Why you should experience 31st Avenue in Denver, Colorado.
31st Avenue is a spirited corridor where Highland's streetcar heritage, neighborhood traditions, architectural craftsmanship, and independent local enterprise define one of Northwest Denver's most recognizable east-west streets.
Running through Highland between West Highland and Jefferson Park, 31st Avenue connects established residential blocks, neighborhood businesses, civic institutions, and walkable commercial streets that collectively reflect more than a century of deliberate urban development. Brick Victorian residences, Denver Squares, mature shade trees, restored storefronts, and broad pedestrian sidewalks establish a streetscape where architectural continuity and neighborhood vitality remain closely intertwined. The corridor reaches its defining character where historic craftsmanship, independent commerce, and long-term stewardship continue reinforcing one another across successive generations. The result is an experience defined by authenticity, architectural continuity, and Highland's enduring neighborhood character.
What you should know about 31st Avenue.
31st Avenue is best known for developing as Highland expanded following the incorporation of the independent Town of Highlands in 1875 and its annexation into the City of Denver in 1896, establishing one of the neighborhood's principal east-west residential corridors. Construction between the 1880s and 1930s introduced substantial collections of Queen Anne, Denver Square, Craftsman, and American Foursquare residences distinguished by brick masonry, sandstone foundations, ornamental woodwork, and broad front porches that continue defining the avenue's architectural identity. Service provided by the Denver Tramway Company strengthened connections between Highland, Downtown, and adjoining neighborhoods, reinforcing 31st Avenue's role within the area's evolving residential street network. Historic alley systems, consistent block dimensions, neighborhood churches, and surviving early commercial buildings continue illustrating the corridor's development during Denver's principal era of streetcar-oriented growth.
Recognition of the adjoining Potter Highlands Historic District by the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission in 1979 established a lasting preservation structure that documented the architectural traditions extending along and around 31st Avenue without altering the corridor's historic street pattern. Building upon that designation, architectural surveys prepared by Historic Denver and Denver Community Planning and Development identified intact residential groupings, cataloged original masonry detailing, and recorded construction methods that continue distinguishing the avenue from later phases of neighborhood development. Period materials including corbeled brick cornices, rusticated sandstone lintels, decorative wood brackets, clinker-brick retaining walls, and original concrete sidewalks collectively demonstrate the level of craftsmanship associated with Highland's formative decades. Together, landmark designation, systematic architectural documentation, surviving historic materials, and sustained preservation stewardship demonstrate how 31st Avenue continues expressing the physical character established during Highland's earliest era of residential expansion.
How to fold 31st Avenue into your trip.
31st Avenue works as an exploration of Highland's neighborhood heritage, public spaces, and architectural legacy.
Begin at Highland Bridge, where sweeping views of Downtown and the South Platte River establish the dramatic geography that has long distinguished Highland before naturally leading toward 31st Avenue. Continue to Hirshorn Park, whose mature shade trees, open lawns, and neighborhood gathering spaces reveal the residential landscape that has quietly sustained the surrounding streets for generations. Conclude at Historic Elitch Theatre, where one of Colorado's oldest surviving theatres provides the historical payoff by connecting Highland's neighborhood evolution to Denver's enduring tradition of performance, preservation, and cultural life. The progression moves naturally from Highland's defining overlook through its residential heart before concluding at the institution that most powerfully preserves the neighborhood's cultural legacy.
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