The land that housed the Westminster Mall from 1977 to 2011 is slowly being transformed into another form of Americana — the downtown the city never had.

This city of roughly 115,000 hopes the re-envisioning of what was once a busy watering hole will usher in an economic and cultural center, similar to downtown Denver or the Cherry Creek district.  

Yet the work also highlights the challenges cities face as they try to redevelop former indoor shopping malls.

Motorists driving north on U.S. 36 past Westminster can get a quick peek at the section of tall, mixed-use apartment buildings and under-construction parks designated as Downtown Westminster. It is bounded by 92nd Avenue to the north, 88th Avenue to the south, Harlan Street to the west, and Sheridan Boulevard to the east.

Among the buildings sits an Alamo Drafthouse, an old JCPenney and a mural that reads, “Welcome to Downtown Westminster.”

The mural adds: “Eat. Play. Shop.”  

The tidy area and tight streets offer glimpses of that grand vision of a thriving downtown, but, for now, many of the retail spaces sitting under apartment windows remain empty.

While growth has occurred throughout the area since the Downtown Westminster project began over 14 years ago, some residents said the redevelopment is moving too slow.

“I would suspect (the city) is losing a lot of money right now,” Mark Clodi, a nearby resident, said while walking down the streets of Downtown Westminster on a sunny June day. 

“But, eventually, it’s going to be good,” he said.

Clodi was one of around 50 people perusing the area that some see as a budding commercial district for the suburban city.

“This is the heartbeat of Westminster,” said Heather Cronenberg, the real estate development manager for the city of Westminster. “The mall was always a gathering place, and the idea was to create a modern community space where people want to be. This area is vital to the Westminster community.”

Eat, play, shop

The area where the mall used to sit was purchased in three different chunks between 2009 and 2012 by the Westminster Economic Development Authority after the mall saw a significant decline in tax revenue. 

In 2009, for example, the mall generated roughly $3.1 million in sales tax revenue. That number dropped to about $1.7 million in 2012, according to the city.

Westminster took on $40 million in debt to purchase the land and began to build the infrastructure, such as roads and a sewer system.

The city held community planning meetings to develop a master plan for the area. With residents’ feedback, the city crafted a plan officials hope would create a walkable, community-friendly area to both show off what small businesses had to offer and create a replacement for the mall.

“The mall had previously been a gathering place, so the idea was to create a place as strong or stronger,” Cronenberg said.

The city tried to find a master developer, but despite multiple discussions over many years, it could not craft a deal to fulfill its vision.

The city wanted to get the redevelopment right, Cronenberg said.

So, in a strategy considered “unusual” by some developers, the city decided to hold on to the land and work with developers to create specific buildings on it. 

“They pivoted to acquire all of the land to ultimately control their own destiny,” Dan Collison, senior director of business development and public affairs at Sherman Associates, told The Denver Gazette.

Collison said cities have had to make decisions with struggling indoor malls.

“As I study mall redevelopment areas, most of the malls are very different stories. They are at the end of life and need to become something else entirely. Cities have to make decisions because they are privately owned,” he said.

Westminster began creating the infrastructure in 2015. The first public parking garage was finished in 2017. A central plaza, with fountains and seats, came in 2018. 

Sherman Associates, a residential and commercial developer based in Minnesota, was the first developer to build on the former Westminster Mall land — creating the Ascent apartments and retail space in 2019.

The Alamo Drafthouse also opened in 2019, and then the Origin Hotel in 2021. Sherman Associates opened a second apartment-retail building, Aspire, in 2022.

The latest project completed was Westminster Row — another apartment complex — in 2023.

A central park is currently under construction and is set to be completed by spring 2026, with an eastern-edge and southern portion coming later. Townhomes are also being constructed and condos are expected to break ground in mid-July.

The land is designated as an urban renewal area, which enables the Westminster Economic Development Authority to collect additional property tax revenue resulting from the redevelopment and reinvest it into further improvements and projects.

“There were always things happening, but the visioning portion took a long time,” Cronenberg said. “Our city manager likes to call it a 300-year project. It’s a reframing, a creation of a downtown Westminster. It’s tough for folks to be patient on that, but it takes time.”

Slow and steady

Some local business owners and residents have questioned why Downtown Westminster is moving slowly. City officials and developers said that’s just the time needed to make sure everything is done correctly. 

“It’s definitely moving slow. Any kind of development just takes forever,” said Neysa Cromer, owner of Inks & Drinks craft and paint bar in Downtown Westminster.

