A view of downtown Denver from above the Capitol building. (Courtesy Guerilla Capturing)
Former Trammell Crow executive Bill Mosher has a new job.
Mosher, who just turned 74, joined the city of Denver in early December as chief projects officer, a role within Mayor Mike Johnston’s office.
He replaced Josh Laipply, who served in the role for five years before departing to become U.S. senior director of regional partnerships and programs for engineering and construction firm AtkinsRealis.
“Bill has been at the forefront of many endeavors close to the hearts of Denverites, such as developing mixed use projects, including housing, renovating the 16th Street Mall and reviving Union Station,” Johnston said in a statement. “He is a visionary and diligent leader with a known track record of incorporating inclusivity and belonging within projects that are vital to the city.”
Mosher said Johnston reached out to him about the role around Thanksgiving, and the two sides quickly hammered out a deal to have Mosher assume the role.
Bill Mosher
“He wanted somebody to really focus on the DDA, and real estate and development issues affecting the City and County of Denver,” Mosher told BusinessDen last week.
DDA refers to the Downtown Development Authority, a taxing entity established to help redevelop Union Station a decade ago. In November, downtown voters opted to expand the authority’s boundaries to Upper Downtown, the most vacant part of the city center, and authorize $570 in bonds to fund projects.
Mosher, a Denver native, returned to the Mile High City in 1991 to lead the Downtown Denver Partnership. He stepped down in 1999 to launch his own development firm, working on projects such as the former Denver Post building at 101 W. Colfax Ave. and joined Dallas-based Trammell Crow in 2006 when the firm acquired his. The firm was involved in the Union Station redevelopment.
Mosher led the Denver office for more than 15 years, gradually transitioning duties during 2023 and stepping away fully at the end of that year.
It wasn’t a move into total retirement. Mosher kept his job as CEO of the Denver Convention Center Hotel Authority, the quasi-governmental nonprofit that owns the 38-story Hyatt Regency at 650 15th St. And he did some consulting work.
The call from Johnston came at a good time, Mosher said. His hotel gig is taking less time because, after years of planning renovations, construction is now underway. Because he’lll remain in that role, however, his chief projects officer job is a contract one.
“In a lot of ways, the Hyatt fits into the job,” he said.
Mosher said Thursday his contract with the city actually hadn’t been finalized, but that discussions had involved compensation of $144,000 annually. Laipply, he said, made approximately $200,000 per year, plus the cost of benefits since he was on staff.
Mosher said he’s not doing any other consulting now that he has the city gig.
Mosher said that he’s still determining everything he needs to focus on, beyond the DDA. The hope of the program is that it will help fund projects, potentially including office-to-residential conversions, that will spur revitalization of Upper Downtown.
“How property owners and tenants can access DDA funds, and seeking DDA funding, is being worked out,” Mosher said.
A view of downtown Denver from above the Capitol building. (Courtesy Guerilla Capturing)
Former Trammell Crow executive Bill Mosher has a new job.
Mosher, who just turned 74, joined the city of Denver in early December as chief projects officer, a role within Mayor Mike Johnston’s office.
He replaced Josh Laipply, who served in the role for five years before departing to become U.S. senior director of regional partnerships and programs for engineering and construction firm AtkinsRealis.
“Bill has been at the forefront of many endeavors close to the hearts of Denverites, such as developing mixed use projects, including housing, renovating the 16th Street Mall and reviving Union Station,” Johnston said in a statement. “He is a visionary and diligent leader with a known track record of incorporating inclusivity and belonging within projects that are vital to the city.”
Mosher said Johnston reached out to him about the role around Thanksgiving, and the two sides quickly hammered out a deal to have Mosher assume the role.
Bill Mosher
“He wanted somebody to really focus on the DDA, and real estate and development issues affecting the City and County of Denver,” Mosher told BusinessDen last week.
DDA refers to the Downtown Development Authority, a taxing entity established to help redevelop Union Station a decade ago. In November, downtown voters opted to expand the authority’s boundaries to Upper Downtown, the most vacant part of the city center, and authorize $570 in bonds to fund projects.
Mosher, a Denver native, returned to the Mile High City in 1991 to lead the Downtown Denver Partnership. He stepped down in 1999 to launch his own development firm, working on projects such as the former Denver Post building at 101 W. Colfax Ave. and joined Dallas-based Trammell Crow in 2006 when the firm acquired his. The firm was involved in the Union Station redevelopment.
Mosher led the Denver office for more than 15 years, gradually transitioning duties during 2023 and stepping away fully at the end of that year.
It wasn’t a move into total retirement. Mosher kept his job as CEO of the Denver Convention Center Hotel Authority, the quasi-governmental nonprofit that owns the 38-story Hyatt Regency at 650 15th St. And he did some consulting work.
The call from Johnston came at a good time, Mosher said. His hotel gig is taking less time because, after years of planning renovations, construction is now underway. Because he’lll remain in that role, however, his chief projects officer job is a contract one.
“In a lot of ways, the Hyatt fits into the job,” he said.
Mosher said Thursday his contract with the city actually hadn’t been finalized, but that discussions had involved compensation of $144,000 annually. Laipply, he said, made approximately $200,000 per year, plus the cost of benefits since he was on staff.
Mosher said he’s not doing any other consulting now that he has the city gig.
Mosher said that he’s still determining everything he needs to focus on, beyond the DDA. The hope of the program is that it will help fund projects, potentially including office-to-residential conversions, that will spur revitalization of Upper Downtown.
“How property owners and tenants can access DDA funds, and seeking DDA funding, is being worked out,” Mosher said.
