Reimagining Aurora: Urbanizing a Suburban American City

Experience firsthand how institutional and cultural anchors are catalyzing a broad transformation from suburban car-oriented environments into increasingly walkable, multimodal, active, and inclusive urban places that drive economies locally and beyond.

The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus has rapidly emerged as a world-class center for education, patient care, research and innovation. It supports 25,000 researchers, faculty, and staff, along with 4,500 future health professionals. The challenge is to fully realize the life-saving mission of the campus through new infrastructure and a diverse mix of uses—housing, retail, and hospitality—that create an environment that supports growth, well-being, and community.

At Stanley Marketplace, see how an abandoned aviation facility has become a bustling showcase for all local businesses, as well as a neighborhood cultural anchor connected to place. Stanley Marketplace is a national model for adaptive reuse; its success of has catalyzed an increasingly dense, pedestrian-oriented development pattern, public park improvements, and a palpably social public realm within an otherwise suburban context.