A century-old factory that produced mining drills, which has mostly sat empty since 2010 within Denver’s River North neighborhood, is poised to become a massive mixed-use redevelopment.

The historic site near the city’s light rail station at 38th and Blake streets is made up of rows of sawtooth-roofed buildings with broken glass windows behind grates and brick walls covered in murals and graffiti art.

It’s been nearly a decade since the owners of the site known as Rock Drill RiNo stated their intention to redevelop the property, but there’s been some movement lately.

Developers are moving forward with plans to revitalize the area by turning it into a mixed-use shopping district that could have housing, office and retail components, and a hotel. But first — they’re seeking to designate most of the 8.4-acre site as “blighted” and establish it as an Urban Redevelopment Area to help get it off the ground through tax incentives.

On Tuesday, the Denver City Council’s finance committee approved pushing forward the urban renewal zone’s creation to be considered by the full council next month, along with another motion to rezone the area.

To get funding through tax-increment financing, the Denver Urban Renewal Authority (DURA) has to determine if the site can be legally defined as “blighted.” The organization created by Denver to revitalize parts of the city found Rock Drill was eligible, citing deteriorating structures, environmental contamination and unsafe buildings.

“This is an important but challenged site,” said Tracy Huggins, executive director of DURA. “It’s really a strong candidate for the use of urban renewal efforts.”

Tax-increment financing is a measure cities use to spur developments with potential to boost the economies of local neighborhoods that are later paid by future property and sales taxes the project is expected to generate over time.

For example, the old Gates Rubber Factory where the Denver Summit’s soccer stadium will be built and a block of buildings in RiNo across from Denver Central Market are Urban Redevelopment Areas.  

Why plans to revive RiNo's 'blighted' area could be scaled back a lot

If approved by the City Council, DURA said, the development could be eligible for reimbursement of up to nearly $40 million or nearly 7% of the total project cost within 25 years.

“We really want to be able to maximize the private investment, thereby minimizing the public investment, but still looking to achieve the objectives that the project is seeking to deliver,” Huggins told the committee members.

Setting up an Urban Redevelopment Area aims to rid the site of its blighted conditions, preserve historic buildings, add new amenities for the neighborhood and get the project off the ground, Huggins said.

Transformation is years in the making

The industrial property dates back to 1910, when the Rock Drill Manufacturing Co. produced pneumatic rock drills to be used for mining around the world. It was later bought by the Butler Fixture & Manufacturing Co. in the 1970s until it went bankrupt in 1988.

Rock Drill was later bought by the Weiss family in 1992. The family still owns the property today. The buildings have been mostly used as warehouse space since it was purchased, but it became mostly vacant by 2010.

Back in 2017, the Weiss family initiated plans to redevelop the site. DURA was approached then by the developers to get tax-increment financing assistance, but Huggins said those plans for the site fell through.

Now a new vision of the project has been spearheaded by Denver-based developers OliverBuchananGroup, which approached DURA in early 2023 to explore whether the site could be eligible for urban renewal financing.

The developers are proposing to preserve most of the east side’s sawtooth buildings and want to integrate it with new modern buildings, including one as tall as 22 stories, creating about 700 to 800 residential units, up to 60,000 square feet of office space and 150,000 square feet for retail.

“To have such a unique space, I think it will actually be in very high demand in an otherwise challenged office market,” said OliverBuchananGroup Development Director Brian Fishman.

Developers also plan to create about 71,000 square feet designated for outdoor public space and it may have a grocery store, Huggins said.

About 10% of the housing will be income-restricted, as per city requirements.

“It is an amazing site and there’s a lot of possibilities,” said Councilmember Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez.

She later asked if the developers had any plans to include more affordable housing with the project to address the city’s housing needs — to which Fishman said there are not.

When will construction start? 

“This Rock Drill development has been on everyone’s tongue,” said Councilmember Darrell Watson, who represents District 9, where Rock Drill RiNo is located.

Watson said many people have been waiting for the old factory to open up for public use again. 

Once the project gets city approval for its rezoning and urban renewal designation, Fishman told The Denver Gazette, developers will move forward to the design stage.

The rezoning and the designation of the site as an Urban Redevelopment Area will go before the City Council on Sept. 15.

But timing could be heavily affected by the economy, Fishman said, such as construction costs, interest rates and tariffs. The tax-increment financing will be “incredibly helpful,” he said.

“Ideally, breaking ground and starting some construction will start late next year,” he added.