$1.2 Million Investment; 28 New Jobs in Growing Elm District
Denver,
Co—Four long-time area residents are creating new neighborhood hot
spots on Colfax and Filbert Court, across the street from Marczyk Fine
Foods.
It
all started when Park Hill investor John Bachman scooped up the 20,000
square foot site with two buildings shortly after the holidays.
“There’s
a real demand for neighborhood services around Colfax, and I’d been
looking for a building to renovate,” he says. “I wanted to work with
locally owned businesses and there was a lot of interest right away.”
That’s
when Andrew Cudden (Park Hill) and Glen Eastwood (West City Park), saw
the first “for lease” sign and knew it would be home to their
long-planned Irish pub. Cudden owns Emerald Isle Painting, a successful
15 year-old business, and Eastwood managed the popular Fado’s Irish Pub
in LoDo. The new 3,000-square-foot Abbey Tavern will open late this fall
with a full bar, fresh grill menu and outdoor patio.
“This
will be a welcoming, family-friendly neighborhood pub,” says Cudden.
“We know the neighborhood and look forward to serving folks.”
Next,
Bachman marketed a former 1,500-square-foot check cashing business and
Park Hill resident Chris O’Sullivan pounced. O’Sullivan and his brother
Nick own Brother’s BBQ and they plan to open an old fashioned ice cream
parlor in the space in early 2014.
“I drove by that spot for 12 years thinking about an ice cream shop, and suddenly it all fell into place,” O’Sullivan says.
Nuggs
Ice Cream will feature homemade ice cream, floats, sundaes, banana
splits, pints for sale—all from local Colorado ingredients. O’Sullivan
is making sure that everyone is welcome, with bicycle racks, dog hooks
and an outdoor patio.
“We
couldn’t be more thrilled with this development,” says Hilarie Portell,
executive director of the Fax Partnership. “All of these owners have a
vested interest in Colfax and creating authentic neighborhood gathering
places. This was the number one thing people wanted when surveyed last
year.”
The
new businesses also strengthen the mix in the Elm District, a growing
neighborhood hub near Elm Street and Colfax. The area now includes the
Cork House, Amsterdam Coffee Lounge, Pangaea Salon, Sol Vida Dance,
Marczyk’s Fine Foods, Fairfax Wines, The Elm Restaurant, Jet Asian Grill
and the Africana Café.
Collectively,
the new owners are investing approximately $1.2 million in property
acquisition and renovations. They’ll create 28 new jobs. In the past
several years, Elm District property and business owners have invested
approximately $8.75 million in other improvements.
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