Denver West Neighborhoods Plan

Denver’s Neighborhood Planning Initiative will eventually update plans for all neighborhoods throughout the city. Dig Studio was part of a larger team with WSP and OV Consulting to develop neighborhood plans for the west area, which includes Barnum, Barnum West, Sun Valley, Valverde, Villa Park and West Colfax.

Neighborhood residents were most concerned with quality-of-life concerns, and the planning team lifted up those issues as a framework for the resultant plan. As an area of the city that historically experienced disinvestment and the results of redlining, that historic context served as the foundation to approach the challenges the area is facing.

The planning team focused on three quality of life areas: health, equity, and environmental resiliency. Recommended bold moves include restoration of the South Platte River, increased open space in areas of need, green infrastructure to treat stormwater and reduce flooding, and safe multimodal transportation corridors prioritizing pedestrian safety.