Downtown Denver is getting a $100M glow-up

• It's the first round of investments since voters expanded the downtown taxing district last fall, unlocking access to $570 million in bonds — a financing strategy that helped bankroll Union Station about a decade ago.

Zoom in: Big-ticket items include:

• Housing: $31.5 million to help convert two historic office buildings — Symes and University — into 236 housing units with ground-floor retail.
• Redevelopment: $23 million to acquire two parking lots flanking Glenarm Place at the Denver Pavilions block on 15th Street for private redevelopment and improved affordable parking.
• Public spaces: $30 million to overhaul Civic Center Park with new lighting, tree canopy, walkways and infrastructure. Another $7 million will transform the McNichols Building at Civic Center Park into a restaurant, arts marketplace and museum.

What they're saying: This is DDA's opportunity "to bring catalytic, transformational change to downtown Denver" and "create a real sense of place and economic revitalization in our city center," chair Doug Tisdale said at a news briefing Wednesday.

State of play: The announcement comes as Johnston prepares to lay off city workers to close a $250 million budget gap. He defended the timing, saying downtown investment is critical to restoring Denver's declining revenue stream.

• "It's important not to stand still in these moments," Johnston said.

What's next: Funding is slated to be distributed this fall. Projects over $500,000 will need City Council approval.

• Another $475 million in DDA investments is still to come. "Stay tuned," Tisdale said.