Awarded through the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA), credits will be used to build Park Place Apartments, an 80-unit community in Denver’s Sun Valley neighborhood that will offer family-size units for households earning between 80% and 120% of area median income
CHICAGO / DENVER (Nov. 21, 2025) — Chicago-based Evergreen Real Estate Group today announced it has received the first tax credits as part of Colorado’s Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit (MIHTC) program, awarded through the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA). The firm will use the $1.65 million allocation to develop Park Place Apartments, a five-story, 80-unit income-restricted rental community in Denver’s Sun Valley neighborhood. The firm expects to break ground on the project in fall 2026.
The MIHTC pilot program establishes a public-private partnership that leverages state resources with private investment to produce affordable rental housing. Legislators debated the details of a Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit at the national level for nearly a decade, and the passage of the Colorado House Bill 24-1316 in 2024 cleared the way for CHFA to launch the Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit (MIHTC) pilot program.
Colorado’s MIHTC is the first of its kind in the nation and authorizes CHFA to competitively award $5 million in credit in 2025-2026 — supporting the construction of 220 units in 2025 — and $10 million in 2027-2029.
“We are honored to lead the nation in launching this important new initiative with the first of three developments in the inaugural Middle-Income Housing Tax Credit program,” said Javonni Butler, vice president of development for Evergreen Real Estate Group. “Park Place Apartments aligns perfectly with the program’s intent, which is to deliver high-quality middle-income housing in communities and neighborhoods that are rapidly appreciating and transit-connected.”
According to data from the National Multifamily Housing Council, a renter would need to earn at least $75,960 a year to afford an apartment at today’s median asking rent. The MIHTC program aims to help those who just miss qualifying for a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) apartment but would be overburdened by market rents, Butler added.
Located at 1275 Decatur St. on the west side of Denver, Park Place Apartments will address the critical need for housing attainable to those earning between 80% and 120% of the area median income (AMI). To fill the gap in local housing inventory for families, 75% of the units will have three bedrooms while 25% will have four bedrooms. Evergreen will build the development on the site after demolishing an obsolete commercial building.
An independent market study prepared by JRES found that only 0.5% of the entire metro Denver apartment inventory consists of four-bedroom units, which means of the 300,000 rental units in the Denver metro, only a small fraction is for larger families. “And, no comparable project is in the pipeline,” said Butler. “Of the nearly 30,000 units under construction in metro Denver, virtually none are designed for middle-income families with three or more members. Park Place is not just aligned with market demand — it is correcting a systemic absence of product. It is an urgently needed solution that will provide lasting stability for Denver’s working families and serve as a model for what equitable, family-oriented housing should look like in growing urban markets.”
Residences at Park Place Apartments will include full Energy Star appliance packages, LED lighting, two baths in every home, in-unit laundry, low-flow plumbing fixtures and vinyl plank flooring throughout.
On-site amenities will include a number of family-friendly offerings such as a community room, fitness center, coworking space, pet wash station and secure bike storage, as well as a large landscaped courtyard. Free on-site parking will be available, with 64 spaces in a covered parking garage, including EV-ready parking spaces.
The all-electric building will include high-efficiency HVAC systems as well as electric hot water heaters and electric unit cooking. These and other features will help the property achieve National Green Building Standard Silver certification.
The development’s convenient multimodal location is near Regional Transportation District (RTD) bus routes that connect to downtown and other neighborhoods, as well as the Decatur-Federal light rail station along the W Line, providing access to employment centers throughout Denver and the surrounding suburban areas.
Park Place Apartments is directly connected to a network of parks and trails, including Rude Recreation Center, Rude Park and the Lakewood Gulch Trail and is near Paco Sánchez Park. The community is also close to a grocery store, health providers and numerous early childhood and K-12 educational institutions. In addition to the on-site amenities at Park Place Apartments, residents can enjoy an indoor pool, gym and access to youth programming at the Rude Recreational Center.
Designed by Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects, the building’s exterior presents a clean, contemporary form that emphasizes clarity, rhythm and purpose. The sculpted façade, with its gently shifting planes and vertical expression, reduces the perceived massing and creates a distinctive architectural identity while remaining compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. A varied window pattern and subtle recesses introduce depth and shadow, contributing to a human-scaled streetscape. The transparent corner and extensive ground-floor glazing establish a strong visual connection between the building and the public realm, enhancing safety, visibility and community engagement.
Shaw Construction will serve as general contractor, and the community will be professionally leased and managed by Evergreen Real Estate Group.
In addition to Park Place Apartments, Evergreen is developing additional rental communities in Denver and across Colorado. Construction is in progress for Rifle Apartments, a 60-unit income-restricted rental community in downtown Rifle, which is nearing completion and is currently in lease-up. Later this year, the firm expects to break ground on 4965 Washington St., in Denver’s Globeville neighborhood, which will include 170 units of income-restricted rental housing co-located with a new Denver Public Library branch and 4,000-square-foot community café. Evergreen also is developing The Ford Apartments, a six-story, 60-unit income-restricted rental community adjacent to the Denver Health Main Campus in Denver’s Baker neighborhood, which is expected to break ground in early 2026.
