1020 16th St
1020 16th St is a 5-story building in Greater Downtown Denver with 63% of its floor area within daylight reach of a facade. This screen estimates 77 homes and scores it 33 out of 100 for office-to-residential conversion suitability.
CO-1 · Screened 2026-09-19 · Marginal
Where 1020 16th St is
Its block in Greater Downtown Denver, drawn from Denver's own building outlines and street centerlines.
- Already housing
- Not screened
- 1020 16th St
This building does not pencil at default assumptions, even with a modeled RESIDE Act grant.
Across its 4 residential floors this building carries 42,401 sq ft of windowless core — area that must be gutted, re-plumbed and sprinklered but can never be rented as an apartment.
Modeled conversion metrics for 1020 16th St, 2026-09-19.
| Suitability scoreMarginal | 33 / 100 |
|---|---|
| Storiesfrom 63 ft aerial-survey height ÷ 12 ft floor-to-floor | 5 |
| Height bandsfloor plate by floor range, from the city's roof outlines | Floors 1–2: 38,820 sq ft · Floors 3–4: 37,043 sq ft · Floor 5: 2,516 sq ft |
| Floor platetypical floor, from the city outlines | 37,043 sq ft |
| Daylight efficiencyshare within 35 ft of a facade | 63% |
| Deepest interior pointviability threshold is 80 ft | 79 ft |
| Windowless coretypical floor; the building-wide total is in the text above | 14,053 sq ft |
| Estimated homesat 750 sq ft average | 77 |
| Conversion cost$360/sq ft all-in on 115,422 sq ft | $41.6M |
| Gap before grantshortfall against completed value | $23.4M |
| Modeled RESIDE grantbelow the statutory cap | $4.6M |
| BuiltDenver does not publish a construction year with this data | — |
| ZoningCBD | D-TD |
| Opportunity Zonenot in a 2018 designated tract | No |
The plan: window line, shape and floor rhythm
39 ft of exterior wall for each home the screen estimates — enough for two- and three-bedroom homes across the plan.
The typical floor has 869 ft of exterior wall, and across 4 residential floors the building carries 2,972 ft of it in total, divided among the 77 homes this screen estimates.
Its plate is moderately compact at 0.62: a squarish plan, with enough perimeter for a conventional double-loaded corridor. How window line and plate shape are measured.
At the model’s 750 sq ft average, the plan works out at about 19.3 homes per floor, repeated on every residential floor, since this building's outline does not change as it rises.
Why 1020 16th St scores 33 out of 100
Daylight efficiency 47, Interior depth 3, Scale 51, Finance 25 — each out of 100, then weighted.
Score components for 1020 16th St. Points are the subscore times its weight.
| Component | Subscore | Weight | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight efficiency63% of the floor area within 35 ft of a facade, scored from 40% up to 90% | 47 | 45% | 20.9 |
| Interior depthdeepest interior point 79 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft | 3 | 25% | 0.8 |
| Scale77 estimated homes, scored from 0 up to 150 | 51 | 15% | 7.7 |
| Financeremaining gap is 45% of conversion cost, scored from 60% down to 0% | 25 | 15% | 3.7 |
Most of what it earns comes from daylight efficiency, and what holds it back most is interior depth, at 3 out of 100: deepest interior point 79 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft.
What the conversion would cost
$360 per square foot all-in across 115,422 sq ft of converted floor, or $41.6M in total — about $540K for each of the 77 homes.
All-in cost per square foot for 1020 16th St: base cost plus the code work a change of use triggers.
| Base conversion cost | $260/sq ft |
|---|---|
| Plumbing risers to every unit | $40/sq ft |
| Operable windows and glazing | $30/sq ft |
| Additional egress stair | $18/sq ft |
| Fire sprinklers (NFPA 13R) | $12/sq ft |
| All-in | $360/sq ft |
That cost is charged across every converted square foot, including the 42,401 sq ft of windowless core, which has to be gutted, re-plumbed and sprinklered like the rest of the building and then earns nothing. Against it the model sets a completed value of $236K a home, which for 77 homes is $18.2M.
