Pinkard Construction tops out Lowry Apartments at Boulevard One

Pinkard Construction Co. recently topped out the 68,217-square-foot Lowry Apartments, a four-story wood-framed, mixed-income development at Lowry’s Boulevard One community.

The Lowry project is transitioning from the structural phase to the finishes phase, with utilities, foundations, masonry cores, structural steel and structural framing complete. Mechanical, electrical and plumbing rough-ins have begun, along with preparation for exterior skin installation. Construction at the football-field-sized site began last July, and it is expected to complete this July.

The 72-unit facility, which includes 20 units for the homeless, will provide 41 one-bedroom units, 23 two-bedroom units and eight three-bedroom units. It will feature ground-floor community space, business offices, surface parking and a rooftop solar array.

Lowry Apartments’ design is based on a contemporary reinterpretation of the existing Lowry context and uses sustainable design and healthy living practices. It will provide permanent affordable housing opportunities to families earning approximately 30 to 50 percent of the average median income and will include subsidies for transitional residents moving out of homelessness.

Working closely in preconstruction with Volunteers of America, Denver Housing Authority and Parikh Stevens Architects, Pinkard helped to guide a budget effort that overcame an initial deficit of $4.2 million.

“The value engineering effort had to be especially creative to conform to the strict design requirements mandated by the Boulevard ONE neighborhood,” said Pinkard President Tony Burke. “With the project roughly 25 percent over budget, the team was still able to get the project in budget thanks to a VE charrette over a five-day period. This charrette produced major savings on the exterior skin while meeting Boulevard One neighborhood design standards, and still maintained the same number of residential units and square feet of common space.”

The entire Boulevard One development is the last new neighborhood at Lowry – once the tail end of historic Runway One at the former Lowry Air Force Base. It features walk-to neighborhood retail and offices, multiple parks and a community plaza, and paths within and around the development, providing connectivity to Crestmoor Park, the surrounding neighborhoods and the regional bike system.

Denver Housing Authority and Volunteers of America formed the Lowry Affordable Housing Partners to develop and manage this new property, which is located at the corner of Archer Place and South Oneida Street in the Boulevard One community.

“Pinkard Construction Company is delighted to once again team with Volunteers of America and Denver Housing Authority on this important affordable/mixed-use development,” Burke said. “The Lowry Apartments development will be an important step in helping to address Denver’s growing housing crisis.

Pinkard also made room for the Mile High Youth Corps YouthBuild program on the Lowry Apartments project. Roughly 20 YouthBuild participants went through a basic skills training program and were then partnered with framers, plumbers and other trades to learn basic construction skills. Mile High Youth Corps and YouthBuild is a nonprofit organization providing comprehensive job training, education and leadership development that engages out-of-school and unemployed young adults ages 17-24.

Since Pinkard’s founding in 1962, Pinkard has constructed 12 projects for Denver Housing Authority. Pinkard is also underway on DHA’s VIDA affordable housing at Sloans Lake. The general contractor’s previous work with Volunteers of America includes Sunset Towers and Westgate Tower in Denver.

Parikh Stevens Architects is the architect of record for Lowry Apartments.