About the Lowry Foundation

History of The Lowry Foundation

After the closure of Lowry Air Force Base in 1994, The Lowry Redevelopment Authority (LRA) was formed to lead the transformation of the old military base into a new mixed-use community. Four years later, based on a Resolution of the LRA’s Board of Directors, The Lowry Foundation was born.

The Lowry Foundation was incorporated on April 30, 1998 and received its 501(c)3 status from the Internal Revenue Service in June 1998. The Articles of Incorporation state that the primary purpose of The Lowry Foundation is as follows:

To assist the Lowry Economic Redevelopment Authority in fulfilling its purposes, including but not limited to, raising revenue for the purpose of constructing public improvements, including parks, recreational and athletic facilities, within or for the benefit of the Lowry Community.

The early work of The Lowry Foundation was primarily purchasing and installing a collection of public art pieces for Lowry parks that was funded, through LRA, by one of the Denver Urban Renewal Authority’s (DURA) “percent-for-art” programs. The Foundation currently owns and maintains 13 pieces of art that dot the Lowry Community and additional art and structures that populate the Lowry Reading Garden.

Then, in 2008, the Lowry Redevelopment Authority transferred ownership of the historic Eisenhower Chapel to The Foundation which has had sole responsibility for the Chapel’s maintenance and use for the last eleven years. This Chapel is especially important because it is on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated an historic landmark in 1981 by the Landmark Commission. Under The Foundation’s management, the nondenominational Chapel has become Lowry’s Town Hall and is the site of such events as lectures, concerts, meetings, church services, movies, weddings and funerals.