Denver Union Station may well be the most impressive rail hub project in the United States today. I must admit to being pretty wowed by the presentation for development of the station and its 20-acre environs at the ULI Fall Meeting in Denver last week. For one, it isn’t just a proposal; it is under construction. It’s happening! The station itself will open in 2014 and the rest of the transit infrastructure will be done in 2016. As well, there will be significant private development immediately surrounding the station. That is precisely what interests me the most – the opportunity…

It is time to stop letting the highway standards dictate pedestrian safety improvements along Hiawatha Avenue. Anyone who has crossed Hiawatha Avenue on foot or by bicycle knows it’s a pretty rough go. Even with an actual walk signal illuminated the experience feels like taking your life in your hands, and I constantly rubberneck to be sure I’m not about to be run down. While the popular operation of light rail along Hiawatha for eight years running is surely a victory, the pedestrian realm has not kept up. The good news is as a result of the Minnehaha-Hiawatha planning initiative,…