Councilmembers approved a rezoning that will allow a five‑unit townhome project at 3025 West Third Avenue, a 6,250‑square‑foot lot in the Barnum neighborhood, after a City Planning and Development staff recommendation and a short public comment period. The council placed council bill 25‑0994 on final consideration and passed it 11‑0 with one abstention absent from the roll call.

The rezoning changes the property from ESUDX (Urban Edge Single‑Unit DX) to ERX3 (Urban Edge Residential Mixed‑Use, up to three stories). City planner Fritz Claussen of Community Planning and Development presented the proposal and said the project "intends to provide for additional attainable housing units, including an income‑restricted unit in alignment with our adopted plans." The applicant, Jesse Donovan, told the council the development would be five townhomes with a detached garage and four parking spaces, two units oriented toward the park and three facing south, with two stories above grade and a basement; above‑grade height would be about 27 feet.

City staff and the Department of Housing Stability negotiated an affordable housing agreement requiring 20 percent of dwelling units (one of five) be sold at an income‑restricted price capped at 110 percent of Area Median Income (AMI). John Colarelli of the Department of Housing Stability explained the department recommended the 110 percent AMI level because the project provides 20 percent of units as affordable and because there is a particular shortage of income‑restricted, three‑bedroom for‑sale units in the area. The restricted for‑sale unit must have at least three bedrooms and will be protected by a 99‑year covenant, Colarelli said.

Noting the site's context within the West Area Plan, Claussen said the property lies within the urban edge future neighborhood context and the plan’s recommended "high‑medium residential" place type, and that it is within one‑eighth of a mile of a projected future BRT stop at Second and Federal. Claussen said staff found the application consistent with Blueprint Denver and the West Area Plan and recommended approval.

One virtual speaker, Jesse Paris, identified as representing several community groups, objected to the affordability level, saying the 110 percent AMI unit "is not affordable" for many longtime neighborhood residents and asked whether community benefits agreements had been negotiated. Councilmember Jamie Torres, whose district includes the site, questioned City Housing staff and the applicant about the unit mix and income limits and said she had visited construction workers in her district who earn wages that would make them candidates for the 110 percent AMI unit. Torres said she supported the rezoning.

The motion to place council bill 25‑0994 on final consideration and pass it was made by Councilmember Pro Tem Romero Campbell and the measure passed with the following recorded votes: Sawyer, Alvidrez, Flynn, Hines, Cashman, Lewis, Parody, Romero Campbell, Torres, Watson and President Sandoval voting aye (11 ayes). The measure was recorded as "passed."