Denver City Council members voted unanimously Monday to approve a proclamation endorsing the renaming of Denver’s Civic Center Station and to approve a $3.1 million loan supporting a new income-restricted housing project.

The proclamation, sponsored by District 10 Councilmember Chris Hinds, enshrines the city’s backing to rename the Denver’s major bus transit center after Wade Blank, the noted Presbyterian minister and disability activist credited with spurring the historic Denver transit protest.

“Today’s proclamation renaming Civic Center Station to Wade Blank Civic Center Station is about more than just changing a name,” Hinds said. “It’s about celebrating a legacy of courage, action, and unwavering commitment to inclusion.”

The document will be used as part of the formal RTD process to rename the facility, according to Jamie Lewis, transportation advisor for the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition.

For consideration, RTD Board Office Executive Director Jack Kroll told The Denver Gazette in January that honorary names must be appropriate and equitable, and they must have the support of the local community through City Council resolutions or proclamations and letters from community members, business districts, and other elected officials.

Kroll told members of the City Council that the board expects the review committee to start its work next week and to have a recommendation for the full board by the end of this summer.

On Wednesday, July 5, 1978, Blank led a handful of protesters — who would become known as the “Gang of 19” — to the intersection of Colfax Avenue and Broadway Street, where they crawled out of their wheelchairs and onto the pavement, blocking buses and chanting: “We will ride!”

“Let the station’s new name inspire us to continue building a Denver where every option, where every person can move freely, independently and with dignity,” Hinds said.

City Council members also unanimously approved a $3.1 million loan in support of the Chrysalis Apartments project, which will help deliver 70 new income-restricted rental units in the city.

The loan agreement is between the City and County of Denver and The Empowerment Program, Inc., for $3,150,000, with a term of 60 years, to finance the demolition and new construction of a multi-family residential structure, helping to boost the city’s inventory of affordable housing.

The newly constructed seven-story development, with an estimated price tag of $20 million, will be built on the site of the former Bainbridge Apartments, located at 1777 Franklin St. in the City Park West neighborhood. 

The current residents of the Bainbridge facility, all of whom are subsidized with portable Denver DHS funds, will be relocated to other Empowerment properties, according to a report by the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority.

Chrysalis Apartments, as the project is known, will be a permanent supportive housing development serving former homeless individuals in central Denver.

Residents will have access to services provided by The Empowerment Program, which will include individual and group mental health services, trauma and substance use treatment, specialized health services, social activities and transportation assistance.

According to the loan agreement, the borrower is not required to make payments on the 0% loan as long as they comply with the terms and conditions stated.

The city may forgive the loan on the maturity date if the borrower remains in compliance.

A 60-year covenant will be recorded against the property, requiring the borrower to house individuals with low-to-moderate incomes, subject to rental and occupancy restrictions.