Denver developer and preservationist Dana Crawford, whose pioneering urban revitalization projects helped shape the modern preservation movement, died last week at age 93. Her work to save Denver’s Larimer Square in the early 1960s showed how cities can thrive when older buildings and districts are revitalized, rather than demolished in the name of urban renewal.

Starting in 1963, with funding cobbled together from friends and private investors, Crawford purchased 18 of Denver’s oldest surviving commercial buildings, renovated their interiors, painted facades in vibrant colors, and recruited unique local businesses to attract residents and visitors back to Denver’s downtown. Crawford’s formula worked and inspired hundreds of similar efforts in historic urban and small-town commercial districts across the country.

Building on her success at Larimer Square, Crawford expanded her preservation-based development approach to the warehouse district surrounding Denver’s Union Station. She rehabilitated the 1891 Oxford Hotel and converted warehouses into housing, helping to spark the district-wide revitalization of what became known as “LoDo” (for Lower Downtown). Crawford was part of a development group that converted Denver’s Union Station into a hotel and retail, food, and events center. The Crawford Hotel at Union Station, opened in 2014, was named in her honor.

Dana Crawford served on the National Trust’s board of trustees for nine years and was a founder of Historic Denver, Inc. In 1995 she received the Louise duPont Crowninshield Award, the National Trust’s highest honor. Crawford remained active to the end of her life, most recently leading efforts to revitalize historic districts and landmarks in Trinidad and Idaho Springs, Colorado. Dana Crawford’s example has inspired preservationists in Colorado and across the country. The National Trust mourns her loss and celebrates her remarkable legacy.