicly accessible coffee and smoothie bar is also being considered along the building's plaza frontage, providing an amenity for members and a potential gathering place for downtown workers, residents and visitors.
The second floor will be dedicated to fitness. The proposed layout includes extensive cardio equipment, interconnected strength-training racks, free weights, functional training areas, group fitness programming and an approximately 50-meter turf training zone.
Romero emphasized that the facility is being designed to accommodate instructor-led classes and independent workouts simultaneously.
The conversion presents architectural and engineering challenges. Existing office partitions and suspended ceilings will be removed to create larger training areas with exposed structural elements and a darker, industrial-inspired aesthetic.
Specialized flooring will also be required to reduce noise and vibrations, particularly because KeyBank occupies space below portions of the gym.
Romero selected The Beck Group as the project's design-build partner after seeing its work on Populus, the distinctive downtown Denver hotel, and was impressed by the innovative approach and attention to detail Beck brought to the project.
He hopes to bring those same qualities into HUMN's design and execution. He also selected Canter & Associates to lead the furniture, equipment and fixture package, reinforcing his commitment to thoughtful, high-quality design throughout the space.
The third floor will serve as HUMN's longevity and recovery hub. Planned amenities include saunas, cold plunges, contrast therapy, red light therapy, hyperbaric chambers and separate locker rooms.
The floor will also accommodate independent wellness practitioners. Romero is exploring opportunities for cognitive health, physical therapy and massage providers to operate from dedicated suites.
Together, the three floors are intended to create a comprehensive health and professional environment, with one membership connecting services often spread across separate businesses.
From Corporate Consulting to Operator
For Romero, HUMN represents the culmination of a career transition that began several years ago.
Originally from Chicago, Romero relocated to Denver in December 2020 after building a 14-year career at CDW and Gartner.
Outside his professional career, he developed a passion for endurance athletics, competitive obstacle racing and fitness instruction, eventually becoming a certified personal trainer.
In February 2025, Romero left his corporate career to pursue health and wellness entrepreneurship, developing the HUMN concept and pitching investors later that year.
His research focused on what consumers spent across gym memberships, coworking spaces and recovery services. Rather than opening another standalone gym, he identified an opportunity to combine those expenses into one membership.
HUMN is targeting a standard membership rate of $299 per month, with a founding offer of $199 per month for the first 100 members.
The company envisions capacity for approximately 2,000 members and projects between 300 and 500 daily visits once operations mature. Proposed operating hours are 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.
Romero's ambition is to establish a premium club that competes on design, equipment, services and convenience while offering an alternative to separate fitness, coworking and recovery subscriptions.
Part of a $145 Million Downtown Redevelopment
HUMN's arrival is closely connected to the larger redevelopment of the Denver Energy Center, the two-tower office complex at 1625 and 1675 Broadway.
The Luzzatto Company, led by developer Asher Luzzatto, acquired the property in December 2025 for approximately $5.25 million, a substantial discount from its $176 million sale price in 2013.
Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and completed in 1979, the two octagonal towers encompass approximately 785,000 square feet.
According to the developer, nearly 7,000 people worked at the complex in 2019, compared with fewer than 400 on a typical day in early 2026.
Rather than attempting to refill both buildings with traditional office tenants, Luzzatto is pursuing an approximately $145 million redevelopment that would transform the property into a mixed-use destination combining residential, office, retail, wellness and cultural uses.
The plan calls for converting 1625 Broadway into 386 rental apartments, including 97 studios, 238 one-bedroom units and 51 two-bedroom units. Of those, 39 would be income-restricted for households earning between 51% and 80% of area median income. A construction permit application was submitted in September 2026.
Meanwhile, 1675 Broadway would retain more than 200,000 square feet of modernized office space, with HUMN occupying its first three floors. Plans also include two floors of artist studios, while KeyBank would maintain its banking operations.
Beyond the towers, Luzzatto envisions a substantial transformation of the property's ground-level amenities, including a neighborhood market, resident lounge, private screening room and additional community-serving spaces.
The existing outdoor plaza would be redesigned with landscaping, increased tree coverage, tiered seating and a large-scale sculpture by internationally recognized artist Larry Bell. Concerts, artisan markets and cultural programming are also proposed to connect the property with 16th Street and the surrounding downtown district.
The developer's original timeline anticipated construction beginning in early 2027, with completion targeted for March 2029.
HUMN Targets Summer 2027 Opening
Romero explained that HUMN was initially pursuing another location before being approached about joining the redevelopment. After several months of discussions, the parties signed a lease in July 2026.
While the residential conversion will require a substantially longer development timeline, HUMN is targeting a summer 2027 opening, potentially bringing new activity to the complex roughly two years before the neighboring apartments are delivered.
Together, HUMN and the larger redevelopment reflect a changing approach to downtown revitalization. Rather than depending exclusively on traditional office demand, the project aims to introduce housing, employment, fitness, retail and public amenities capable of sustaining activity throughout the day and evening.