Lincoln Park is one of Denver’s oldest neighborhoods located just south of Denver’s founding. Most of the homes were constructed in a modest working class brick style in the late 1880s. Many houses date from about 1900. The neighborhood is also referred to ass “La Alma/Lincoln Park “or the West Side.
Ethnically this was a very eastern European neighborhood until the district’s large influx of Hispanic immigrants in the mid-century. By the 60s & 70s the neighborhood became the heart of Denver’s Chicano Movement and continues to be a major Hispanic hub to this day. Lincoln Park is also home to El Museo de las Americas on Santa Fe Drive, the region’s first museum dedicated to the art and culture of Latinos.
This is a solid neighborhood from a urban perspective with good density, a great walkable biz district (Santa Fe), great public transit/bike infrastructure, excellent cultural and solid retail amenities, and racial and economic diversity. There are still some auto centric dead spaces that could use better urban in-fill, lingering crime issues, and limited tree canopy.
URBAN STRENGTHS:
* Solid urban density with 12K people per sq mile.
* Highly convenient access to Dwtn given its proximity.
* Great public transit access and a very multiple modal neighborhood thanks to a great bike infrastructure and good access to retail amenities.
* Wonderful economic and racial diversity.
* High # of walkable schools across a diverse age range here but mixed ratings.
* Fair amount of affordable housing located in the neighborhood. This is certainly reflected by the fact that 1/4 of the population is living in poverty.
* Good but not great park amenities with La Alma Park and Sunken Gardens Park.
* Great cultural amenities including a good array of restaurants, bars, cafes & a couple breweries. Many art galleries, several community theaters, and a couple museums as well. Great access to all the museums in neighboring Triangle Square.
* Solid retail amenities including a supermarket, a couple grocerias, a drug store, good # of boutiques/consignments stores and creative stores, a couple antique stores & gyms, a public library and a couple churches.
* Lots of cute historic bungalows and generally good urban in-fill.
* Overall great urban massing along Santa Fe. Autocentric areas creep in along 6th Ave, and western/industrial edge and the northern edge.
* Great streetscaping along Santa Fe.
URBAN WEAKNESSES:
* Generally good sidewalk infrastructure but ADA curb cuts are often generally dated, especially on residential streets.
* Good amount of auto centric crud in spots.
* Limited generational diversity. Lots of single young adults living here.
* Good # of rentals but on the pricy side. Studios & 1-beds lease btwn the mid 1Ks to 2K, 2-beds mid 1Ks -mid3K. Some 3-beds available generally leasing in the 3Ks.
* For sale properties are also expensive but decent variety and a good # of 1-beds and 2 beds in the district. 1-bed condos/homes selling in the 300KS-600Ks. 2-beds range from 450-800K, 3 & 4 beds homes sell btwn 475K-1 M.
* So tree canopy.
* Some crime and safety issues in Lincoln Park but overall the neighborhood feels safe.
Evaluating our Urban Communities [with a focus on America] 