Pearl Street Mall is a four-block pedestrian mall that forms the heart and downtown core of Boulder, Colorado. Lined with businesses, restaurants, and shops - the space is rich with pedestrian activity year-round. The Wall Street Journal labeled it, “one of the most successful pedestrian malls in the country.” Stantec’s Visioning, Brands, and Experiences group developed the theme and visual character, site furnishings, feature elements and signage/graphics for this highly successful, open-air urban mall.

Stantec also developed and wrote the Downtown Boulder Private Development Guidelines for Architecture and Signage.

In 1980, the Pearl Street Mall received the National Honor Award from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. In conjunction with this work, our office has also designed renovations for over a dozen building exteriors and business interiors adjacent to the Mall, including the heavily-trafficked Boulder Bookstore, Siena Square, and Flatirons Bank. The project opened in August of 1977 and was built for the modest cost of $2 million. In 2007, the City of Boulder re-assembled the original design team to refresh the thirty-year old mall.

New features were added, including a 20 foot “weeping rock” (pictured, right), additional seating and shading, children’s water play area, and a series of interpretive panels that tell the story of Boulder’s beginnings through the present day.