Special Projects Team Supports Upgrades for Historic One Cheesman Place
November 12, 2026 – Denver, CO – Located near the heart of downtown Denver, the One Cheesman Place condominium tower is a famous historic estate because of its mid-century architecture. An Encore Electric Special Projects team upgraded the electrical systems, navigating the complexities of working in a historic building, while ensuring improvements were completed efficiently and safely while minimizing impacts on the residents. The project scope included replacing about 95% of the one-line system’s pipe and wire and installing new electrical equipment, panels, transformers, and feeders.
Bordering Cheesman Park, the 60-unit, 19-floor high-rise features unique architecture from the 1960s including a small, quaint elevator and traditional floor plans with separate, defined rooms rather than the open-concept layouts common in modern residential buildings. The project team navigated the building’s unique quirks, integrating modern electrical and safety systems into the historic structure without compromising its original character.
“The electrical infrastructure at One Cheesman had experienced significant failures twice in the past, both repaired by Encore’s service team. It was great to see the project come full circle with our special projects team completing the installation of the new electrical service equipment, ultimately restoring system reliability and preventing any future failures,” said Encore Electric Account Manager Casey Kerr.
When upgrading the electrical system, the Encore Electric team needed to find a unique solution for running conduit from the first floor all the way to the 19th story. For a typical project, electrical conduit can be installed on the exterior of a building, but in this case, the team wanted to avoid adding clutter to the building’s exterior. Instead, the project team repurposed the former trash-chute shaft as a route for the electrical pathways, running power from the ground floor all the way to the 19th floor.
To connect all of the floors and systems, more than seven miles of wire were installed and approximately 12,000 pounds of feeder wire extended between the basement and upper floors, requiring one-conductor-at-a-time installation process because of the weight and safety risks.
“I had to pull up a bunch of floor tile and drill anchors into the floor, and then for each one of the cables, we had to feed up through that conduit and then let the weight of the wire slowly take itself down. We had to feed all of that wire through the anchors on the floor, much like a rock climber, just sliding the wire, keeping control of it, putting resistance on it, and letting the wire just one by one take itself all the way down to the basement,” said Encore Electric Superintendent Dallas Seabourn. “In my 20 years of doing this, I’ve never done a feeder pull with one conductor one at a time, feeding it down, especially that distance with that much weight.”
While upgrading nearly all of the electrical systems at One Cheesman Place, the project team had to work with an added level of care and attention, as residents continued to live in the building throughout construction. The Encore Electric team carefully planned and coordinated each phase of the project, maintaining clear communication with residents and ensuring every teammate worked safely while upgrading the building’s outdated electrical systems.
In order to safely and efficiently upgrade the electrical system, the project team had to perform three major shutdowns that were more than 20 hours long that took extensive coordination and communication between the property managers and residents. Two shutdowns were required for work in the main electrical room, where the team kept the existing system operating while installing and integrating new equipment before carefully transitioning to the new system in stages. The third major shutdown was for electrical work on a panel serving mechanical equipment. In addition to the major shutdowns, there were other smaller outages that would only impact a few units or building systems.
“Working in a 19-story, fully occupied historic 1967 high-rise was an exciting challenge for our team. I’m most proud of how they coordinated tight shutdown windows to minimize tenant outages and constantly carried themselves with professionalism around the tenants. They built real relationships along the way, even lending a hand moving small furniture during breaks, and earned multiple written and verbal kudos. Tenants can now rest easy knowing the building’s electrical issues are resolved,” said Encore Electric Project Manager Michael Comstock.
“I’ve been a building engineer for nearly 12 years and have been a part of projects both big and small, bad and good. We were incredibly fortunate to land the team that we did. Dallas and the crew were respectful and reliable while working in an occupied building. Dallas kept us informed with clear direction and timelines, which allowed me to then communicate clearly and often with the residents,” said Chief Engineer at One Cheesman Place Joe Derybowski.
The Encore Electric team also installed a new generator to provide emergency power, and added individual electricity metering for each condo unit, so usage can be measured separately. All of these upgrades modernized the electrical system and made the building safer for tenants.
“The historic dated Cheesman building definitely brought its share of daily, unforeseen challenges and unique scenarios. As tough as it was at times, the highlight of the project for me was rising to those (seemingly impossible at times) challenges as a cohesive team and finding a way through them,” Seabourn said. “Starting out with a group that was relatively new to this kind of work, and coming out on the other side more experienced – seeing the Encore team learn, grown, and win the battle together – was an incredible experience.”
The main Encore Electric crew who worked on the One Cheesman Place project included Journeyman Tyler Williams, Journeyman Jake Wallin, Journeyman Aaron Ayala, Apprentice Emily McFadden, and Apprentice Emilio Alcala. Teammates who assisted with the shutdowns included Journeyman Lead Joshua Chinander, Journeyman John Lyons, and Apprentice Harrison Steele.
Through careful planning, coordination, and a commitment to safety, the team upgraded the electrical infrastructure without disrupting daily life for those who call One Cheesman Place home. With new electrical upgrades, the historic condominium is better equipped to meet the needs of its residents while preserving the character and charm that have made it a landmark in the Cheesman Park neighborhood for decades.
“Communication is the key with a project of this size and scope and this team gave us exactly what was needed so we were not leaving the residents …. in the dark …. so to speak. While not everything goes exactly as planned in a 60-year old building, the team found a way to make things work and get the job done while doing their best to minimize electrical downtime,” Derybowski said