On Oct 27, 2020 Jeff Fard interviewed Jame Mejia former Director of Parks and Recs during the Wellington Webb administration. Mr Mejia discusses the Park Hill Golf Course easement at 00:52:12
Jeff Fard Interviews James Mejia
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Author Archives: SOS Denver
Jeff Fard and Ken Ho Interview
Jeff Fard interviews Ken Ho from Westside Development regarding the Park Hill Golf Course. Also appearing in the video are Norman Harris and Ty Hubbard who represent The Holleran Group who have joined the redevelopment ownership team. Oct 23 2020
Westside names outreach-focused partner in Park Hill Golf Club redevelopment effort
Business Den Thomas Gounley October 22, 2020 0
The company that purchased the Park Hill Golf Club property in the summer of 2019 has named a partner as it pursues redevelopment.
Glendale-based Westside Investment Partners, which paid $24 million for the shuttered 150-acre course along Colorado Boulevard, said Thursday that The Holleran Group has joined the redevelopment ownership team.
Denver-based Holleran will focus on community outreach and engagement.
“We’ve consistently said that we want to have the voice of the community involved here, and we think that this partnership increases our capacity for that,” Westside Principal Kenneth Ho said during a press call.
The city is preparing to lead a small-area planning process for the property, which will involve collecting community feedback, Ho said.
Holleran was formed in 2017 by Norman Harris and Ty Hubbard, two Black Denver natives, according to its website. The firm is involved in the acquisition, development and management of real estate.
Harris said development of the former course — which can’t happen without several key approvals from the city — needs to benefit the neighborhoods that surround it.
“We discovered Holleran and Westside’s values align around a socially equitable approach to development that not only assures that our neighborhood has the loudest voice in the process but that the neighborhood shares in the economic benefit,” Harris said.
He added, “Our ultimate outcome needs to be the empowerment of the northeast Denver community.”
Hubbard said neighborhood financial benefits could come in the form of “homeownership, job creation, investment opportunities and other initiatives.”
Redevelopment of the course, which closed to golfers at the end of 2018, faces hurdles.
The property currently has a conservation easement on it, which essentially restricts use to an 18-hole golf course. That could be amended by the Denver City Council, which would also need to approve a rezoning of the property.
In August, Denver City Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca asked her colleagues to place a measure on the city’s November ballot that would have allowed voters to determine whether the course could be redeveloped. But the council voted 10 to 3 to instead demote CdeBaca’s bill to committee for further discussion.
Redevelopment of the course is expected to include numerous uses. Ho has said that Westside will set aside at least 60 of the acres as a park.
Denver Starting Small-Area Planning Process for Park Hill Golf Club
Conor McCormick-Cavanagh| October 23, 2020 | 7:55am
Westword
Denver will soon initiate a small-area planning process for the 155-acre property that includes the now-closed Park Hill Golf Club, and the developer that bought the property has agreed to participate.
“I want to reaffirm our commitment to honestly listening to the people who will bring this project to life and to a transparent and equitable dialogue,” says Kenneth Ho, the project lead at Westside Investment Partners, in a statement announcing the agreement. “We recognize that there is a higher bar for community benefits on this site, and we are committed to ensuring that the end result of this project reflects the values and needs of the community.”
The announcement comes two months after Denver City Council voted against referring a measure to the ballot that would have required voter approval for the city to lift any conservation easements, which limit development possibilities for the property. For decades, the Park Hill Golf Club has been under a conservation easement that largely prevents it from being used for anything other than a golf course, according to an analysis by city attorneys.
Appraisal Of Park Hill Golf Course July 26 2018
Attached is an appraisal commissioned by the city in the summer of 2018 in connection with its need to pay compensation to Clayton Early Learning [the then land owner] and Arcis [the then golf course operator] for damages resulting from the city’s stormwater detention project in the NE corner of the PHGC land. Here are some takeaways from the appraisal:
- The encumbered value of the land prior to the “taking” pursuant to the condemnation agreement between Clayton and the city was $2,941,648 which was slightly lower than the $3.1 million appraisal commissioned by Clayton in 2015 [page 8]
- The appraised amount of the compensation damages was $415,300 [page 8] excluding the cost of returning the land to a golf course at the end of the project
- Therefore the $6 million paid by the city to Westside in connection with the November 2019 “Settlement Agreement” apparently included (a) $415,300 to settle the condemnation “takings” claims made in the two lawsuits and (b) $5,584,700 for the hypothetical cost of returning the land to a golf course at the end of the stormwater detention project which Westside will never do.
REAL PROPERTY APPRAISAL REPORT – Appraisal (Final) Park Hill Golf Course – Nelson 7-23-18
