A resolution approving a proposed Agreement between the City and County of…

This resolution authorizes a formal agreement between the City and County of Denver and two Kroenke-affiliated entities, Kroenke Arena Company LLC and Kroenke Parking LLC, to manage an escrow account for Linkage Fees generated at the Ball Arena site in Council District 3. Linkage Fees are charges assessed on new development projects based on the premise that new commercial or residential construction creates demand for affordable housing by attracting workers and residents. By placing these fees into an escrow account, the city establishes a dedicated funding mechanism tied specifically to the Ball Arena redevelopment rather than depositing them into a general affordable housing fund.

The Ball Arena site represents one of Denver's most significant urban redevelopment opportunities in recent years. Kroenke Sports and Entertainment has proposed transforming the area surrounding Ball Arena into a mixed-use neighborhood with thousands of residential units, commercial space, and public amenities. Linkage Fees attached to this development could generate a meaningful sum for affordable housing, though the specific dollar amounts tied to this escrow arrangement are not detailed in the resolution text provided.

From a legal and constitutional standpoint, this agreement operates under Denver's home rule authority as a charter city in Colorado, which grants Denver significant latitude to enter into development agreements and impose fees tied to land use. Linkage Fee programs have been used by municipalities across the country and have generally survived legal scrutiny when structured as a legitimate regulatory fee rather than a tax, tied to a documented nexus between development and housing demand.

The stakeholders most directly affected include future residents and workers in the Ball Arena area, affordable housing advocates, the Kroenke development entities who bear the fee obligation, and Denver residents in Council District 3 and surrounding neighborhoods who will be impacted by the scale of the redevelopment. The escrow structure suggests the city and Kroenke have negotiated specific terms for how and when these funds will be collected and deployed, which may offer more flexibility or certainty to both parties compared to standard fee collection processes.

Fiscally, the impact on Denver's budget is likely neutral to positive, as the escrow account channels developer contributions toward a defined affordable housing purpose without drawing on existing city revenues. The broader fiscal question is whether the Linkage Fees, as structured, will be sufficient to produce a meaningful number of affordable units relative to the scale of the Ball Arena redevelopment project.

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Denver City Council is weighing a resolution that would approve a formal agreement with Kroenke Arena Company LLC and Kroenke Parking LLC to create an escrow account for Linkage Fees connected to the Ball Arena redevelopment in Council District 3. Linkage Fees are charges assessed on new development to offset the affordable housing demand that large projects generate. Under this agreement, those fees would be collected and held in escrow with the contractual requirement that they be spent on affordable housing at or near the Ball Arena site, rather than flowing into a general city fund.

Supporters of the agreement, including affordable housing advocates and some council members, argue that tying the fees directly to the Ball Arena site ensures that the community most affected by the redevelopment sees a direct benefit. They contend that the escrow structure adds transparency and accountability, giving residents and officials a clear mechanism to track whether the developer is meeting its affordable housing commitments as the massive mixed-use project unfolds over coming years.

Opponents and skeptics raise questions about whether the escrow arrangement reduces the city's flexibility compared to a direct fee collection process, and whether the fee levels are set high enough to produce a meaningful number of affordable units. Some housing economists and development industry representatives argue that Linkage Fees of any kind raise construction costs, which can slow overall housing production and ultimately worsen affordability if total supply is constrained.

For Denver residents, particularly those in and around Council District 3, the agreement represents a concrete mechanism through which one of the city's largest private redevelopment projects would contribute to affordable housing near the site. The committee approved the item on October 29, 2025, and the full council must act by December 15, 2025, making the outcome a near-term test of how Denver balances large-scale urban development with its affordable housing goals.