The iconic Union Printers Home (UPH) will become a hotel if the owners’ vision is realized – and Urban Renewal dollars could offset some of the costs, including the price tag for historic preservation of the unique landmark structures.
Turning the four historic buildings – the main castle plus three others – into overnight lodging and hotel amenities would likely be Phase 1, according to Susan Pattee, one of UPH’s owners. She declined to comment on what hotel might occupy the space, citing ongoing negotiations.
Future phases of the redevelopment plans include more amenities – restaurants and other businesses – as well as residential space. The specifics will be nailed down as the ownership group works through the project with a development team and the Colorado Springs Urban Renewal Authority (CSURA).
Jariah Walker, executive director of the CSURA, told the Pikes Peak Bulletin, “The URA has approved moving forward on the proposed UPH project and we have completed the condition study as part of the statutory process.”
Walker said a third-party consultant recently determined that the UPH property meets the conditions of “blight” – essentially saying the property is in a state of disrepair, which is necessary for a URA development.
“We’re waiting on the ownership group to select a development team so we can then begin the cost and financial analysis, along with the taxing impacts and URA plan,” Walker said.
URAs use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) to offset certain development costs. TIF captures anticipated future tax revenues to offset current costs of development. It lowers cost and risk for the developer to create housing, businesses and public spaces in blighted areas.
These Urban Renewal funds are heralded as an important tool for urban development, but also criticized as a subsidy for the private sector and for spurring gentrification – where increased investment drives up property values and rents, pushing residents (often minorities) out of the area.
Site design
In July of last year, the Pikes Peak Bulletin published an article on the history of UPH and the group of local philanthropists and civic-minded investors who own it now – and have big dreams for the property’s future as a mixed-use development while keeping historic preservation of the site.
The owners hired Sasaki, a planning and urban design firm, which produced a master plan envisioning the new “Printers Hill” as a “dynamic urban district” and a “holistic place for all people.” Input from residents of local neighborhoods was solicited as part of the design process.
At the time, owners were looking at using part of the historic structures for residential units. Pattee said that plans are necessarily somewhat in flux as the owners and partners “map out what the possibilities are.” But, she said, she expects future plans will not be significantly different from the original mixed-use master plan.
Pattee said the owners are currently talking with Denver-based development firm OliverBuchananGroup to determine whether that partnership will proceed in the next few months.
Gentrification concerns
Three historic and diverse working-class neighborhoods are close to UPH: K-Land, Knob Hill and Hillside. Some community members hope to address the potential gentrification impacts of the UPH project by working with the owners to secure a Community Benefits Agreement. These residents, business owners and allies have organized as the Union Printers Home Community Benefits Agreement (UPH CBA) Coalition.
If you are experiencing déjà vu right now, it may be because the Bulletin has also been covering the story of another neighborhood group organized in the hopes of getting a Community Benefits Agreement for an Urban Renewal project near the Mill Street neighborhood. The Colorado Springs City Council recently approved the project without a CBA.
Savanah McDaniel, a leader with the UPH CBA, said the group started organizing at the end of 2024.
“We want to make sure that if … Urban Renewal financing is used for a large-scale development, then that comes with significant and tangible public benefits so that our neighborhoods aren’t displaced,” McDaniel said, adding, “We want to ensure that our neighborhoods remain affordable for working-class people living in Colorado Springs.”
McDaniel said the Coalition also wants to discuss creating more affordable housing and priority job hiring – ensuring that as jobs become available as part of the development, those jobs are available to nearby residents.
Pattee expressed openness to the Coalition’s ideas, while adding that the owners do not have complete control over everything related to the development – there will be developers, contractors, and subcontractors to get on the same page.
McDaniel and Pattee each told the Bulletin they wanted the owners and the Coalition to have a collaborative approach to their relationship, and that talks would continue in the near future.
The UBH CBA Coalition is on Instagram at uphcba_coalition.
More information on Union Printers Home, and a link to a community survey on its future, is available at unionprintershome.com.
