Union Station District from an urban planning and development perspective. Learn about the introduction of the railroad to the Central Platte Valley in the early 1870s; the creation of the historic Union Station building in the 1880s and its expansion in the early 1900s as the city’s bustling gateway to the world; the decline of railroads and the Valley’s crumbling infrastructure and underutilization in the post-WWII era; the decades-long planning effort that led to the area’s remarkable transformation; and the recent transit investments and building boom that have propelled the Union Station area into one of the country’s hottest urban districts.

THE CITY TRANSFORMED: DENVER’S LOWER DOWNTOWN DISTRICT
This two-hour walking tour explores Denver’s historic Lower Downtown District from an urban planning and development perspective. Learn about LoDo as thethe 1970s, the 16th Street Mall in the 1980s, the Colorado Convention Center and Light Rail in the 1990s, and dozens of infill developments since 2000 have shaped the core of downtown. Special focus will be given to the 43 buildings that make up the Downtown Denver Historic District and how historic preservation and adaptive reuse have preserved many of downtown’s most important and iconic structures.

THE CITY TRANSFORMED: DENVER’S CIVIC CENTER/GOLDEN TRIANGLE MUSEUM DISTRICT
This two-hour walking tour explores the ongoing transformation of Denver’s historic Civic Center and Golden Triangle Museum District from an urban planning and development perspective. Learn about the historic Civic Center Park as one of the nation’s best examples of a City Beautiful era public space, the diverse governmental and cultural buildings ringing the park,