Equity: Under-Resourced Buildings

• Market rate buildings located in NEST neighborhoods with high Social Equity and Climate Vulnerability Index
• Buildings with affordable housing units or otherwise serving frontline communities
• Buildings with human service/restricted income providers as tenants/owners
• Buildings of significance to community members

• Frontline communities are those that experience “first and worst” the consequences of climate change and have been underrepresented and underserved throughout the years. These include low- to medium-income communities, communities of color and indigenous people, those who speak languages other than English, people with disabilities and chronic conditions, older adults, young children, people with criminal records, LGBTQ+, and refugees and immigrants.
• NEST neighborhoods: Denver has undergone significant change since the Great Recession of 2008-09 and emerged with one of the fastest-growing economies in the country. NEST was created to help ensure that the substantial economic, social, and cultural benefits of this success are available, and shared by, all residents. Neighborhoods classified as NEST are East Colfax, Elyria-Swansea, Globeville, Montbello, Northeast Park Hill, Sun Valley, Valverde, Villa Park, West Colfax, and Westwood.
• Co-creation: bring people together to fulfill a goal based on input from the community
• Human Services/Restricted-Income Providers:

Certain neighborhoods in Denver are more vulnerable to climate change than others. Please click here to learn more about vulnerability to climate change in Denver. 

Your application will be reviewed by City staff to determine if the building is eligible for additional assistance based on the following parameters:

• Social Equity Index
• Location at a low-income census tract
• Climate Vulnerability Index
• Building Significance for the Community
• Building serving frontline and restricted-income communities
• Building is affordable housing
• Located in NEST neighborhoods
• Building provides human services
• Building does not have cooling

A series of community connections are scheduled to better understand the needs of the URB community. Our goal is to co-create services and design incentives with the local community members and stakeholders to support these buildings in meeting their building performance requirements.

The following image demonstrates the process for creating services and incentives for URBs:

If you are interested in participating in these meetings, please contact CASR's Equity Administrator at Berenice.GarciaTellez@denvergov.org.

Benefits for your building:

• Increasing tenant loyalty and profits
• Operating cost and utility bill reductions
• Positive impacts on the environment
• Opportunity to enhance your building brand through positive PR
• Contributions to a thriving community

Benefits for your tenants:

• Health benefits through improved indoor and outdoor air quality
• Safety improvement through reduced exposure to carbon monoxide leaks
• Improved building quality and access to cooling
• Thriving communities
• Economic opportunities