Denver’s Land Use, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Monday voted to forward to the City Council a rezoning request for 2501 E. 40th Avenue in the Elyria‑Swansea neighborhood that would reclassify the property to the Campus EI‑2 zone and impose a negotiated height waiver limiting development on the site to 75 feet.

The rezoning request was presented by Edson Ybanez, a planner with Community Planning and Development. Ybanez said the 106,000‑square‑foot site is owned and operated by Focus Points Family Resource Center, a nonprofit, and that the rezoning would allow the center to expand services and would enable the possibility of a fully affordable low‑income housing tax credit project on the property. “The applicant has signed a concurrent affordable housing agreement with HOST,” Ybanez said, referring to the city’s Department of Housing Stability.

The affordable housing agreement described in the staff presentation includes a 99‑year covenant tied to an anticipated tax‑credit project. Under a negotiated alternative if the tax‑credit project is not realized, the agreement requires a minimum of 80 percent of the site’s 12 dwelling units to be set at 70 percent of area median income, according to staff.

The staff report framed the application against adopted city plans, including Denver’s Comprehensive Plan (2040), Blueprint Denver and the Elyria‑Swansea neighborhood plan. Ybanez said staff concluded the proposal advances equity and climate goals by increasing access to services, expanding housing options in a neighborhood identified as vulnerable to displacement and promoting infill near existing infrastructure.

Jules Kelty, executive director of Focus Points, described existing on‑site gardening and food programs and said the proposed Campus EI‑2 zoning would allow new urban‑farm infrastructure that current zoning prevents. “We have been restricted in what we’re able to do on the farm. For example, we wanted to build a shed, but we couldn’t build it to the size that we needed because of the type of zoning that we had,” Kelty said. Kelty also told the committee that Focus Points intends to explore a community land‑trust arrangement for the property in collaboration with Urban Land Conservancy while retaining ownership of the building.

Committee members asked for clarifications about how the 75‑foot number was chosen. Ybanez said the lower height limit was a product of negotiations with neighborhood representatives and that much of the site already falls within an existing 75‑foot protected district buffer; without the waiver, the Campus EI‑2 district would allow up to 150 feet on portions of the parcel. He added that rooftop equipment and elevator overruns may be allowed as standard height exceptions.

The application drew widespread written support during the review process, Ybanez said, including 30 letters and endorsements from neighborhood organizations such as Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church and a Denver North business association; staff recorded one letter of opposition raising concerns about labor practices and requesting more transparency. The city’s Planning Board voted unanimously to recommend approval on May 21.

Committee Member Paul Cashman moved to send the rezoning to the City Council floor; the motion was seconded by Council Member Chris Hines and the committee forwarded the item for consideration by the full council.

The committee packet and staff report note that Community Planning and Development will monitor similar requests and consider a text amendment to provide multiple height options within the Campus EI‑2 district in future code updates.

Votes at the committee were procedural to forward the item; final approval and any permit‑level conditions would be determined by the full City Council and subsequent land‑use entitlements.