Commún Comes Home: Our Purchase of the Loretto Heights Administration Building
For more than a century, the Administration Building at Loretto Heights has been a familiar landmark in Southwest Denver. Built in 1890 by the Sisters of Loretto, its halls have welcomed students, teachers, and community members as dormitories, classrooms, and offices. Now, 135 years later, this historic building is ready for a new chapter.
Commún is proud to announce that they’ve officially purchased the Administration Building, which will become a cornerstone of Loretto Commons, a community-led vision for resilience, belonging, and opportunity in Southwest Denver. With the support of the Colorado Prop 123 Affordable Housing Financing Fund and Hartman Ely Investments, this acquisition paves the way for 173 affordable housing units, along with new spaces for Commún’s robust programming and services. “Community resilience means that existing neighbors can stay in their homes while we welcome new neighbors,” says Commún executive director Margaret Brugger. That vision includes opportunities for residents to not only rent affordable homes, but to also build wealth through a rent-to-own model that keeps stability and opportunity rooted in the neighborhood.
The 110,000-square-foot Administration Building will be reimagined as a hub where entrepreneurs and nonprofits can grow, reflecting the voices of more than 2,000 residents who have shared with Commún—in English, Spanish, Arabic, and Vietnamese—their hopes for more local businesses and welcoming community spaces. Families will be able to access affordable housing, small businesses will be supported to thrive, and neighbors will be invited to celebrate joy together. The chapel, attached to the building, will remain a sacred gathering place for weddings, celebrations, co-working, and events.
2,000
We've heard from 2000 residents their hopes for more local businesses and welcoming community spaces
110,000
Purchase of 110,000 sq ft Admin building to support the community
173
173 affordable housing and rent-to-own units
The project is the next step in Commun’s muti-phase community-led initiative to improve community resilience. Commún is working with Southwest Denver residents to design the properties to build on the community’s strengths while improving regional economic vitality and providing a sense of belonging for all residents.
Commún is preparing to move into the Administrative Building by the end of the year, with programs and offices occupying a portion of the main floor called Tile Hall. In addition to seeking donations for setting up a temporary kitchen and making basic upgrades to the site before major renovations begin, Commún is seeking donors who wish to have naming rights on four Italian granite benches that will be installed in the quad.
For Commún, Loretto Commons is more than a development project, it’s an opportunity to come home. After operating out of shared and rented spaces for several years, Commún looks forward to having a permanent presence in the heart of the community where they can expand and give back. “We’ve been envisioning and working toward this for eight years,” says co-founding associate director Andrea Savage. “Now we have a space to make our own—one where we’ll be carrying forward many of the same values the Sisters of Loretto held. We claimed the building, but the building also claimed us. This is where we belong.”
