Hank Baker speaks about Stapleton Development in Denver
Hank Baker, Senior Vice President for Forest City Stapleton, Inc., is currently engaged in the redevelopment of Stapleton International Airport, located near downtown Denver, Colorado. Since 1989, Denver City officials, community groups, and various advisory boards have refined how best to transform the prior airport land into a positive asset for the Denver community as a whole. Several broad goals and concerns repeatedly emerged: recreational and cultural opportunities, job creation, and green space. The overarching ambition of the project is to create an urban environment that connects with the surrounding tapestry but also includes community features unique to Stapleton.
Forest City Enterprises was selected as master developer in 1998 following a competitive bid process held by the Stapleton Development Corporation for the15-20 year, $4 billion project envisioned by the Denver community. Because of the publicity and anticipated success of Stapleton, Forest City had had the opportunity to be highly selective when choosing builders with whom they partner.
“We had 100 builders who wanted to build, and we took that down to 20 for the RFP. From these 20 we chose 8 builders,” said Baker. “We sell individual blocks to different developers to increase homogeneity. By including diverse housing, we create continuity in the community.”
The foundations of the community, sustainable development and smart growth, grew out of the efforts of Stapleton Tomorrow, a group of civic and business leaders, and the Stapleton Redevelopment Foundation, in partnership with the City of Denver. Stapleton also features many design elements promoted by the New Urbanism movement, including walkable neighborhoods with open space, and retail, entertainment and art facilities to encourage pedestrian activity. The master plan illustrates the remarkable acumen of the developers.
“We created an entity and model that shows you can have success in an urban environment,” said Baker.
In April 2001, Forest City purchased 270 acres from the City, representing the first phase of the project. In 2004, Stapleton reached the 1,000 mark for homes occupied.
Prior to working on the Stapleton project, Baker spent several years as Vice President of Marketing for the Irvine Company, and also spent time in charge of Forest City’s San Francisco office. Hank Baker is a graduate of Cornell University and is a member of the Cornell Real Estate Council.
The Real Estate Industry Seminar is a weekly session held exclusively for students in the Program in Real Estate. It provides students the opportunity to interact with industry leaders and explore a number of current topics within the real estate field.