The Streets at SouthGlenn has two dark ends and a busy middle, and each part is running on its own schedule. As of the City of Centennial's September 2026 update, the former Macy's at the north end has a formal application for a 358-unit apartment building. The former Sears at the south end has no application at all. That difference matters more than it first looks. The center's approved plan requires a public park of at least 25,000 square feet, and the rules attach that park to the Sears parcel.
So the end with a filing brings housing, and the open space waits on the end without one. The rest of this post looks at each part of the center, the rules that control both ends, and what is on the calendar right now.
The middle just sold, and it's fully leased
The stretch most people use is the three blocks along York Street. That's where you'll find Whole Foods, Sephora, Old Navy and about a dozen other storefronts. In January 2026, the Taos developer Asher Luzzatto bought roughly 100,000 square feet of that retail for $28 million, the Denver Post reported. Luzzatto told the paper his portion was 100% leased. When spaces do open up, he said he wants "experiential" tenants, the kind of place people drive half an hour to visit. The City says it doesn't expect any immediate tenant changes in those buildings, and the purchase doesn't include the Macy's or Sears properties.
Luzzatto said one reason he bought in was the long-term redevelopment potential at the two ends. In his words, "South Denver, this area could use a good center of gravity because it is pretty suburban and spread out." Put simply, a buyer paid $28 million for the middle partly on the expectation that the ends will change.
Two anchors, two clocks
The two anchor buildings went dark four years apart. They have different owners and are at different stages.
| Former Macy's, north end | Former Sears, south end | |
|---|---|---|
| Closed | Final day March 20, 2022 | Vacant since 2018 |
| Owner | Alberta Development Partners | Northwood Investors, bought for $15 million in 2017 |
| Current status | Formal application from Alliance Residential, received April 30, 2026 | Marketed for residential, no application submitted |
| Proposal | One five-story building, 358 units | None active |
| Hearing date | None scheduled; City timeline lists "TBD" | Not applicable |
| Tied to the public park | No | Yes |
The Denver Gazette covered the Macy's farewell in 2022. The Sears building had already been empty for more than three years by then.
The north end has a filing, not a date
Alliance Residential is proposing a single five-story building with 358 apartments on the Macy's site. The City received the formal application April 30 and says it is in planning review. The Have Your Say Centennial page for the project still lists review and approval timing as "TBD," and its public comment window closed April 22, 2026. The Planning and Zoning Commission agendas for August 26 and September 9, 2026, didn't include SouthGlenn.
The public comments on that page were written about an earlier 361-unit version of the plan. They cover a range of views. Some commenters worried about congestion on University Boulevard and about how cars would get in and out of the site. Others questioned the building's height and bulk, whether there would be enough parking, and how walking routes would connect to the rest of the center. Another group backed the plan, citing more housing, better walkability and more foot traffic for nearby shops.
The Macy's proposal needs no change to the overall housing limit. The approved plan allows 1,125 residential units across the whole center, and The Portola at SouthGlenn already accounts for 214. Adding Alliance's 358 brings the total to 572, about half the cap.
The south end holds the park
The park requirement is a big part of why the Sears end matters to anyone who walks the center. According to the City's summary of what is currently allowed, the plan requires at least 25,000 square feet of public open space, green space or common public space along the north side of East Easter Avenue. It is there "to serve residential development at the Sears parcel," and it has to be built before the first residential building is occupied.
Read in order, the City's terms put the park at the end of a chain:
- Someone submits a development application for the Sears site. As of September 2026, no one has.
- The application goes through planning review.
- Housing is built on the Sears parcel.
- The public space along Easter Avenue is finished before the first of those homes is occupied.
The south end has already come close to step one. A local neighborhood newsletter reported that in November 2024 the City received a pre-submittal from Northwood Ravin for two apartment buildings and a park on the Sears site. One building would have had 132 units across four stories and the other 266 units across five. By January 2026, the City's website said the company had decided not to move forward and that the site "is still being marketed as a strong location for future housing."
As things stand, the anchor with an active application brings housing without the public park, and the anchor tied to the park has no applicant.
Why both ends can close without breaking the retail rule
Some people expect redevelopment to shrink SouthGlenn as a shopping center. The approved plan sets a floor. It requires 621,000 square feet of retail. The City counts 948,853 square feet of leasable retail today, and the Sears and Macy's buildings make up about 307,000 of that.
Our own math from the City's figures: taking out both anchor buildings leaves about 642,000 square feet. That's roughly 21,000 square feet above the minimum. Under the current rules, both dark buildings can go and the center still clears its retail requirement, but only by a small margin.
That margin explains why a 2025 proposal drew attention. In August 2025, the City announced a pre-submittal from Alberta to amend the master development plan. It would have added 550 units, raising the cap to 1,675, lowered the minimum retail space, allowed more height on part of the site and changed signage standards. Comments were due August 18, 2025, and the City's page for that amendment lists formal submittal and approval as "To be determined." The City's September 2026 summary still shows the 1,125-unit cap. That amendment was never approved, and no formal filing or hearing for it appears in the City records we reviewed.
The rules in force still trace back to the developers' 2021 request to raise the center-wide cap from 350 units to 1,125 and the height limit on the Sears and Macy's parcels from 50 feet to 75. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended that plan on November 10, and City Council approved it on December 13 by an 8–1 vote. No building anywhere on the site can go above 100 feet, and the tallest today is The Portola, at about 85 feet.
What the traffic study planned for
University Boulevard came up repeatedly in the Macy's comments, so it helps to know what the City has already studied. The 2021 Traffic Impact Analysis looked at the largest possible buildout: up to 1,071 new homes plus up to 280,000 square feet of new entertainment, office and retail space. It concluded the existing road network could handle that with acceptable service levels.
The study recommended two specific changes:
- Arapahoe and Vine: adjust the signal timing to keep traffic moving as regional traffic grows.
- University and Davies: limit the intersection to right-in, right-out turns, for safety and smoother traffic flow.
It estimated that extra peak-hour traffic into nearby neighborhoods would be about 10 cars or fewer per intersection. The City says the recommendations are based on crash data and projected growth, not only on the new development. The full study is posted on the City's SouthGlenn page for anyone who wants to check an intersection they use every day.
Meanwhile, Commons Park on October 23
While the anchor sites wait, the leased middle of the center keeps its events running. Spooky Streets is set for Friday, October 23, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Commons Park along Commons Avenue. It's free and includes face painters, balloon artists, costumed characters, photo spots and music. If you're planning more fall weekends nearby, our Centennial weekend guide covers parks and trails across the city. Questions about either redevelopment can go straight to the City at [email protected].
If you own a home near Arapahoe and University and want to know how SouthGlenn's two timelines might come up in a future sale, Anna & Trevor Sholders follow these filings closely and can walk you through what's on record. Schedule a free consultation, and we'll go over the SouthGlenn plans with your property in mind.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.