Community Members File for Historic Designation in Attempt to Save Xcel's Zuni Steam Plant

With the help of nonprofit Historic Denver, residents in the neighborhoods of Sun Valley and La Alma Lincoln Park have filed a landmark application with the city in an attempt to prevent the Zuni Power Plant from being destroyed.

Built in 1901, the structure has served various roles in fulfilling Denver's energy needs over the years; recently, though, it has been the center of a debate between nearby residents and Xcel Energy, which owns the building.

The debate began in 2021 when the Colorado Public Utilities Commission approved a plan to decommission the steam plant that would ultimately result in it being demolished. When community members learned the plan included the building’s destruction, they rallied to secure a moratorium on its demolition, with hopes of repurposing the plant as a space that would. benefit the community,

"As one of Denver’s last remaining early power stations, Zuni represents not only the city’s industrial rise but also its complex legacy of environmental justice," Jeanne Granville of the Sun Valley Community Coalition said in an announcement of the application for historic designation. "Other power plants have been dismantled, but this site endures, offering a rare opportunity to acknowledge both the achievements and long-term impacts of industrial development on historically underserved communities."

Though Xcel Energy agreed to temporarily hold off on demolishing the Zuni Power Plant, the utility company first gave the City of Denver a chance to purchase the plant, pursuant to Xcel's franchise agreement with the city. Then, on February 25, Xcel notified community members that the building would be placed on sale for thirty days. If no buyer emerged before March 25, community members were told the energy company would move to file demolition permits with the city.

If it can’t find a buyer, Xcel wants the city to expedite permits for the demolition of the plant, a route that has been opposed for years by surrounding neighborhoods Sun Valley and La Alma Lincoln Park. In a letter dated on March 20, Denver City Council said that Xcel's decision to put the building up for sale, as is, for just thirty days was a "shock and a disappointment" given the council's understanding that Xcel was working to find a buyer for the site interested in community reuse, like a food hall.

"These conversations are not at a dead end, and a 30-day period for a private purchaser to come forward is out of step with standard practice for complex real estate transactions and simply not sufficient — especially considering that to our knowledge Xcel has not yet made detailed information available about remediation cost assessments for the property," the council wrote. "There is no reason to suddenly halt the forward progress that has been made to secure a future other than demolition for this site."

The council asked Xcel to extend the time the plant will be on the market to 180 days. But the residents who filed the historic designation application aren't relying on Xcel to do as the council requested, and filed the designation application to try to preserve a building that the group sees as historic.

"We recognize that reequipping a large industrial building for the modern world is a complex task, but this is not uncommon and has been done before," Historic Denver CEO John Deffenbaugh said in the announcement of the application filing. " Denver had the vision to do this before. The REI flagship store is a hugely successful example of adaptively reusing an industrial building... .If all parties come together to figure out an approach for retaining and transferring Zuni to the private sector, this could be done again."

The group emphasized that it's still open to working with Xcel on a solution responsive to the community's wishes.

"We have worked closely and transparently with the community, the city and the Colorado Public Utilities Commission over the past five years to understand how the property can serve the community’s vision and future," Xcel says in a statement in response to the application. "As stated in our community letter, it's important to note the property is currently listed for sale and we are willing to work with interested buyers and developers towards a purchase who have the requisite experience to potentially redevelop the building.

"We remain committed to working with the community, while abiding by the PUC’s decommissioning order and maintaining public safety around the property. We look forward to meeting with Historic Denver on Tuesday to continue these discussions."