Officials from the City of Wheat Ridge and New Town Builders pose before “breaking ground” on Perrin’s Row

New Town Builders broke ground in March on Perrin’s Row,  a rowhome development located at 38th Avenue and Depew Street. The community will include 26 two-and-three bedroom row homes priced from the mid-$200s. Meanwhile, at 38th and Fenton Street, Urban Green Development is planning a sustainable development featuring paired homes, single-family patio homes and row homes. Standard Pacific Homes will offer a more traditional, upscale option, with a 48-homesite community in the city’s Applewood neighborhood.

Rendering of a model home in the upcoming Fireside at Applewood development

The city is also picking up steam when it comes to commercial development. While incentives have helped lured new, unique businesses to the city’s emerging downtown area, known as The Ridge at 38, developers are also aiming to attract larger retailers. A mixed-use development is taking shape at 38th Avenue and Kipling Street that will include a 64-unit senior living facility and a 27,000-square-foot Sprouts store. Another large grocer could land at the southwest corner of 38th and Wadsworth, where Governor John Hickenlooper recently signed a bill that would provide tax credits for environmental clean-up projects. The Wheat Ride Urban Renewal Authority, which owns a portion of that site, could transfer tax credits to a developer to help cover the $300,000 in environmental remediation needed at the site.

Governor Hickenlooper signs Senate Bill 73 at a development site in Wheat Ridge

The developments have captured the attention of local media outlets, who have been closely following Wheat Ridge’s growth. The Denver Post covered the building boom in March and did another story examining redevelopment efforts in April. The Denver Business Journal also wrote about the Sprouts development and the recent bill signing.

While the city’s economic development efforts are in the spotlight, officials also continue to work hard to build community among residents through unique gatherings and events. On June 22nd, Wheat Ridge and the Ridge at 38 hosted its first Criterium – a Bronze level Rocky Mountain Road Cup race. In addition to high-speed bicycle racing, the Criterium also featured food trucks, a craft beer garden, kids activities and live bluegrass music.

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This year’s conference featured several prominent experts on wellness, including Steve Bangert, CEO of CoBiz Financial, which has been lauded for its efforts to build a healthier workforce. At CoBiz employees can take Weight Watchers classes on-site and get a day off to get their annual physical exams. The company also underwrites the cost of Fitbits and provides interest-free loans to help workers finance fitness equipment.

At the Culture of Health Conference, exhibitors handed out fruit instead of candy

More than 500 attendees (a record number for the event) turned out to hear Bangert and other wellness leaders at this year’s conference, which also included exhibits, break-out sessions and even a mini-Zumba session. We enjoyed learning more about how wellness programs can boost employee productivity, reduce health care costs and improve the health of workers.

Mile High Fitness Instructor Kim Farmer got the crowd on its feet

To get the word out about this year’s conference, we placed contributions from CBGH Executive Director Donna Marshall in ColoradoBiz magazine and Health News Colorado. The Denver Business Journal also interviewed panelist Karen Curran of Pinnacol Assurance, about a study the company is conducting that is showing that wellness can significantly reduce health risks. You can read the article here.
In addition to the Culture of Health conference, the CBGH hosts meetings every month to offer information on programs that help add value to the health care system. For more information visit the organization’s website.

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We were lucky enough to tour the building last fall and we’re excited to see Cadence’s upscale amenities – such as a rooftop pool and fitness center and jazz-themed lobby lounge area – take shape. The development also boasts a number of green features, including high-efficiency water fixtures, Energy Star appliances and a recycling and composting program.

The building’s sale captured the attention of both local and national media, including the Denver Business Journal, Denver Post and Multi-Housing News. Zocalo will continue to manage and lease Cadence, which includes studios, one-bedroom units and two-bedroom units, with an average monthly rent of $1,892.

