Colorado Community College System Launches Master Developer Search for 145-Acre Lowry Campus Redevelopment

The Colorado Community College System has issued a Request for Proposals to select a master developer for the redevelopment of its Lowry Campus, a 145-acre property situated along the Quebec Street corridor on the border of Denver and Aurora. JLL, acting as exclusive real estate advisor to CCCS, will manage the solicitation and negotiation process, the firm announced September 10, 2026.

The RFP, issued through BidNet Direct, carries a submission deadline of November 16, 2026. The solicitation seeks an experienced developer or development team to create a cohesive, phased vision for transforming the site into a mixed-use environment.

Site Scale and Configuration

The Lowry Campus is divided between 28 acres within Denver and 117 acres within Aurora. Approximately 136 acres are projected to become available for redevelopment or reuse by the end of 2028, when all CCCS uses will be relocated off-site or consolidated onto the remaining nine acres. The campus currently contains 18 primary buildings totaling approximately 566,000 square feet, with some structures identified as candidates for adaptive reuse.

CCCS's system office is located at 9101 East Lowry Blvd, Denver, CO 80230, near the campus core. The broader Lowry redevelopment area — encompassing the former Lowry Air Force Base — spans 1,866 acres and has been largely built out over the past three decades with residential, office, retail, education, and open space uses, making large assembled tracts increasingly scarce within the district.

The CCCS campus sits in the northeastern corner of the former Air Force Base, generally bounded by 11th Avenue to the north, Lowry Boulevard/6th Avenue to the south, Quebec Street to the west, and Dayton Street to the east.

Strategic Location and Market Context

The Lowry trade area has recorded 28.1% population growth since 2010, with residents demonstrating affluence and educational attainment levels that exceed city and national averages, according to the announcement. The site is surrounded by established residential neighborhoods, parks, and mixed-use districts, and benefits from proximity to the Fitzsimons Medical Campus, Stanley Marketplace, and Denver's cultural institutions.

JLL and CCCS describe the opportunity as one of the largest remaining infill redevelopment sites in the Denver-Aurora region. The prior buildout of the broader Lowry master-planned community — which included approximately 4,500 homes, 1.8 million square feet of office space, and 130,000 square feet of retail — provides context for the scale of development the surrounding area has absorbed and the relative rarity of a parcel of this size becoming available within it.

"The Lowry Campus opportunity combines scale, location and market fundamentals that are increasingly rare in established urban markets," said Karlen Beitman, Senior Vice President, Public Institutions Advisory at JLL. "The selected developer will have the chance to create a true master-planned community on a site with demonstrated demand and strong demographic trends."

Public Asset Stewardship and Institutional Oversight

The Lowry Campus is a public asset governed by the State Board of Community Colleges and Occupational Education, which oversees CCCS. CCCS Chancellor Marielena DeSanctis cited the board's role in reaching the current milestone.

"The Colorado Community College System is excited for the next chapter of the Lowry property," DeSanctis said. "This property is an incredible asset for the Aurora and Denver communities, and it will enrich the surrounding neighborhoods and wider metropolitan area. The State Board of Community Colleges and Occupational Education, which governs CCCS, has provided essential leadership and oversight throughout this process, and their commitment to responsible stewardship of this public asset has been instrumental in reaching this milestone."

The Office of the State Architect has recorded the Colorado Community College System's Lowry holdings at approximately 949,728 square feet with an associated capital value of $142,149,695, reflecting the scale of state-level real property accounting tied to the campus.

The current developer RFP follows an earlier procurement process in which CCCS issued a separate RFP in January 2026 to retain a real estate consultant — estimated at between $200,000 and $500,000 — to prepare and manage the master-developer solicitation. That consulting engagement set the stage for JLL's appointment as exclusive advisor and the subsequent launch of the developer search.

JLL Advisory Team and Development Vision

JLL's advisory team for the engagement is led by Karlen Beitman, Senior Vice President, Public Institutions Advisory; Krista Trofka, Vice President, Government and Education Advisory; Kurt Liss, Senior Vice President; and David Zehr, Associate, Public Institutions Advisory.

"This development is a rare, large-scale infill opportunity that with the right partner will catalyse sustained community investment, serve as a long-term tax base generator and provide more amenities to both the Aurora and Denver communities," Trofka said.

CCCS and JLL frame the redevelopment as an opportunity to strengthen the tax base across both Aurora and Denver while adding housing, employment, and services to a corridor that has already demonstrated sustained residential demand. The nine acres CCCS intends to retain will preserve some educational presence on the site after the broader redevelopment begins.

Qualified developers and development teams may access the RFP through BidNet Direct, with proposals due November 16, 2026.

Sources

JLL Newsroom — CCCS Launches Search for Master Developer of 145-Acre Lowry Campus Redevelopment (September 10, 2026)