Isn’t it amazing sometimes how rumors can spread on the tips of the wind covering a city in just one day. Today I heard a nasty rumor not once, but three times.

So go ahead, have a seat, and I’ll share the rumor. The rumor is that “My Brother’s Bar” has been sold, as sad as it is, to a new owner. Needless to say I was shocked, baffled, mystified and more. Dumbfounded (one more term to use) I stared blankly as one of these persons shared with me (with an edge almost on tears) that it was so sad that the oldest bar in Denver was closing or changing hands. Where is our heritage? Where is our tradition?

The rumor continued to talk about how the bar was a huge money maker, the owners getting to the point of wanting to chill out, and how it all made sense. Well it sure as heck didn’t make sense to me and I was getting bummed out.
Turns out it is all horse puckey. I had thought about doing a post to ask all of you out there if anyone had heard the rumor, and then realized that was a moronic way to handle it. So I just called them. Duh.

So I ring up My Brother’s Bar and shared with them the scary rumor. With a half laugh and half disgusted chortle they let me know that the rumor was not true and was simply a vicious rumor. They also asked me to squash it, and to help spread the squashing word/

So SQUASH SQUASH SQUASH to this rumor. My Brother’s Bar isn’t being sold. My Brother’s Bar isn’t going anywhere. Now go get off your butts and enjoy a beer and a jcb on the patio and toast to the fact that sometimes things actually do stay the same.

Whew… that is a relief.

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Just a cool, cool article about how new buyers are taking on the market, and setting the stage for their future in buying new homes. When I think about it, our interest rates our lower, we have less fear of credit, and we know what we want. Plus, after watching the stock market tank a couple times, the technology stock boom and bust, and the crazy antics of enron and others I personally prefer to place my bets in my real estate over the stock market. This story is about New York, but it could just as easily be Denver… except we aren’t as pricey.

What a fun ride we are on. First, the number of people in our country and the world are increasing every day. Second, folks are realizing that the city is where they want to be and are relocating to downtowns across the country. And last, it’s just fun to be in the heart of everything.

This story talks about how the current generation is looking at real estate, their homes, and their future. It’s a story I believe in as well. [Read more →]

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For a long time I have watched various companies try and find a solution for delivering high speed internet across neighborhoods. I have seen folks bet on the last mile solutions. There was the wave of wiring neighborhoods and buildings to capture subscribers, the onset of various telephone, dsl, and cable companies buying this infrastructure thinking they could own the end user. That will not work. [Read more →]

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Okay, now even I am getting a bit tired of the snow. And I LOVE snow. But right now what I want more than anything is a beach, some sunshine, and nice swim in warm blue waters, and hot sand between my toes.

So today’s post is just about daydreaming of places we would rather be. We almost went to Mexico this weekend. We should have. We couldn’t find a place to stay that was what we were looking for because every other smart person had already booked their trip. And of course today became a working day, we should be saving our money, and it just didn’t make sense.

That’s all logical… and still I wish we had gone.

So, today share with me where you would most like to be this weekend other than in the cold and snow. Where would you go and what would you be doing if you had your wish?

Happy daydreaming!!

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This was a fun Wall Street Journal article to read about the “young homesteaders” who are moving into fringe neighborhoods, making them their own, and turning them into some of the greatest spots of their city to live in.

While Denver is not the same as these other cities, and thankfully our crime is more manageable, the point of the article rings true. Riverfront Park and the Central Platte Valley were much different only a decade ago. Today they are one of the safest and most wonderful neighborhoods to live and spend time in.

Granted, the master HOA funding of off duty police officers paved the way for an almost immediate change to make the area one of the safest in Denver, but more importantly the influx of residents who made the area their home and put “eyes on the street” really have done the biggest change. And just imagine what will happen with the next 389 units in Glass House followed by all the other exciting developments.

[Read more →]

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That’s right, Denver looks like it could be getting a new Four Seasons hotel. Anyone want to bet that the DNC decision offered a little boost to the idea that Denver is truly becoming the spot to be in. For other Denver Urbanites, the addition of a 5 star hotel right here is a great boost [Read more →]

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The 16th street mall is lined with benches. Most of these benches people never look at, whether they are empty or occupied. Part of that reason is that if they are occupied it may be by someone who is homeless, or at least appears to be.

Today as I was walking by Wells Fargo I witnessed a young woman doing a simple act of kindness. She was average height, average build, with a splash of green in her spikey medium length hair. In her hands were two carry out containers, and it was clear by her angle as she crossed 16th that she had just headed out of Illegal Petes. She headed up to a large man who had been sitting, bundled up in an old fraying red winter coat. I knew this man, or I should say I recognized him. For as long as I can remember, which isn’t that long of a tenure downtown, he has sat on a few select benches on 16th street on most every day I walk it. His favorite spots are across from the Tattered Cover, or just in front of Wells Fargo Bank.

