Opus' development site, 1400 Wewatta St., sits across the street from Pepsi Center, bordering Speer Boulevard and Cherry Creek. The three buildings would have a combined 300,000 sf of office space plus retail and residential components. The architect is Chris Shears of Shears Atkins Architects. The building will have brick, glass and stone finishes.

Marshall Burton, Opus Northwest's vice president of development, tells GlobeSt.com that the company is prepared to develop the building on a speculative basis, but based on current activity expects to have some significant prelease commitments in place by the time the project gets under way in January. Full-service asking rates are $30 to $35 per sf per year, including a $35 per sf tenant-improvement allowance."Downtown is the healthiest market in Metro Denver, especially Lower Downtown," Burton says. "Vacancy is about 5%; if you're a tenant with 20,000 sf or more, there's just no options."

Interest in the Lower Downtown area is high in part due to the redevelopment of Union Station, which will become the city's primary transportation hub, connecting commuter rail, light rail and buses. Earlier this week, Hines said it is developing a 300,000-sf, eight-story office building at the southwest corner of 15th and Wynkoop streets in the Lower Downtown area that also will be completed in late 2008. Designed by Hartman-Cox Architects, it too will have brick and glass finishes.