[metaslider id=7963]
The neighborhood now known as Lower Denver (LoDo) sits on land that has been continuously inhabited for several centuries, if not millennia. The South Platte River, which still runs through the neighborhood, once served as the lifeblood to the Arapahoe, a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming, before it was ever explored by European settlers in America.
Today, LoDo has a reputation as a great place to live, work, and play. It gives residents convenient access to the great shopping, dining, and cultural attractions listed below.
Cultural Attractions
Given its relatively small size and population (just over 20,000 inhabitants), LoDo packs a punch where cultural attractions are concerned. With its aesthetically pleasing historic architecture, LoDo is a natural choice for foundations looking for museum space. Both Denver’s Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) and the Children’s Museum of Denver have picked up on this. Other cultural attractions that either straddle LoDo’s borders or are entirely confined within the neighborhood include Coors Field, Pepsi Center, Denver Union Station, and Elitch Gardens Amusement Park. Fans of MTV’s “Real World” and the Eddie Murphy film “Nowhereland” may recognize LoDo’s signature red brick and many of its most noteworthy building facades from the screen.
Dining in LoDo
LoDo has plenty of dining options to choose from. From work lunches to happy hour drinks and snacks to post-work dinner dates, the services offered at LoDo’s dining establishments and watering holes are in high demand. In order to survive in an environment where dissatisfied customers can choose from nearly 100 options the next time they go out for dinner or a drink, restaurants setting up shop in LoDo must know how to dazzle their patrons. Successful examples that those who frequent LoDo have already voted on with their purses and billfolds include Blake Street Tavern, Breckenridge Brewery, Freshcraft, Rioja, and Rio Grande.
Larimer Square Shopping
With dozens of world-class boutiques and restaurants, the epicenter of urban Denver shopping can be found in LoDo’s Larimer Square. Occupying just a single city block, the diverse range of retail stores that make up the shopping center offer the latest in fashion, jewelry, gifts, and home decor. Larimer Square may have the highest concentration of shops in LoDo, but it is just one exceptional example of the great shopping and dining options available in Lower Downtown Denver. Another place for retail therapy is the 16th Street Mall, just two blocks from Larimer Square.
Young professionals who work and live by LoDo’s shops have the luxury of being able to walk to work, bars, and restaurants, reaping gains in the areas of commuting and parking. AMLI Park Avenue and AMLI Riverfront Park are two downtown Denver apartment communities that offer luxurious amenities in close proximity to LoDo.
Living in a new downtown Denver apartment gives one easy access to a wealth of great cultural and culinary attractions, especially if that apartment is in LoDo.
Are you a LoDo apartment resident? What are your favorite cafes, shops, and restaurants in the area?
View All Posts by Jason Ernst