North Capitol Park is often referred to as Uptown. This district along with Capitol Hill was one of the first neighborhoods where the wealthy of the City settled in the 1870s and 1880s. But similar to Capitol Hill it experienced a downturn after WWII and many historic homes where either demolished or converted into rentals. The edge of the district near Dwtn also got more or less incorporated in the CBD with some office buildings but also a lot of surface parking lots and underutilized space.
Currently, North Capitol Park is undergoing significant redevelopment and gentrification, with many young residents and transplants moving here. This is largely due to its proximity to Dwtn, walkability, and significant cultural amenities and night life.
For North Capitol Park to become a great neighborhood lots of in-fill development is needed in the western half of the district. Because of all the surface parking lots here it lacks great urban cohesion. Parks of Colfax Avenue are also pretty auto centric. The district also needs more parks and trees.
URBAN STRENGTHS:
* Great urban density.
* Walkable access to Dwtn. Also great transit service and bike infrastructure here.
* Good but not great ADA infrastructure as many curbs are missing modern ADA cuts.
* Pretty good access to walkable schools within or near North Capitol Park. Generally good ratings.
* Hsg on the pricey but a ton of moderately price condos. 1 beds sell anywhere btwn 300K-600K, 2-beds 350K-1M, 3 & 4 beds btwn 500-1.3M with condos being on the cheaper end.
* Tons of rentals and comparatively moderately priced comparted to other Denver neighborhoods. Studios 1-beds lease anywhere in the 1Ks, 2-beds 1.5K to 3K, 3-beds are limited. It seems there are a good amount of affordable hsg here.
* Great cultural amenities including many restaurants, bars, nightclubs & cafes. Also several art galleries, a couple live music venues,. Also great access to all the many cultural assets Dwtn and in the Golden Triangle.
* Good retail amenities including several gourmet super markets, a home depot a couple drug stores, some boutiques , home good and creative stores, tons of banks, a bookstore, several desserts shops & gyms, and plenty of churches. Also walkable access to the many retail options along 16th street (Dwtn) including a Target.
* Nice historic homes on the eastern half of the district. Some very spectacular bldg.
URBAN WEAKNESSES:
* Generally a safe area. Some sketchy stretches along Colfax and some lingering crime issues.
* Park Amenities are limited to the small Benedict Fountain Park and Civic Center Plaza.
* Ok tree canopy better on the eastern half.
* Good # of surface parking lots, esp. on the western half close to dwtn. Weird mix of infill, historic bldgs and parking lots here.
* Colfax avenue is a mix of good and poor urban form.
Evaluating our Urban Communities [with a focus on America] 