New vision would bring Denver's Speer Boulevard together on one side of Cherry Creek
Doors Open Denver is a four-day exploration of the city's built space. It's hosted by the Denver Architecture Foundation. There are Insider Tours, lectures, and a conversation about the future of Speer Boulevard. There is no dispute that Speer is a major traffic artery in and out of Downtown Denver.
"It's absolutely essential to the mobility of all downtown," said David Tryba, founder of Tryba Architects.
Historically, it was where Auraria and Highland met downtown. In 1859, they all merged to become part of Denver.
"The conception of Denver is that it would be a city in a park," Tryba explained.
There is not much that is park-like about the modern 10 lanes of traffic that move through the area right now. What little green space there is is not very accessible.
"This is the front door of our city," he said.
Tryba has a new vision for Speer Boulevard.
"Our proposal is to cross over Cherry Creek right at Colfax (Avenue). You see there is one new bridge and bring Speer Boulevard all along the south west side," Tryba said while pointing to the changes on a scale model of Downtown Denver.
Bringing the lanes of Speer to one side of Cherry Creek opens up acres of land for redevelopment along the Colorado Convention Center, the DCPA, Laurence and Larimer Streets.
"Wrap your head around how much asphalt is in all this area," Tryba said as he referenced a current picture taken from 14th & Wazee looking back toward Lawrence & Speer. "All this is owned by the citizens of Denver. We can do better than this with our land. We could create a park."
Tryba has renderings that show a park that extends right down to Cherry Creek, creating a sort of River Walk area.
"Just imagine we could expand Sculpture Park into an enormously open, successful event lawn," he explained.
The proposal would connect and enhance about 7 acres of already existing open space.
"And make what is a wasteland you see right here into something that is truly part of Denver's history," Tryba said while pointing out several current parking lots in the area.
The proposal would also create some room for new construction.
"There can be housing for the Auraria Campus, housing for workers at the Convention Center, at the Performing Arts Center, all of Lower Downtown," he added.
Tryba has been working on this plan for about 5 years. He says the city already owns 72 of the 74 acres along the creek. He estimates the construction costs at $650 million. It's sort of a passion project for him.
"It's been a great journey, and one of dedication and love of Denver and the possibilities of our future," he explained.
As Denver celebrates it's 150th birthday next year, Tryba feels this is a plan that will serve the City for the next 150 years.
LINK: "Speer Reimagined: A New Vision for Mobility, Ecology, and Public Life"
"Speer Reimagined: A New Vision for Mobility, Ecology, and Public Life" takes place on Saturday, September 27, 2025 from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Workplace Resource Colorado on the 16th Street Mall. This is a ticketed event.
LINK: Doors Open Denver
Doors Open Denver runs Thursday, September 25 - Sunday, September 28, 2025 at various times and locations across the city.