What would have to be true
A $23.4M gap before any grant, $18.8M after the modeled one. The smallest single change that would close it: average unit size 45% down.
The shortfall before any grant is $23.4M. Closing it from the value side means each of the 77 homes finishing at $540K rather than the $236K the model assumes — 129% more. Closing it from the cost side means getting all-in cost down from $360 to $157 per square foot.
A modeled RESIDE grant of $4.6M moves that threshold to $480K a home. That is still above the $236K assumed, leaving $18.8M uncovered, which is why the grant does not unlock this one.
Nor do all four levers have to move. For 1020 16th St, one alone would close the gap at:
Single-assumption flip points for 1020 16th St, each holding the other three at their defaults.
| Average unit sizethe binding constraint — the least this building would need | 45% downto 414 sq ft |
|---|---|
| Conversion cost per square foot | 63% downto $97/sq ft |
| Completed value per home | 103% upto $480K |
All four are sliders in the survey, where 1020 16th St re-scores against your own numbers.
How it compares in Greater Downtown Denver
1020 16th St ranks 209th of the 214 buildings screened here, against a median score of 72.
Its floor plate is better lit than 4% of them, and shallower than 6% of them at its deepest interior point. On size it is the 181st largest by estimated homes. The full survey of all 214 buildings ranks and maps every one of them, and the list by address links each to its own page.
Within CBD and the D-TD zone
72nd of 75 in CBD, 18th of 20 zoned D-TD — the comparison that shares its rules, rents and streets.
Denver places 75 of the screened buildings in CBD. 1020 16th St ranks 72nd of them against a median score of 71. 40 score 70 or more, their median deepest interior point is 56 ft from a facade against this building’s 79 ft, and together they would hold an estimated 33,698 homes. The group’s top scorer is 918 17th St, at 97.
20 of the screened buildings are zoned D-TD. 1020 16th St ranks 18th of them against a median score of 69. 10 score 70 or more, their median deepest interior point is 57 ft from a facade against this building’s 79 ft, and together they would hold an estimated 8,599 homes. The group’s top scorer is 918 17th St, at 97.
Its nearest match in size: 1300 N Fox St
The screened building closest to 1020 16th St in converted floor area is 1300 N Fox St: 117,000 sq ft over 6 stories, against 115,422 sq ft over 5 here.
1020 16th St scores 33 to its 53, and with the size held roughly equal most of that shortfall comes from interior depth: 3 out of 100 here, 45 there (deepest interior point 62 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft). On the money they sit in the same place: each falls short even with the modeled grant. The two stand about 3,600 ft apart.
Would it qualify for a RESIDE Act grant?
The model awards 1020 16th St $4.6M, on the assumption it qualifies. Whether it does, no published dataset can say.
That figure assumes the building meets the Act’s vacant-and-abandoned test, which turns on code-enforcement and receivership records no city publishes.
It does not sit in a 2018 designated Opportunity Zone, so it would not draw that Section 201 priority.
Other buildings screened near 1020 16th St
The 4 closest the screen also covers, from 270 ft away. They are the colored outlines on the plan at the top of this page.
- 930 16th St8 stories · 78% daylit · 95 estimated homes · scores 61/100 (Worth a feasibility study)about 270 ft away
- 1111 15th St19 stories · 86% daylit · 562 estimated homes · scores 83/100 (Strong candidate)about 400 ft away
- 1001 16th St27 stories · 70% daylit · 543 estimated homes · scores 56/100 (Worth a feasibility study)about 410 ft away
- 900 16th St14 stories · 96% daylit · 170 estimated homes · scores 96/100 (Strong candidate)about 410 ft away
A screen, not a feasibility study, from outlines and heights rather than plans: the method and how to correct a figure. If you know this building’s interior, you know what this model cannot see.