1550 Wewatta St
1550 Wewatta St is a 13-story building in Greater Downtown Denver with 79% of its floor area within daylight reach of a facade. This screen estimates 228 homes and scores it 66 out of 100 for office-to-residential conversion suitability.
CO-1 · Screened 2026-09-19 · Worth a feasibility study
Where 1550 Wewatta St is
Its block in Greater Downtown Denver, drawn from Denver's own building outlines and street centerlines.
- Already housing
- Not screened
- 1550 Wewatta St
This building does not pencil at default assumptions, even with a modeled RESIDE Act grant.
Across its 12 residential floors this building carries 57,480 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 1550 Wewatta St, 2026-09-19.
| Suitability scoreWorth a feasibility study | 66 / 100 |
|---|---|
| Storiesfrom 155 ft aerial-survey height ÷ 12 ft floor-to-floor | 13 |
| Height bandsfloor plate by floor range, from the city's roof outlines | Floors 1–2: 26,556 sq ft · Floors 3–12: 24,280 sq ft · Floor 13: 2,246 sq ft |
| Floor platetypical floor, from the city outlines | 24,280 sq ft |
| Daylight efficiencyshare within 35 ft of a facade | 79% |
| Deepest interior pointviability threshold is 80 ft | 65 ft |
| Windowless coretypical floor; the building-wide total is in the text above | 5,109 sq ft |
| Estimated homesat 750 sq ft average | 228 |
| Conversion cost$360/sq ft all-in on 271,598 sq ft | $97.8M |
| Gap before grantshortfall against completed value | $44.0M |
| Modeled RESIDE grantat the statutory per-award cap | $10.0M |
| BuiltDenver does not publish a construction year with this data | — |
| ZoningUnion Station | T-MU-30 |
| Opportunity Zonenot in a 2018 designated tract | No |
The plan: window line, shape and floor rhythm
38 ft of exterior wall for each home the screen estimates — enough for two- and three-bedroom homes across the plan.
The typical floor has 760 ft of exterior wall, and across 12 residential floors the building carries 8,624 ft of it in total, divided among the 228 homes this screen estimates.
Its plate is moderately compact at 0.53: 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 19.0 homes per floor, repeated on every residential floor, since this building's outline does not change as it rises.
Why 1550 Wewatta St scores 66 out of 100
Daylight efficiency 78, Interior depth 37, Scale 100, Finance 42 — each out of 100, then weighted.
Score components for 1550 Wewatta St. Points are the subscore times its weight.
| Component | Subscore | Weight | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight efficiency79% of the floor area within 35 ft of a facade, scored from 40% up to 90% | 78 | 45% | 35.0 |
| Interior depthdeepest interior point 65 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft | 37 | 25% | 9.3 |
| Scale228 estimated homes, scored from 0 up to 150 | 100 | 15% | 15.0 |
| Financeremaining gap is 35% of conversion cost, scored from 60% down to 0% | 42 | 15% | 6.3 |
Most of what it earns comes from daylight efficiency, and what holds it back most is interior depth, at 37 out of 100: deepest interior point 65 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft.
What the conversion would cost
$360 per square foot all-in across 271,598 sq ft of converted floor, or $97.8M in total — about $429K for each of the 228 homes.
All-in cost per square foot for 1550 Wewatta 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 57,480 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 228 homes is $53.8M.
What would have to be true
A $44.0M gap before any grant, $34.0M after the modeled one. The smallest single change that would close it: average unit size 39% down.
The shortfall before any grant is $44.0M. Closing it from the value side means each of the 228 homes finishing at $429K rather than the $236K the model assumes — 82% more. Closing it from the cost side means getting all-in cost down from $360 to $198 per square foot.
A modeled RESIDE grant of $10.0M moves that threshold to $385K a home. That is still above the $236K assumed, leaving $34.0M uncovered, which is why the grant does not unlock this one.
Nor do all four levers have to move. For 1550 Wewatta St, one alone would close the gap at:
Single-assumption flip points for 1550 Wewatta St, each holding the other three at their defaults.
| Average unit sizethe binding constraint — the least this building would need | 39% downto 460 sq ft |
|---|---|
| Conversion cost per square foot | 48% downto $135/sq ft |
| Completed value per home | 63% upto $385K |
All four are sliders in the survey, where 1550 Wewatta St re-scores against your own numbers.
How it compares in Greater Downtown Denver
1550 Wewatta St ranks 142nd of the 214 buildings screened here, against a median score of 72.
Its floor plate is better lit than 38% of them, and shallower than 15% of them at its deepest interior point. On size it is the 97th 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 Union Station
32nd of 55 in Union Station — the comparison that shares its rules, rents and streets.
Denver places 55 of the screened buildings in Union Station. 1550 Wewatta St ranks 32nd of them against a median score of 69. 23 score 70 or more, their median deepest interior point is 61 ft from a facade against this building’s 65 ft, and together they would hold an estimated 13,167 homes. The group’s top scorer is 1600 17th St, at 95.
Its nearest match in size: 1900 17th St
The screened building closest to 1550 Wewatta St in converted floor area is 1900 17th St: 262,309 sq ft over 13 stories, against 271,598 sq ft over 13 here.
1550 Wewatta St scores 66 to its 91, and with the size held roughly equal most of that shortfall comes from interior depth: 37 out of 100 here, 92 there (deepest interior point 43 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 600 ft apart.
Would it qualify for a RESIDE Act grant?
The model awards 1550 Wewatta St $10.0M, 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 1550 Wewatta St
The 4 closest the screen also covers, from 260 ft away. They are the colored outlines on the plan at the top of this page.
- 1551 Wewatta St13 stories · 71% daylit · 253 estimated homes · scores 60/100 (Worth a feasibility study)about 260 ft away
- 1750 16th St13 stories · 69% daylit · 280 estimated homes · scores 49/100 (Marginal)about 300 ft away
- 1751 16th St6 stories · 70% daylit · 80 estimated homes · scores 50/100 (Marginal)about 360 ft away
- 1781 15th St10 stories · 69% daylit · 248 estimated homes · scores 51/100 (Worth a feasibility study)about 370 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.