On October 3, 1858, a group of Georgiaprospectors led by Green Russell established the townsite of Auraria south of Cherry Creek near the Cherry Creek Diggings, over a month before a group of Kansas Territoryspeculators led by William Larimer established the rival Denver City on the other side of Cherry Creek.[3][4]Henry Allen, a surveyor, laid the town platte and was Auraria town company's first president.[5] The town was named for the gold mining settlement of Auraria, Georgia. On October 29, Charles H. Blake and A.J. Williams opened a mercantile business out of wagons in Auraria.
Auraria suffered a devastating flood on May 19, 1864. In response, many businesses left the neighborhood. Some speculate that Auraria never truly recovered from this event.[9] However for the next century Auraria continued as a neighborhood mixing industry, commerce and housing. Residents included working class and varying immigrant populations. By the 1920s Auraria's residents were largely Hispanic.[10]
In 1965, parts of Auraria were again heavily damaged by flooding, leading city leaders to describe the neighborhood as blighted and in need of urban renewal.[11] In 1969 Denver citizens approved a bond issue to purchase approximately half of Auraria's land area to form an educational campus. An estimated 400 to 900 residents were relocated, along with 249 businesses.[12][13] Demolition began on March 10, 1973,[14] and the area became the home of University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State University, and Community College of Denver. The Displaced Aurarian Scholarship program offers free tuition to these institutions for direct descendants of those displaced from Auraria.[13] A few buildings from old Auraria are still standing today.
The name "Auraria" survives in Denver as the neighborhood along the west bank of Cherry Creek to the east bank of the South Platte River, bordered on the south by Colfax Avenue. Auraria is easily confused with, but is entirely distinct from the City of Aurora, Denver's neighbor some six miles to the east.
Pending redevelopment
The majority of Auraria outside the campus, north of Auraria Parkway, is currently dominated by two large entertainment complexes on either side of railroad tracks that traverse the neighborhood. Elitch Gardens is currently north of the rail lines, and Ball Arena is to the south. Redevelopment promises to transform both these areas in coming decades. Plans for both have moved through important approval processes but neither is likely to break ground until 2026 or later. Despite mitigation after the 1965 flood, this part of Auraria is still largely within the 100-year flood plain, so rechanneling the South Platte River is a precondition for the developments.[15]
In 2018, the City and County of Denver approved rezoning and development agreements for The "River Mile", 58 acres currently occupied by Elitch Gardens, in one of the largest redevelopment projects in Denver's history.[16] To make room for this mixed use development, Elitch Gardens will move, but no date has been set.[17]
In 2024, the City and County of Denver approved rezoning and development agreements for 64 acres of Auraria centered around the Ball Arena (which will remain).[18]
The neighborhood of Auraria is dominated by the Auraria Campus, which is home to three institutions of higher learning: University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver), and Community College of Denver (CCD). Vestiges of the old neighborhood remain, however, in the Ninth Street Historic Park on the campus. The three institutions occupy the bulk of the Auraria Neighborhood, so there is very little permanent residence. The schools mainly serve commuter students, though housing has recently been developed at Campus Village Apartments (UCD), Auraria Student Lofts, and Regency Student Housing.
Media
There are two student newspapers that are published in Auraria. The University of Colorado Denver's newspaper is called the "CU Denver Sentry" and Metropolitan State University's newspaper is "Met Media".[19][20]
