DENVER — As Denver’s Five Points neighborhood continues to attract new developments, some neighborhood leaders and residents are sharing what they think are the resources needed to help the community thrive.
“We are in a historic neighborhood, and so we also have to honor the cultural context while, at the same time, invest in a neighborhood that needs to see greater growth,” said Haroun Cowans, founder and CEO of Goshen Development.
Cowans said he wants to foster that growth and is working to build middle-income housing in the neighborhood in partnership with DaVita to achieve that goal.
But Cowans said overall, the neighborhood needs more support.
“We need another grocer. I mean, if you think about northeast Denver and this neighborhood, you only have one grocer," said Cowans. “The third thing is, some daytime usage. We're sitting here on Five Points, and only one thing is open right now.”
Cowans said neighborhood leaders have been fighting for resources for more than a decade.
“I grew up right near this neighborhood, and it had a negative connotation,” he said. “I think the city is invested, but I think more attention is needed in the long term.”
Kwon Atlas, a Five Points resident and the director of economic development for the Montbello Organizing Committee, said he has witnessed Five Points businesses struggle to maintain a foothold.
“Back in 2022 there were over 22 Black-owned businesses on the street, many of which had just opened within the last year, kind of in that spirit of people starting businesses during the pandemic. Since then, about half of those are gone. So it's been unfortunate to see,” Atlas said.
Atlas said neighborhood organizations like the Five Points Business Improvement District are doing their best to support businesses and secure more resources.
“I think this street, Welton Street, has always attracted some of the festivals like Juneteenth and the Jazz Festival, which, unfortunately, the Jazz Festival is not even going to come again this year," Atlas said. "And we ought to know that Juneteenth is now potentially being shrunk to only one day. So those are things that typically are a big stimulus to the businesses here, and unfortunately, they're kind of going away, but we can still do something about that, patronize those."
Atlas said certain parts of the neighborhood, like the River North Arts District, have proven it can be done.
“Neighborhood organizations like RiNo or the others aren't necessarily working together. And so, of course, each district focuses on its area. However, when people think about the whole of Five Points, they want to see all of it thrive. And this historic street has sort of been left behind,” Atlas said.
Atlas and Cowans said it doesn’t have to be that way. With outside investment alongside city resources, the Welton Street corridor and all of Five Points can be enjoyed in the present just as they have been in the past.
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