The Colorado Economic Development Commission approved a $5 million grant on Thursday for infrastructure upgrades around Burnham Yard as the preferred Denver Broncos stadium site.

The CEDC — a state commission that develops incentive packages to help existing businesses expand and attract new jobs — will not require new funding to make it happen.

In 2021, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) purchased Burnham Yard, located south of Colfax Avenue and east of Interstate 25. Lisa Kaufmann, a senior strategic adviser to Gov. Jared Polis, said on Thursday that the CEDC provided the state with a $7.5 million loan to help cover the down payment.

The zero-interest loan is due on June 21.

“What we are asking for today is to convert $5 million of the $7.5 million overall loan to a grant, and to use that $5 million to make the rest of the infrastructure commitments that we’ve made happen,” Kaufmann told the commission. “That’s really to remove the Burnham Lead Line and eliminate three at-grade (railroad) crossings, improving safety throughout this whole corridor. And to partner with RTD to expand the light rail and improve the light rail. There are conversations about elevating the light rail through this corridor to improve safety and where we can make the needed improvements to the state highways for ingress and egress into the site.”

Kaufmann continued: “The $5 million would be a part of that overall capital stack that we would be partnering with CDOT, and the agencies within CDOT, to get that done.”

The CEDC approved the request by unanimous vote after a brief executive session citing “the purpose of receiving legal advice and discussing documents that contain trade secrets and/or confidential commercial or financial information.”

The commission stated that CDOT will return its current $2.5 million loan balance to the CEDC by June 21.

It is one piece of a larger puzzle to bring a retractable-roof NFL stadium and mixed-use entertainment district to the site of a historic Denver railyard.

In September, the Broncos announced Burnham Yard as the preferred site for a new stadium. The team said it would be privately financed with no new taxes. In March, Broncos controlling owner Greg Penner told reporters the team was “on track” to open the stadium in 2031.

But with a major caveat.

“It’s an ambitious timeline that we have, and we won’t be able to accomplish our goals in terms of timing and getting in there just by ourselves,” Penner said. “So, it’s not just something that the Broncos are driving. We have to have a lot of support from partners and others that are involved with the site.”

The Broncos reached a sale agreement in March with CDOT to purchase roughly 58 acres of land for $45.8 million at Burnham Yard.