Common Ground
Community Design Festival

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The Common Ground Community Design Festival is a new collaborative, civic design initiative launched by Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s office, the CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning, the Lavender Hill Cultural District, and the Denver Architecture Foundation. This festival highlights five Denver community nonprofits—Lavender Hill Cultural District, Colorado Nepalese Community, Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC), Greater Denver CARES Mentoring Movement, and Empower Media Exchange (EMX)—by connecting them with CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning undergraduate architecture students and faculty.

Together, we have co-designed and fabricated public installations that reflect the city’s rich, diverse narratives. Led by Assistant Professor Leyuan Li, Mayor Mike Johnston’s Office of Community Outreach’s Elaine Limmer, the Denver Architecture Foundation, and Zach Kotel of the Lavender Hill Cultural District, the project embodies a shared commitment to equity-driven placemaking, community building, and civic design.

Thursday, September 24, 2026

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5 - 7 p.m., Denver Performing Arts Complex (1400 Curtis Street, Denver, CO 80204)

Attend the grand opening of the Common Ground Community Design Festival. Opening remarks will begin at 5:30 p.m. Stop by and interact with this installation designed and built by students from the CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning.

This work was developed as part of Assistant Professor Leyuan Li's Spring 2026 undergraduate architecture studio V Parts of Common with support from the Denver Mayor's Office. The work continued over the summer with the help of Assistant Professor Danny Wills and CAP alum Andrea Malta. 

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Friday, September 25, 2026

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3 - 5 p.m., Denver Performing Arts Complex (1400 Curtis Street, Denver, CO 80204)

Attend a civic forum on how urban interventions empower community.

The civic forum welcomes nationally recognized leaders in community-centered design—Joseph Altshuler, Akima Brackeen, Wendell Joseph, and Leyuan Li. The discussion, moderated by Assistant Professor Danny Wills, explores the role of community-centered design in fostering more equitable and resilient cities. 

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Monday, September 28, 2026

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4 - 5 p.m., Market Station (1661 Market St., Denver, CO 80202)

Attend the Common Ground keynote presentation by Javier Peña Ibáñez, architect, curator, and founder of Concéntrico. Peña Ibáñez will present a lecture exploring how architecture, design, and culture can serve as catalysts for more inclusive, resilient, and imaginative cities.present a lecture exploring how architecture, design, and culture can serve as catalysts for more inclusive, resilient, and imaginative cities. Drawing on the work of Concéntrico—an internationally recognized platform based in Logroño, Spain—Peña Ibáñez will examine how temporary interventions, public installations, exhibitions, and collaborative research transform streets, plazas, and everyday urban spaces into laboratories for civic experimentation.

Through projects developed with designers, artists, architects, municipalities, and local communities, the lecture will highlight how small-scale interventions can generate lasting conversations about public life. By sharing the processes behind Concéntrico's internationally acclaimed initiatives, Peña Ibáñez will offer insights into innovative models of urban engagement and cultural production that challenge conventional approaches to city-making. The lecture invites students, designers, and the broader public to rethink public space as a dynamic platform for creativity, collaboration, and social innovation.

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