2280 S Albion St
Delwest is building Rise at University Hills, a seven-story, 170-unit income-restricted apartment community at the corner of South Albion Street and East Iliff Avenue, a short walk from RTD's Colorado Station. Every home in the building has two, three or four bedrooms, and rents are set well below market for households earning between 30% and 70% of Area Median Income. Completion is expected in early summer 2027.
Leaving out studios and one-bedrooms was a deliberate choice. Delwest designed the unit mix to add larger homes, which are in short supply elsewhere in the neighborhood. Ten ground-floor townhomes each have a private entrance, giving the building a residential presence at street level.
Magnolia Children's House, a new nonprofit Montessori program, will occupy space on the second floor that Delwest is providing free of charge.
The school will serve children ages 2½ to 6 in a single mixed-age classroom with capacity for 20 students. The school is part of Wildflower Schools, a national network of more than 70 independent nonprofit Montessori schools across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Tuition is income-based, the program accepts Colorado's Child Care Assistance Program, and classrooms are designed to serve English and Spanish language learners and students with functional differences. An ice cream and coffee shop will open on the ground floor, with its name still to be announced.
Other amenities include garage parking spaces with EV charging, an exercise room, a community room, bike storage and additional storage units.
Delwest acquired the roughly 1.5-acre site in the 2200 block of South Albion in fall 2024 for about $7.5 million, roughly a year after the project was awarded Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.
The capital partners include Denver's Department of Housing Stability (HOST), the city's Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency, the Colorado Division of Housing, Impact Development Fund and the Denver Housing Authority.
Santulan Architecture designed the building, and Delwest is serving as general contractor.
Delwest, led by owner and CEO Joe DelZotto, develops and manages properties across metro Denver through its Delwest Management arm. Its affordable portfolio includes Baker School Apartments, Holly38, Park Hill Station, The Landing at Greyhound Park, and The Vista at Greyhound Park in Commerce City.
The surrounding blocks are seeing other investment. MGL Partners broke ground in September 2025 on Iliff Apartments, a 50-unit affordable community for adults 62 and older at 4750 E. Iliff Ave.
Denver Parks and Recreation recently opened Bethesda Park, a nearly two-acre neighborhood park on the former Groundcovers Greenhouse site at Iliff and Bellaire Street. Grocery stores, schools and the Colorado Boulevard retail corridor are all within walking distance.
When Rise opens next year, the addition of 170 affordable homes, an early childhood education center, and new retail offerings will serve as a catalyst for continued investment and growth, further advancing the transformation of the Colorado Station area.