Cromer started her off-center arts and crafts bar — filled to the brim with luscious plants and comfy lighting — in Downtown Westminster around 2023. 

The business started as a paint-and-sip shop around 10 years ago but Cromer got bored with simple painting. Now, she teaches various projects, such as terrarium building and string art. 

“I was constantly watching businesses close and leave at the mall, so I was trying to be on the new side of something. Somewhere that was about to turn into something,” she said about choosing the redevelopment area, pointing toward U.S. 36 as a significant plus.

She added: “Every once in a while, you feel like you were too early, but I don’t think that’ll stay that way for long.”

Cromer is optimistic that new events will help bring customers to the area.

Cronenberg said that while the planning phase and meetings with potential master developers at the beginning may have set things back a little, everything has been on-time since.

The city wants to get it right, Cronenberg said, by creating an “urban model in a suburban community.”

“I can understand from certain perspectives that it might feel slower compared to other surrounding developments, but the reason behind that is sticking to that core vision,” Cronenberg said.

Both Cronenberg and Collison said that the city overseeing the redevelopment itself has not been a cause of delay — that it instead provides the insurance things will be done right.

“It is unique. It’s not totally unusual,” Collison said of the city doing it itself. “They intuited that they couldn’t just let the private market play out. I believe they made the right choice.”

“Development is always twice as long and twice as expensive as everyone thinks. If it was a private developer, I don’t think it would go any faster,” David Fingerhut, associate broker with Colorado Real Estate Brokers, said of the city’s decision to develop the area on its own.

Colorado Real Estate Brokers has no connection to Downtown Westminster.

Collison added that the COVID pandemic and 2023 being considered the bottom of the 18-year property cycle caused stress for both the city and developers.

For example, the pandemic wiped out Sherman Associates’ plans for a 13,000-square-foot food hall under one of the apartment buildings. The plan is just now coming to fruition, with the project being “imminent,” according to Collison.

“Developers rely upon favorable terms with banks and construction costs. I feel like downtown actually has a lot of acceleration,” he said. “Was there a bit of handwringing during COVID? For sure. Who wasn’t wringing their hands?”

Cronenberg said that, luckily, plans were already in place before COVID for buildings.

“The bigger issue now that everyone is dealing with is the market conditions post COVID. It was really a double whammy,” she said, pointing to high interest rates and construction costs.

Still, Sherman Associates’ two buildings have around 70% of the 70,000-square-foot commercial space filled with local restaurants and businesses and around 90% of the 481 apartments leased.

“We’ve got seven testimonials from businesses that they took off downtown. They love being there and they love the culture and the vibe. It’s really coming together,” said Chavez, the Westminster Chamber of Commerce official.

The area has seen a significant growth in sales tax revenue. In 2022, the number stood at about $4 million. In 2023, it jumped to more than $7.2 million. Tax revenue was nearly $6.8 million in 2024.

“I think it’s terrific. I can’t wait to see more and more of this kind of development,” area resident Joseph Gerber said. “They’re trying to build a sense of community. I walk here all of the time. Put a grocery store in here and I’ll barely leave.”

What’s next?

The Westminster Economic Development Authority board agreed to a year-long pilot program and a partnership with the Westminster Chamber of Commerce at the end of April to help “activate” the region.

The partnership — the price tag is $300,000, coming from taxes of downtown businesses and residents — will include at least six events, 10 business and retail activation initiatives and 12 interactive and community-driven activities in the area before the beginning of May 2026.

“It’s an important investment. Obviously, getting the foot traffic down there is important to the businesses. Having events that get people to the area and keep them there walking around and shopping is really important,” Chavez said.

Gerber hopes that the efforts will include making it a diverse community.

“They’re making the mistake of pricing middle and lower income people completely out of the picture,” he said. “These shops are probably not full because they’re too expensive for a business to go in there. There’s not a critical mass of people to support them.”

Clodi, the resident walking through the area, said, “I looked at these apartment prices, they’re super high. You can get better deals. Eventually, these prices will fit. When they add new shops, this is going to be a nice area to be.”

Cronenberg said an affordable senior housing development is in the works and the existing Easton Street Apartments are considered affordable.

And Collison said there are 26 affordable-designated apartments in Sherman Associates’ buildings.

Still, the challenge for the city is to get people to visit the area and for new residents to move in, according to Collison.

“Nothing is taken for granted. We have to invite people in who are willing to jump early into the picture and take some risks with us,” Collison said.