The Mercantile Square Lofts

I’ve been living here since May of 2014, and I plan on signing another year lease again. The studio is really big for the money… 650+ sq. ft. I have friends who live in 1-​bedrooms downtown, and my studio actually feels (and probably is) larger than theirs.
There are absolutely no amenities, but you know that moving in. Also… as another reviewer mentioned… this building gets HOT HOT HOT in the summer. Almost unbearably so. I have a small AC unit, but it blocks the only window in my apartment from May-​September which makes me sad because I love peeking out and looking at the random things going on at Union Station or the fireworks at Coors Field. The only other downside is NO PARKING… and the only available parking is only for 6pm to 6am. I’ve elected to not have my car downtown except on rare occasions since I live and work downtown and I walk or bike. Parking in garages is ridiculously expensive! Starting at $ 200/​month, it’s just not worth it to park a car I rarely drive. The option I’ve found is to park nearby for free and walk (about a 10 minute walk).
Meghan, the leasing agent, is really on her game… she’s blunt and straightforward but good at her job. She always responds quickly to emails, and is very accommodating with tenant requests. I had an issue of a neighbor smoking (cigarettes), and brought it up a couple times. She either took care of the issue, or they moved out… either way I was happy. The walls are somewhat thin, and I can hear my neighbors tv often, but it’s not bad enough to get upset over. Plus, if you get to know your neighbors, you can develop some cool friendships… everyone is really nice there.
The building itself is rather gorgeous… a beautiful brick building built in 1894. Many units in the 16^th and Wynkoop building have exposed brick and stunning wood beamed ceilings and columns. You can’t find this look in many apartment building in downtown Denver. Yes, the appliances and counters are a bit dated, but meh… I still love it.
The location can’t be beat… right across from Union Station! It’s a great place to live that’s central to pretty much everything LoDo has to offer… bars, restaurants, public transit, Pepsi Center and Coors Field, and the MCA are all a short walk away… plus, there’s a liquor store across the alley!
Pros: location, value/​rental prices, exposed brick and wood
Cons: no parking, no amenities, very little storage units available

Even though I hired a professional cleaner upon my departure, they still charged me my security deposit as a cleaning fee. I took video and pics as did the cleaning company b/​c I warned them. In the end, I didn’t want to deal with them to get my deposit back. Good bye worst living experience ever.

I lived here for five years and I loved it. I moved because the boyfriend and I finally decided to take the plunge and get a place together but my single girl years here were amazing. Yes, the building is WAY too hot in the summer, and WAY too cold in the winter. Yes, you aren’t getting massive square footage, and yes the walls are really thin. Despite these things this was the perfect place to spend my early 20s. I could walk everywhere, I could meet friends out on a whim, I had access to everything downtown has to offer and I loved every minute of it. I will say that management was a much bigger part of my life than I would have preferred. Although pleasant and nice seeing your apartment manager walking around all of the time kind of felt a little overbearing, but that was the trade off for a smaller building. Now could I live there? Probably not. At 25 and done with partying this is not the place for me, but for a young, single person this was absolutely ideal. It almost forces you to be social because it’s hard not to go outside when everything is so close. So while I love my new apartment’s air conditioning and working heat and pool, I wouldn’t have lived there over Mercantile a day sooner than I moved. I still miss it often.

Great value in the rent-​controlled units. These are very stylish, industrial-​style lofts with exposed beams, high ceilings and exposed brick in most, but not all units. Gas, water and trash are included and provided by a central boiler that has been mostly reliable. That being said, some units here are much nicer than others. Try to get one with the most exposed brick as it isolates the sound better. The drywalls seem to be paper thin as you can often make out full conversations from your neighbors. There’s some diversity but the crowd seems to be mostly twenty-​something young professionals (as am I) and/​or students and are generally nice and respectful but partying on weekends is inevitable given the demographics and location. A plus is the management. I’ve been renting here for over 2 years and Meghan is on the ball and responsive. While I haven’t been the best tenant due to changing financial situations, shenanigans I don’t feel like they hold this against me when I’ve needed things fixed, etc. In my experience, there’s been no leniency on late fees and such but there is a 5 day grace period for rent payments, which certainly helps. This seems to be one of the few property management companies without a turnover problem. Marvin and his maintenance team are super nice and equally responsive. There is a wait list for parking and it is $ 200 a month the last I checked. It seems like parking will be in shorter supply as new commercial tenants have moved into the adjacent building, which I believe uses the same underground garage. Expect to park on the street (metered 22 hours a day) or paid surface lots when you first move in, even if you’re prepared to fork over the $ 200. Given the price point and location, I can’t hold this against them.

I loved living here. The apartment and the neighborhood were both perfect. I needed to move out of state, but otherwise I would never have let go of my studio apartment. Meghan, who manages the building, is great. Really straightforward, reliable, and responsive. Whenever I had maintenance issues (my garbage disposal stopped working at one point, or needed to get some lights fixed another time) the repair always happened within a day or two. I saw a janky review from earlier this year and I’ll let you all judge it for yourselves but I can tell you that everyone I know from the building really liked it.
I definitely think my unit was on the bigger end of what the building offers, but all the units I saw were cool and definitely a step above other apartment buildings in Denver. Parking is next to impossible on the street, so I just go used to parking closer to Little Raven Park and then just walked back and forth to the building, which was annoying at times but really no big deal. The feel inside the apartments is amazing — it’s exposed brick, exposed beams, and white walls… you can really make it your own. My unit had a simple bathroom with a ton of counter space and a shower/​tub. And the neighbors were all nice… not much interaction beyond shared elevator rides and passing in the hallway, but everyone was super friendly. Only thing is that every once in a while I could hear really clearly whatever noise was in the unit above me. The natural light in the apartment wasn’t great — there was only one window. Last but certainly not least… the neighborhood! Lodo can be douchy up by Coors Field, but 16^th and Wynkoop was an AWESOME area… restaurants, bars, everything. My favorite was the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is just a couple blocks away and has one of the most idillic rooftop cafes in the country. The only thing that’s not within (close) walking distance is a full grocery store, but if you have a car that’s not a problem or if you don’t mind a 10 minute walk then there’s Natural Grocers over on Platte St.

Great location and great people. My wife and I lived there for three years and just moved out to buy a place. Location cannot be beat and the price was very competitive. Meghan the manager is very responsive and could not have been nicer. The only negative is that we couldn’t buy in the building!