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THE DENVER WAY
16th Street is our city in a street — a mile of live music, local food and public art
​
It's where our communities take center stage — where we celebrate together, honor our stories
and traditions, share our bold ideas and embrace homegrown businesses
As the future of our downtown — this is where we
connect and everyone gets to experience the Denver way.​​​
About the 16th Street Brand
Whether you're gathering with friends, celebrating milestones, trying new cuisine, or shopping for something special, you can experience it all "The Denver Way"—a concept that embraces openness, originality, and optimism.
This repositioning work—from the mark honoring street signs and downtown murals, to a color palette inspired by Colorado's natural landscape, to icons illustrated by local artist YAMZ (Brayan Montes)—has been crafted to capture our city's spirit and provide everyone a platform to experience this world-class public space, The Denver Way.
About the Artist
Brayan Montes-Terrazas is the founder and lead creative at YAMZ World of Color. Under the alias of YAMZ, Brayan creates bold and colorful illustration work for a myriad of colorful clients. Brayan primarily works with queer-owned, women-owned and POC-owned organizations, nonprofits and small businesses, as he believes it's important to highlight and uplift marginalized identities and communities.
As a lifelong Denverite, Brayan has been able to create art for the City of Denver on multiple projects, including the newly renovated 16th Street Mall. He has also worked with world-renowned clients such as Nestle, New Belgium Brewing and XBOX/Microsoft.
PROJECT PARTNERS
City & County of Denver
With construction beginning in 2021 and anticipated completion in the fall of 2025, the 16th Street Mall Project is revitalizing 16th Street from Market Street to Broadway. The City & County of Denver's goal is to improve safety and mobility, address deteriorating infrastructure and create more opportunities for the people who live, work and visit the Mile High City to enjoy 16th Street for years to come.
DNCO
DNCO was selected to reposition Denver's 16th Street because of their expertise in crafting place-sensitive brands. The DNCO team, in close collaboration with the Downtown Denver Partnership, worked directly with Brayan Montes-Terrazas on the iconography illustration as they developed updated messaging and visual identity that honored the area's heritage while connecting residents, visitors and businesses with a forward-looking perspective.
PCL Construction
PCL Construction was selected as the design/build firm for the 16th Street Mall project in January 2021, with the contract approved by City Council. Construction began in spring 2022, marking the first major renovation of the mall since 1982. The project is expected to be completed in the fall of 2025.