Nov. 17, 2002 - 21:17 MST

THE WONDERING JEW

Up In The Middle Of The Air

Everything moves, the clock, the people and the buildings. Our town which we once thought was a static, unchangeable thing when we were children has been slowly changing over the years. But the changes have accelerated greatly in the last few years. Fairly often now Heather and I will try to go to a place we had been recently, only to find it had been bulldozed and something entirely new built there.

The military presence here in our area used to be huge, but no longer. Congress de-comissioned Fitzsimmons Army Medcal Center in the late 90's. It occupied a large tract of land just east of Denver. One great building and many smaller ones. Many of our older service people have been patients there.

The building which once we thought was so large that housed the hospital itself is still there and will be just used as the main administrative building for the Colorado University Health Sciences Center.

The surrounding buildings, some of which have already been put up are extensive to say the least. On that campus will be Colorado University Hospital and Children's Hospital which both now exist in the center of town. Resented by neighboring residents for years and although their physical plants are extensive, places to park have shrunk to nothing. So the neighbors will heave a sigh of relief, I am not too sure though just what the heck they will do with what is there. As big as those many buildings are it will cost more than a king's ransom to demolish them and bulldoze them into useable condition. Huh, their problem I guess. Also on Fitzsimmons will be two high-rise reasearch buildings an Anschutz Outpatient Pavilion an education complex.

All in all a good thing for our area, putting many facilities in the same locale who rely on each other for many different things.

One thing missing from that picture in the paper is parking areas, nor do I see anything marked as a parking tower.

The other place in Denver the Military decomissioned recently is Lowry Air Force Base. Another huge area of property that is in development and is nearing completion. Now it is being referred to as Lowry City. Actually it will be big enough to be a city. Many new houses, new condos, a shopping center, an ice rink and quite a few businesses. The low income housing is still across Quebec Street from the main base and it seems that someone has bought some of the married NCO housing on the old base to adapt for civilian use - I see a new building there which appears to be an admin. building. Some of the existing brick buildings remain, quite usable as they have been occupied the longest. Seems to be a swinging deal there, all except for the people who will be living there will have to be fighting the near gridlock that already exists in that area.

Sometime ago in spite of much antagonism - poop, pop and hyped panoply, Denver International Airport became a reality -- Tent City that is. Thus vacating another large tract of land. Redevelopment work is going apace there too. We have been shopping at the new Walmart there already. Housing is going up rapidly there. The published plan for the old Stapleton International Airport shows another small city as a WIP.

Change chases us, always. But with the three redevelopments I can't help but think of the old song - hymn I guess, "There's A Wheel In A Wheel - - -," But a few words of change, There's a city in a city way Up In The Middle Of The Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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