Colfax Business Improvement District Unveils New Spring Banners

The Colfax Business Improvement District (CBID) is currently completing the installation of 164 new “Colfax Creates” banners highlighting the wide variety of artistic expression found in the people and businesses of the BID’s stretch of the storied avenue from Grant to Columbine, using bold images to showcase the creative side of Colfax Avenue.

Whether it is a Japanese fullback tattoo from Bound by Design, performer Henry Graham in a feathered headdress, a handsculpted beer tap from Lost Highway Brewing or a gleaming vintage VW bus restored by Maaco Auto Painting, the new campaign accentuates what Colfax Avenue has to offer.

Other discoveries turned to images include:

● “Mother” bust sculpture from AUM Framing and Gallery
● Vintage Powell Peralta skull skateboard from 303 Boards
● Handcrafted Marguerite Sprecht jewelry from Studio Colfax
● Violetta (lady with butterfly) portrait from Bound by Design
● Floyd’s 99 Barbershop stylist Stacy Tomlin’s magnificent mohawk
● Elegant custom (Colfax!) cakes from Mulberries Cake Shop
● Handmade and decorated ice cream sandwiches from Ice Cream Riot

“Colfax Avenue is a community, not just a commute,” said Frank Locantore, Community Director for Colfax BID. “Our businesses are original by nature and independent by choice. When you see these banners of our artists, entrepreneurs and entertainers, you know you’ve entered a creative stretch of Colfax. We’re proud of our businesses and we want Denver to take a fresh look.”

For 2016, in addition to the banners, CBID has organized a new Street Art Committee partly funded by Denver’s Arts & Venues through its P.S. You Are Here grant program. The committee is planning more public art this summer, including painting creative crosswalks at two intersections in June.

The Colfax Business Improvement District , encompassing Colfax Avenue from Grant to Columbine and 14th to 16th in the Capitol Hill/Uptown neighborhoods, exists to promote economic vitality and advocate on behalf of the area businesses. A self-taxing, quasi-governmental entity formed in 1989, CBID has overseen improved street maintenance, installation of Halo cameras and historic street lights, and created events such as the Victorian Holiday House Tour and Root 40 Music Festival.