Never a company to rest on its laurels, Zocalo continues to add to the city’s landscape, with the development of 1st and Steele, a new 185-unit apartment community in Cherry Creek and The Grove at Stapleton, a 150-unit project in northeast Denver. Both projects are slated for completion in 2015.

We look forward to working with Zocalo as the company continues to make its mark on Denver.

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Teller Street Gallery & Studios, one of Wheat Ridge’s new businesses.

Using a combination of tax rebates, grants and loans, Wheat Ridge has attracted a net 35 new businesses since 2011. The Stasko Agency began working with the city this past spring, helping to shine the light on Wheat Ridge’s  “open for business” agenda and its efforts to revitalize a stretch of 38th Avenue from Wadsworth Boulevard to Sheridan Boulevard.

Right Coast Pizza opened on Wheat Ridge’s “main street” in 2012.

We’re pleased to say that media outlets are starting to take note of Wheat Ridge’s initiatives. The Denver Business Journal highlighted the city’s business growth last month, while the Wheat Ridge Transcript examined the success the city has had in luring businesses from Denver. You can read that article here. The North Denver Tribune and the Colorado Real Estate Journal both turned the lens on Wheat Ridge’s revival on 38th Avenue, an area city officials have dubbed the “Ridge at 38.”

In addition to spurring business expansion through a slew of economic incentives, Wheat Ridge has also lured entrepreneurs by expanding community offerings. The list of programming includes cruiser crawls, a Wines and Dines event, an annual Wheat Fest to highlight the city’s agricultural roots and the Mid Century and Modern Home tour, which is slated for Saturday, September 7.

The interior of one of the homes that will be featured in this year’s Mid Century and Modern Home Tour

If you haven’t visited Wheat Ridge recently, we encourage you to make the trip. In the coming months, we’ll also be spreading the word about the city’s growing housing options. So, stay tuned for more updates!

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 In fact, Darrin Ginsberg, founder of The Guppy Tank, views the unusual funding model as a way of “jump starting the economy and spur the growth of local businesses.” The Stasko Agency has been working with Darrin and his firm, Super G Funding, LLC, to spread the word about The Guppy Tank, which is slated to provide up to $500,000 in equity investments and loans to as many as 10 Denver-area entrepreneurs on September 12 at Galvanize, a co-working space for independent firms.

Darrin Ginsberg promoting The Guppy Tank to media outlets

The Guppy Tank is searching for businesses that have been operating for at least a year and employ less than 75 people. Entrepreneurs must also have a clear-cut plan detailing how they plan to use potential funds and how those funds will advance their businesses. To participate, interested business owners should fill out an online application at www.guppytank.com by September 8.

Denver’s Guppy Tank will mark the first time Super G Funding has held an event outside California. The Denver event will also be open to the public, who will get to see eager entrepreneurs make their case for funding. In addition to much-needed capital, business owners who win funding, will also have the opportunity to work with the “Guppies’ to gain guidance on how to best grow their businesses.

The Guppy Tank has already captured the attention of the Denver Business Journal, which wrote about the event in its July 20 edition. Click here to read a preview of the article.

Help us raise awareness about this innovative event, by urging your entrepreneurial friends to apply.

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The company, Greenwood Village-based VideoBloom, was one of two local businesses exhibiting last month at the Shop.org Annual Summit, a networking and education event where retailers learn about the hottest digital trends. More than 4,000 big-name retailers attended the event (held in Denver this year), including H&M, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.

 Established in 2007, VideoBloom not only produces videos for clients such as Proctor & Gamble, but also provides retailers with video commerce capabilities that can be easily integrated into their websites, allowing consumers to click on a product in a video and add it to their virtual shopping carts.  The company also helps retailers distribute their videos to the right social media channels – generating buzz and sales.   

With VideoBloom’s creative approach to online retail we had no problem capturing the attention of 9News, which featured the company’s Chairman Antoine Toffa on its broadcast the morning Shop.org kicked off and the Denver Business Journal’s Dennis Huspeni, who featured Toffa in his blog from the convention.

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