Two houses sit on the same historic parkway in Denver, both subject to the exact same commission, the exact same design rules, the exact same review process. One just listed for $5.4 million. The other has been empty for six years, boarded up behind construction fencing, and is now the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by its own neighbors.
The projects had different outcomes: one was completed, while the other stalled during renovation.
Design Review in the East 7th Avenue Historic District
The East 7th Avenue Historic District is Denver's largest historic district, but for most of its length it runs only two blocks wide, stretching from Logan Street to Colorado Boulevard between East 6th and 8th Avenues. Built out mostly from the 1890s through 1930, it wraps around three pieces of the city's park system, including the parkway itself, the Cheesman Esplanade, and the Williams Street Parkway, threading Cheesman Park to City Park to Washington Park. That narrowness matters for a practical reason: because the district is so compact and so architecturally consistent, almost any exterior change, whether it's a full teardown or a significant remodel, ends up in front of Denver's Landmark Preservation Commission.
The commission's job is to protect what the district looks like from the street. It reviews all changes and new construction here, and every exterior detail has to be approved in advance.
That single fact shapes every renovation story in this neighborhood, for better or worse.
A Completed New Build
As BusinessDen reported, Denver architect Andrew Sumners grew up two houses down from a yellow 1953 house on Seventh Avenue that he privately hated as a kid. He bought it nine years ago for $900,000 with a specific intention: replace it with something that belonged on the street. He and fellow Denver architect Aaron Hodgin spent what Sumners described as countless hours walking the neighborhood before drawing a single line, studying the houses they admired and working out a design that would clear the commission's review without a fight.
That review process forced a specific discipline.
Sumners described the constraint: "When you design this way, you design from the outside in," and continued, "Usually, the outside grows as the inside resolves itself, but I had to fit everything within an envelope that wasn't budging."
The finished result is a 7,400-square-foot Mediterranean-style villa, now listed at $5.4 million. Sumners still lives two houses away. His grandmother, for whom he originally wanted to tear the old house down, lived nearby on the 700 block of Humboldt Street. He described the goal in plain terms: build something appropriate for Seventh Avenue, and stitch the neighborhood fabric back together rather than interrupt it.
Nothing about that outcome required the commission to bend.
A Renovation That Stalled
CBS News Colorado reported on a 120-year-old home a few blocks away, at 2725 East 7th Avenue Parkway. The home sold in 2015 for $1.1 million. The new owner rented it out for a while, then started a renovation. That renovation stalled in 2019, and the house has sat vacant ever since. Windows are boarded. Doors have been removed. Weeds cover the 9,000-square-foot parcel behind metal construction fencing. In 2024, Denver's Community Planning and Development Agency placed the property on the city's neglected and derelict building list.
Mimi Garrison has lived next door for nearly fifty years. She started noticing something new on the front steps: bags of dog waste, dropped there by passing neighbors as a blunt form of protest. She called it exactly what it was. The owner, Flavia Montecinos, who owns other properties in Denver, declined to be interviewed but sent a written statement blaming third parties for illegal dumping of dog feces, food waste, and other garbage on the property.
CBS News Colorado reported that in October 2025, real estate investment company owner John Krays filed a civil lawsuit on the neighbors' behalf, asking a judge to allow demolition of the house or transfer it to a third party who could finish the job.
"There seems to be a complete disregard for what is neighborly," Krays told CBS News Colorado. "It's hard to be proud of your neighborhood and where you live when one of the houses is vacant, abandoned, and stands as an open invitation for anything to happen."
As of the most recent reporting, the lawsuit was still pending and the house was still sitting behind its fencing.
Two Projects, Different Outcomes
Both projects sit inside the same historic district. Both answer to the same commission. The villa was completed and is listed at $5.4 million; the renovation at 2725 East 7th Avenue Parkway stalled, and the property was placed on the city's neglected and derelict building list and became the subject of a lawsuit.
Sumners and Hodgin spent time up front getting the exterior right. At 2725 East 7th Avenue Parkway, renovation work stalled in 2019, and the home has remained vacant, with boarded windows and construction fencing. It was placed on the city's neglected and derelict building list in 2024.
For anyone weighing a fixer or a teardown lot inside this district, these examples show why it is useful to understand the landmark review process before starting work.
Before writing an offer on a fixer or a rebuild candidate here, a few things are worth confirming:
- Whether the seller's exterior design, if one exists, has already cleared Landmark Preservation Commission review, or whether that step still lies ahead
- What the general contractor's actual availability and financing look like, since construction delays can remain visible to neighbors
- Whether the property has any existing code violations, permit holds, or neglected-building designations tied to it at the city level
A Few Questions Worth Asking Directly
What happened after work stalled at 2725 East 7th Avenue Parkway? In 2024, the city placed the property on its neglected and derelict building list. In October 2025, neighbors filed a lawsuit asking a judge to allow demolition or transfer of the property to a third party.
Is buying a fixer in this district still worth the risk? The completed villa and the stalled renovation show that outcomes can differ. Whether a particular property is worth pursuing depends on its condition, review requirements, and project specifics.
Buying or selling a historic property on the 7th Avenue Parkway means understanding this process before it becomes a deadline. The Nichols & Lee Team works inside Central Denver's historic districts regularly and can walk you through what a specific property will require before you decide whether to move forward. Schedule a Free Consultation to talk through what a project like this actually looks like on your timeline.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
