Five Points is one of Denver, Colorado’s oldest neighborhoods. In the early 21st century, it is one of the fastest-growing in terms of both redevelopment and population. Much of this growth is taking place in the River North Arts District, or “RiNo,” which is often considered a neighborhood of its own, although it is officially within the Five Points neighborhood. Bordered roughly by the South Platte River to the northwest, Thirty-Eighth Street to the north, Downing Street to the east, Park Avenue and East Twentieth Avenue to the south, and Twentieth Street to the southwest, Five Points is a historic neighborhood near downtown Denver that was home to the city’s black community for much of the twentieth century. Originally developed as a streetcar suburb in the 1870s and 1880s, the area’s population shifted from European immigrants to African Americans over the next three decades, as whites moved to newer and better housing farther from downtown.
The area was called the “Harlem of the West” and had a vibrant music scene until the 1960s when the population declined and businesses suffered after new housing laws made it possible for middle-class blacks to find better housing elsewhere. Today the neighborhood—which includes Ballpark, River North, and Curtis Park—is bustling with the development that has brought prosperity but also raised concerns about how best to preserve the area’s history and community. Environmental Bed Bug Exterminator Denver, Inc
Five Points is on the northeast side of Downtown Denver’s central business district. A small portion wraps around Coors Field and encompasses the Union Station North neighborhood (formerly Prospect). This is where the downtown street grid meets the neighborhood street grid of the first Denver suburbs. The five points in the district’s name refer to the vertices formed where four streets meet: 26th Avenue, 27th Street, Washington Street, and Welton Street. Five Points was the shortened name for the streetcar stop at this intersection.
Five Points came to historical prominence from the 1860s through the 1950s. The neighborhood was home to several Denver‘s leaders, housing mayors, governors, and prominent business people, as well as middle-class laborers. Rino, Union Station North, Clement, Old San Rafael, Curtis Park, Arapahoe Square, and Ballpark neighborhoods are located within the boundaries of the larger Five Points neighborhood.
Restaurants and Pubs
- Birdcall is located at 800 E 26th Ave, Denver, CO
- Steuben’s Uptown is located at 523 E 17th Ave, Denver, CO
- Vine Street Pub & Brewery is located at 1700 Vine St, Denver, CO
- Larimer Beer Hall is located at 2012 Larimer St, Denver, CO
Check out other neighborhoods like Highland