(rshsdepot) Denver, CO

["Bernie Wagenblast" <brwagenblast_@_home.com>]

-From The Denver Business Journal:

Union Station deal finalized
By: Cathy Proctor

The deal for Denver Union Terminal is done and the historic
transportation hub is firmly in public hands.
The deal totaled $49,750,000 for slightly under 20 acres of land,
said Paula Kurtz, executive vice president with Trillium Corp.,
one of the three private companies that owned the old terminal
and land surrounding it.
The deal closed on Monday, Aug. 13, said Susan Altes, senior real
property specialist with the Regional Transportation District,
which led negotiations.

"It's closed, signed, sealed and delivered," said John Claflin,
assistant general manager for the Regional Transportation
District.

"It's really exciting," Kurtz said. "We all felt good that it was
going to happen, but it takes a while to close a deal of this
size."

Kurtz said talks on buying the station started in June 2000.

"We think it's going to be really positive for the community,"
Kurtz said.

Trillium, based in Bellingham, Wash., owned 50 percent of the
station plus surrounding land. Union Pacific Railroad Co. owned
one-third of the station's site and Denver developer Pat Broe
owned the remainder.
The city of Denver pledged $10 million for the purchase, and the
Denver Regional Council of Governments will contribute $20
million, Altes confirmed. RTD, the leader in negotiations, is
picking up the remainder of the cost.

Plans for the station call for it to once again become a
transportation hub for Denver, with light rail, the 16th Street
Shuttle, buses, bicycles and rental cars all available at the
station.
The master planning process is expected to take 18 months to two
years, Claflin said. A request for proposals will be released in
mid-September, he said.

"We want to keep the history and the historical aspect of the
station as well as the public space and potential for office
development," Claflin said.

"There are a lot of community issues as well as the multi-modal
bus, light rail and taxicab questions. That's a lot of public
hearings, a lot of input from business interests and the
communities around the station," he said.

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