Northfield at Stapleton

With more stars than a constellation, Denver, Colo., came alive with light, music and magic as the community came together on Oct. 26 to celebrate the grand opening of Northfield Stapleton. The open-air town center is located in the heart of Stapleton, Forest City’s mixed-use, urban infill project at the former home of the Stapleton International Airport.

The 1.2-million-square-foot project – recently named the nation’s first green-certified Main Street town center – welcomed the community with a Night Under the Stars.

Local and national celebrities - from American Idol finalist Ace Young to former Denver Bronco’s star Karl Mecklenburg to U.S. Olympic skier Caroline Lalive – were joined by the five winners of the “Northfield Stapleton Stars” contest. Winners Matt Azer, Chelsea Kahn, Lisa Luke, Danielle Maynard and Collin Tilbe were presented with celebrity swag bags valued at $7,000 and participated in the grand opening celebrations.

But those stars weren’t the only ones shining as Northfield’s Northern Lights Laser Show bathed the center in a supernova of sound and sight.

Despite the season’s first snow, the exciting entertainment, celebrations and giveaways were hard to resist.

The Challenge

From the beginning, Northfield Stapleton had a special goal – to enrich the new community around it not only by creating a place to get together, but to do so in a way that both respects and protects our planet.

Thus, the dream was born – to create the country’s first Main Street town center to be honored by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for sustainability.

Held by Forest City as a Core Value, sustainability is a commitment to people and planet, using advanced techniques and design to protect nature and create healthy, happy communities. 

As a result of years of work, attention and commitment to that goal, Northfield was awarded LEED-CS Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council at Northfield’s grand opening celebration. Northfield is also the first Forest City-developed property to be LEED-certified, which is the Council’s government-recognized, premier sustainability rating system in the building industry.

Northfield Stapleton was awarded Silver Certification for its outstanding commitment to sustainable practices, including high-energy efficiency, selection of building materials and advanced construction techniques, and ongoing commitment to water management and indoor environmental quality. The award is based on a point system for achieving levels of sustainability.

As a pilot project for the USGBC, Northfield helped the council test and create retail and core and shell development guidelines.

“Forest City went above and beyond the requirements of the Silver Core and Shell designation by creating a tenant handbook detailing how to build green, along with incentives to do so. We commend their motivation and their knowledge of the green building process,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, founding chair and CEO of the USGBC.