A Review of Denver’s 16th Street (Mall) 2025
A couple of weeks ago, I attended the official reopening of Denver’s 16th Street. I grew up calling it the 16th Street Mall, but it’s had a recent subtle rebrand. Having grown up enjoying downtown Denver, working briefly on Larimer Square and my first job at Tabor Center back in the day when it had a bustling food court. For the past 5 years in particular I’ve watched and listened with interest to the conversations around 16th Street, what’s going well and what’s not. I thought now would be a great time to share some perspectives that I don’t hear enough about the Mall and my lived experience as a long-time Denverite shopping, enjoying and experiencing the Mall from the time I was a kid.
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How COVID Continues to Impact Downtown
One of the most annoying things specific to the conversation about downtown Denver is that no one is making the connection that the COVID response and experience is a huge part of TODAY’s conversation specific to the Mall. No one is saying that having the lockdowns and changes to capacity in venues in addition to a long-running major infrastructure project may be impacting how we’re experiencing downtown Denver.
Today.
Then there’s the 2020-late 2023 Zombie Apocolypse experience of downtown Denver that a lot people had and can’t imagine that downtown Denver has changed since then. Context is missing from the conversations about downtown and I’m so over it. Now to be clear, downtown Denver has problems like every major American city. Regardless of the mayor’s party affiliation. I’ve visited 46 of the 50 United States for context. Many states, multiple times. Denver is actually an amazing city that has grown and with that growth there are challenges and opportunities. Basically Denver is no longer a hicktown-it’s a city with real world problems.
That said, I’ve willingly spend time in downtown Denver. I eat at Dragonfly Noodle, enjoy coffee at Vibe Coffee and Wine or I will co-work from Denver’s Union Station. I’m not the only person doing it. I see people regularly patronizing and enjoying the Mall. Does it need more retail? Yes. Does it need more fun experiences? Yes. Does it need more thoughtful activations? Yes. But, I am increasingly impatient and annoyed by the critiques of the Mall by people who haven’t visited since 2022.
With that in mind I want to share my thoughts about the 16th Street reopening experience and one thing that annoyed me as I worked on this podcast episode.
I’m sharing what annoyed me first so that I can get it off my chest. If we’re focusing on reactivating and getting people back to downtown Denver, specifically 16th Street-I would love to see an events calendar just for the Mall. Anyone who has a website about 16th Street needs to go through old posts and freshen them up and then write new ones. A lot of the information is very outdated.
I have some questions:
- When is the next market experience? Are these happening every other weekend, once a month or was the reopening event it?
- What are the other upcoming activations on the Mall? I would like to add them to my schedule.
- Will the city have the drone shows again that we can watch from Sculpture Park?
I need more communication that seems intentional vs. reactive because Denverites voice frustration and then people scramble to tell us what’s going on.
The 16th Street Reopening Weekend
I absolutely loved experiencing that weekend. It was a wonderful turning point in the Mall restoration project. The end is near. And let’s be clear, the Mall project was very much an infrastructure project in addition to beautification. I wish more people would talk about that aspect of the project. I made a point of attending the Reopening weekend on Saturday and Sunday. I loved walking up and down the Mall, speaking with other folks, shopping at the different vendors and dancing to music on the different blocks along the wall.
The Mall felt alive in a way that it hasn’t since 2020. It was also clear that the following components would bring people downtown:
- A free or inexpensive event open to everyone
- Local music and djs
- Accessible activities like watching the speed climbing competition
- Car free space-I’m on the record saying that I thought that there was a missed opportunity to shut down 16th Street and make it car free. Well, they were able to do that by putting up temporary barriers which allowed community members to enjoy making their way up and down the street without worrying about traffic. It was so nice to wander, meander, chat and look at whatever was on each block.
What struck me was the energy, the lightheartedness and the joy that people were expressing as they made their way up and down the Mall.
Are there problems downtown? Yes. Is it the hellscape that people experienced between 2020-late 2023…no, it’s not. And stopped forgetting to differentiate the bar/nightclub area of downtown between 18th and 21st streets. I feel like that area needs a separate conversation centered around late night shenanigans, safety and club culture. I’m not the best person for that conversation.
For the past couple of years I’ve made a point of enjoying downtown Denver. I love watching Nightlights Denver being projected on the Clocktower, watching people at Union Station, people watching on Larimer Square and enjoying one of Dairy Block’s many markets.
If you’re still nervous about visiting downtown Denver here are some tips from me.
- Use the lightrail to make your way downtown-this will eliminate dealing with transportation. If you must drive check out a parking app such as Spot Hero, that helps drivers find and reserve their parking spot. I’m not an affiliate.
- Visit for a specific experience or event.
- Here are a few suggestions:
- Visiting the Museum for Black Girls at the Denver Pavilions
- Checking out the Dikeou Collection-Free permanent art collection. You do need to reserve a time to see it.
- Going to Civic Center Eats in Civic Center Park on Wednesdays and Thursdays
- Attend upcoming events such as:
- Pridefest
- Indy Eve
- The Zed’s Dead Concert
- Enjoy lunch or dinner before or after enjoying Cirque Du Soleil during its July run
- A Colorado Rockies game
- Or enjoying a movie at Sunset Cinema shown in the Sculpture Park at the Denver Center for Performing Arts
- Here are a few suggestions:
- Pay attention to your surroundings-I will say that there has been a noticeable increase in safety personal and police downtown. But, it’s a downtown of a major metropolitan area. Do pay attention to your surroundings. Don’t be paranoid or a weirdo. Exercise the normal type of caution that you should in a city. Because Denver is a city now. Very rarely have I had problems on the Mall and I’ve been visiting it since I was a little kid. What’s your first stop on your next visit?