1776 Lincoln Street

Westside Investment Partners submitted an application  to turn part of Lincoln Crossing into housing, a direction we had a strong feeling would surface sooner or later. Years ago, the Gensler Design conversion study flagged the tower at 1776 Lincoln as one of downtown’s best candidates for residential reuse. That early signal is now becoming reality as Westside seeks to convert the 13 floor building into about 120 apartments across 109k square feet.

According to Business Den, the application submitted earlier this year plans an estimated cost of $38 million, or about $316k per unit and roughly $350 per square foot. The 32 floor companion tower at 1775 Sherman will stay office, giving the campus a rare mix of uses with built in garage parking. Westside says adding residents will help activate the shared entry, improve street level energy and support leasing efforts in the office tower.

Lincoln Crossing sold in April for $10 million, a steep 90% drop from its 2018 sale. At the time, it was only about 20% leased. Westside operates offices all over the city, so working to stabilize the building isn’t something new to them. The conversion strategy looks well timed as Uptown sees new housing pressure. Just down the street, 240 units are planned at 18th and Logan and another 250 units are under construction at 1717 North Grant.

Westside is asking the Downtown Denver authority  for $10 million to support the project. If approved, the shift at Lincoln Crossing would mark a significant adaptive reuse moment on this side of downtown and a clear validation of what the Gensler data projected years before. “We aren’t sure we’re converting it yet. Getting DDA funds with the right structure would certainly help” said Andy Klein, Principal at Westside.