He is often sleeping, or at least resting quietly with his eyes closed. He never bothers anyone, at least that I have seen, and only on the rarest occasion do I see him speaking with someone else who has joined his bench. I don’t know who he is, I don’t even know his name. [Read more →]

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Colfax Streetcar Feasibility Study

“Representative Diana DeGette announced that she has secured $1 million for critical transportation and infrastructure projects in the 1st Congressional District as part of the federal transportation funding package passed in early June. $500,000 was allocated to study the feasibility of a street car line on Colfax Avenue in East Denver. The study was requested by local businesses and the City of Denver to address heavy public transportation use and provide an important transportation alternative to the rapidly redeveloping urban corridor.”

What does this mean… well for those who don’t know most of Denver used to have rail lines everywhere. It was great, you just got to jump on a street car and go where you wanted.

Then, of course, we messed everything up. We ripped out the rail lines, paved over the streets, and turned our city over to the automobile. Before this happened, the Highland area was supposedly a map of rail lines. That is simply how our city grew.

Fortunately, Denver learns and is a progressive city. So now we are seeing the explosion of light and heavy rail across the city, the redevelopment of the Union Station Terminal, and now… streetcars may be making a comeback.

Rumor is the Mayor has money in his budget too and we may in the faaaaaaaaaaaaar future have a truly public transportation system across even more of our city.

Sell your car, pack a backpack, put on your shoes, and go truly urban in a walkable city.

On this one I don’t have many details. Anyone have any other news, thoughts, opinions, etc. Does anyone have the old streetcar map? Want to read about the history of Denver’s Streetcars.. here is one book.

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Well it looks like the ski world has another update this weekend as Sunlight Ski Mountain is sold to a private developer. The ski resort has been on the market for a reported $50 million, and the final purchase price has not been disclosed.

It makes sense, in a sad way, that this resort would be for sale. I skied Sunlight once years ago and remember it being a small family based destination. I was skiing with a friend whose parents had bought a condo there years and years ago. She told me stories about learning to ski with her sister at that resort, where the short runs didn’t matter because it was all about family. I think her parents still keep their condo, that they bought for almost nothing and they try to all get together a couple times a year at this old style resort.

It was about history, now it is about the future. While I am not sure which is better (so please comment and share your view point) I do think this will be interesting to watch. Will the locals stay? Will property values go up and they will sell? Is it possible this will become a private gated community and ski mountain (can you say Yellowstone Club)? Unlike Bachelor Gulch, which allows homeowners to drift over to bigger skiing in Beaver Creek this mountain is all there is.

Only time will tell, but share your comments now.

Sunlight Mountain Resort to be sold to development company

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Sunlight Mountain Resort has agreed to be sold to a Florida development company, general manager Tom Jankovsky said Saturday.

The sale of the privately owned ski area to Exquisite Development, based in Destin, Fla., is contingent upon winning approval from Garfield County for development of residential units at the base of the resort, he said.

Jankovsky said that could mean the sale might not be completed for a couple of years.

The sale price was not disclosed. The resort had an asking price of $50 million when it went up for sale last fall.

Sunlight officials said money from development at the base is necessary to pay for upgrades to outdated lifts, snowmaking, and to upgrade the base of the mountain.

“Whether there is climate change or not, just to give us the stability, the snowmaking is really important,” Jankovsky said. “It’s been a while since we’ve had anything up here happen. It’s time. Our infrastructure’s getting old. Something has to happen.”

Jankovsky said the buyer plans to keep the existing Sunlight management team and has expressed interest in keeping Sunlight an affordable spot for local skiers.

He said it was too early to know how much residential development the buyers may pursue. An existing master plan calls for 780 homes, but it hasn’t been subject to county review.

Sunlight is marking its 40th anniversary this year.

Sunlight is owned by the Colorado corporation Sunlight Inc., which has about three dozen shareholders. Two principal investors are Leonard Lorentson, a manufacturer living in Indiana, and Michael Bodnar, former chief executive officer of the Shoney’s restaurant chain. Both own about a third of the company.

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This month the EPA is turning on the lights, starting up the coffee brewers, and having its 350 some employees move into its new building at 16th and Wynkoop
, and will grow to approximately 815 people by mid-January.

Ground retail to feed these folks, and those of us in the surrounding area will include Houlihan’s, a Starbucks, a Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli, and a bank (gotta have money to spend at Starbucks you know).

What you really should focus on for the EPA office is all the green buiding and sustainable growth elements. Very cool stuff including the roof, the construction, water and more.

What else would you expect from the EPA, and god bless them as they lead by example.

Learn more here about this building and it’s green elements.

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