Meet the 2026 Downtown Denver Awards Jury

Downtown Denver has never been built on a single grand gesture. It's been built by people who showed up, who believed in a block, a building, a business, or a bold idea before anyone else did. The Downtown Denver Awards celebrates the vision and dedication that make Downtown Denver thrive.

This year, our awards jury is evaluating the projects, businesses and people who represent the very best of our urban core. Those whose recent contributions reflect the values driving Denver's center city forward: investment and opportunity, connection and community, resilience and joy. The 2026 awards jurors represent Denver's business, education and cultural community. We're thankful for their time and expertise with this process.

Our 2026 Awards Jury:

Amy Friends, Downtown Denver Partnership

Anthony Albanese, CBRE

Ashley Clark, Mortensen

Barb Frommell, AIR Communities

Brendan Soane, Polsinelli

Brian Penner, Hensel Phelps

Cameron Richards, Greenberg Traurig

Chad Harris, FH Construction

Eric Lazzari, Civic Center Conservancy

Erica Toren, Martin/Martin

Jason Pomerantz, IMA

Karrie Fletcher, Alpine Bank

Katy Corrigan, DPR Construction

Kaycee Gerhart, MSU Denver

Kerry Masock, Southwest Airlines

Lacey Golonka, Molson Coors

Lorez Meinhold, Caring for Denver Foundation

Lulu Lantzy, Auraria Campus

Rachel Clark, Workplace Resource

Ryan Sugden, Husch Blackwell

Sara Leitch, Opera Colorado

Sarah Kelley, Xcel Energy

Vincent Springer, Bank of America

Wade Balmer, VF Corp