Project Details
- Project Name
- 900 Penn
- Architect
- Davis Urban
- Project Types
- Multifamily
- Project Scope
- Renovation/Remodel
- Size
- 24,000 sq. feet
- Year Completed
- 2017
- Shared by
- Hanley Wood
- Project Status
- Built
2018 Residential Architect Design Awards / Renovation/Adaptive Reuse / Award
"I was really attracted to the kind of renovation that happened here—it’s a phenomenal transformation, and it makes such a powerful case for the possibilities of reusing buildings." —Rosalyne Shieh
For years, 900 Penn, a seven-story apartment in the Governor’s Park neighborhood south of downtown Denver, sat neglected and half-occupied. Faced in red brick with a Howard Johnson–esque mansard roof, it was both a local icon and, increasingly, a local eyesore.
Its prospects changed when it was bought by a Denver software entrepreneur, Nadine Lange, who saw an opportunity to build a luxury address in a rapidly gentrifying part of the city. Rather than demolish the tower, she decided to renovate and reconfigure the 24,000-square-foot building, installing a single 3,000-square-foot residence on each floor, plus a ground-floor guest suite.
To spearhead the renovation, she hired Davis Urban, a local firm known for its restrained Modernism. Founded in 2011, the firm and its founding principal, Matt Davis, AIA, have quickly made a name for themselves designing bespoke infill residences around Denver, as well as finding creative ways to repurpose overlooked relics from the city’s industrial past for commercial and residential clients.
Davis’ solution for 900 Penn was to strip off the brick and pull back the façade to create space for expansive decks—two per floor—and to accommodate floor-to-ceiling sliding windows along much of the exterior. An added roof terrace includes an open fireplace and a trellis-covered dining area. Two service cores—one centered on an elevator shaft and the other around an emergency stair—are clad in gray brick.
The result is a mid-rise tower that bears only the slightest resemblance to its previous self: sleek and simplified where before it was fussy, light and light-filled where it was dark and brooding. In its new form, 900 Penn is still a neighborhood icon, but it is no longer an eyesore.
See the full list of winners of the 2018 Residential Architect Design Awards.
Project Credits
Project: 900 Penn, Denver
Client: Nadine Lange
Architect: David Urban, Denver . Matt Davis, AIA, Chris Jahn, AIA
Interior Designer: Griffith Interior Design
Structural Engineer: Monroe & Newell Engineers
Electrical Engineer: John Kirkman
General Contractor: Sprung Construction
Lighting Designer: Cullen Lighting Studio
Size: 21,000 square feet
Cost: Withheld
Materials and Sources
Insulation: Icynene
Kitchen Fixtures: Meile, Wolf, Subzero
Lighting Control Systems: Lutron