by Valley Gadfly | Jul 23, 2021 | Valley Gadfly
This is the month that can turn into a griddle where the days just lay there and sizzle. Cartoonist Charles Schultz’s summer snap: “Life is like an ice cream cone; you have to lick it one day at a time.” Sold in a surplus of flavors, it can be paired with desserts, or topped on waffles. August just wouldn’t be August without ice cream.
Be it kids, adults, or the elderly, everybody loves the sweet and refreshing delight on a hot summer day. So get it, scoop it, love it, lick it! Do it ala mode, oh yeah!
To endure past dawn, here are our choices for shopping, dining, and entertainment to sweeten the final flashes of fun and sun before the days flicker and fade to fall:
3 Attend summer’s biggest entertainment event with musicians, dancers, comedians and magicians at Colorado’s Throw Down Show Down, Aug. 7 at Infinity Park Stadium. Information: infinityparkeventcenter.com.
3 Join the activity driven Children’s Diabetes Foundation Run for the Ring 5K and kids run to fund research Aug. 7, 8 a.m. Information: 303-628-5115.
3 Experience Cherry Creek trying small bites, seeing demos-seminars, Aug. 11-14 plus Fillmore Plaza Grand Tasting Sat. Information: 303-394-2904.
3 Enjoy great theatre again as Lincoln Center brings the musical My Fair Lady back to the Buell Theatre, Aug. 11-14. Information: 720-865-3220.
3 For terrific ice cream chillin’ this month go to old-school fantastic Bonnie Brae Ice Cream on S. University Blvd. Made in house, scoops in wide-range of flavors are smooth and creamy. Information: 303-777-0808.
3 Looking for a new or pre-owned vehicle? Visit Aurora’s Havana Motor Mile — from 6th Ave. to Dartmouth — with a combined inventory of more than 6,280 vehicles among 20+ dealers. Information: onhavanastreet.com.
3 For live music, art, and food go to Riverfront Park’s Aug. 19 session at the 19th St. Bridge, 4-8 p.m. Information: riverfrontparkevents.com.
3 Don’t miss the Art Student League’s Summer Art Market on the streets at Grant & 2nd St. Aug. 28-29, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Information: 303-778-8990.
3 The top 20 domestic and international rugby clubs are bringing their best talent to Glendale’s Rugby-Town 7s sports spectacular at Infinity Park, Aug. 20-22. The weekend also features plenty of entertainment, a beerfest, and a festival atmosphere. The fast-paced games have seven teams of seven players each, competing in two seven-minute halves. Big dudes run into each other at full speed in thrilling sport. Information: rugbytown7s.com.
Following a spring, summer romp, and splash, it’s time to begin thinking about an August interlude. A betwixt and between period of time as we pause between phases of activity during the year. An intervening lifestyle rest similar to the short piece of instrumental music played between the parts of a song or the acts of a drama.
It’s the beginning of summer’s end and the prelude to the equinox. As fall draws near, we welcome ice cream breaks as we hold on to the last days of summer’s final rays.
The soft shades of the Cherry Creek Valley’s golden sunsets will soon sparkle in the crisp air as the cottonwoods begin coloring up. The pink, purple, and orange hues drip across the sky. Time to throw-on and go-on as life becomes entangled with the autumn palette. Fall fashion for bees: Sharp, striking yellow jackets updated with frayed edges.
— Glen Richardson
The Valley Gadfly can be reached at newspaper@glendalecherrycreek.com.
by Glendale Sports Center | Jul 23, 2021 | Feature Story Bottom Left
by Katie Canfield, Community Relations Manager
As a volunteer, you don’t always know the impact you have on the people around you. To the Roberts Family, they will never forget the impact Coach Robert Diaz had on their son Jack. Serving as a volunteer baseball coach for the YMCA of Metro Denver for five seasons, Coach Diaz left an indelible mark on many young athletes.
Crediting Diaz for “including and encouraging” their son Jack, Sasha Roberts says Diaz accepted him for “who he is and met him at his level.” She praised Diaz for giving their Park Hill baseball team “a safe space to develop and grow and ‘develop a love for the game.’”
It was a year of limited in-person connection, but 2020 was also a time when many stepped up their effort to help their communities through volunteering.
For East High School Student Aitiana Wilson, volunteering for the YMCA’s Beyond Hunger food pantry program was her salvation.
“I was surrounded by negative news … and decided to go out and help someone,” said Wilson, who became a YMCA volunteer during her junior year of remote learning. At the weekly food distribution, she says, “I started talking to people, built connections and it felt great. I want to do it as often as I can.”
As we are, once again, safely and freely connecting with friends, family and our communities, there are so many opportunities to volunteer.
Consider joining the volunteers at the Southwest YMCA who are assembling and distributing bags of fresh groceries to families in need. The YMCA distributed 220,000 pounds of food to 23,000 individuals in 2020 and the need has not abated.
Across the city, nearly 16,000 youth athletes are participating in basketball, baseball, lacrosse, tennis, soccer, and tennis leagues under the direction of trained YMCA staff. But they couldn’t do it without the help of dedicated volunteer coaches assisting in teaching the fundamentals of the game and good sportsmanship.
Or join “Team Y” at neighborhood events this summer and fall including hosting the YMCA Kids Zone at the Littleton Western Welcome Week (Aug. 21), South by Southeast Community Festival (Aug. 21), or hosting the Kids Zone at the Arvada Harvest Festival (Sept. 10-12).
As Coach Diaz attests, “Coaching at the Y has been one of the best service experiences of my life. Through giving, I have received so much in return.”
There are so many opportunities to contribute in your community. Visit denver ymca.org/volunteer and learn how you can support a program or event near you.
by Mark Smiley | Jul 23, 2021 | Main Articles
This Month Broe To Begin Construction Of Phased $35 Million Street Conversion By Bulldozing Buildings At 2nd Ave. And Clayton
by Glen Richardson
Broe Real Estate Group — which owns the bulk of the east side of Clayton St. in Cherry Creek North — is restarting the pandemic-paused transformation of the north-south street this month by bulldozing structures on the southeast corner of 2nd Ave. at Clayton.
Leveling of the structures will make way for construction of an eight-story, 76,000-sq.-ft. high-rise that will feature both retail space and commercial offices.
Building site construction fencing was installed along the southeast side of Clayton at 2nd Ave. in mid-July. Two existing two-story structures, one at 200 Clayton — location of Planet Laboratories Aveda Cherry Creek for years — and the other at 210 Clayton — where Show Of Hands was a longtime tenant — are slated to be demolished.
Mega Makeover
Starting Structure: Rendering of eight-story building that will be the first built. Existing structures at 200 and 210 Clayton St. will be bulldozed to make way for the building.
Broe has been based in Cherry Creek since 1983 and its headquarters is at 252 Clayton St. The group plans to leave the adjacent four-story structure it owns at 216 Clayton St.
But when 200 Clayton is done, it will then demolish the two-story parking garage it owns to the north and build yet another seven-story structure. It is projected to have 3,000-sq-ft. of ground-floor retail space and 31,890-sq.-ft. of office space.
Above- and below-ground parking for the two sites will be a combined 297 spaces. The estimated total cost for the mega street makeover is $35 million. In all, about 0.62 acres are being redeveloped.
Mega Bucks Firm
The first office building already has one tenant. OmniTrax, a railroad company that is also owned by The Broe Group, will take the second and third floors of 200 Clayton, about 20,000-sq.-ft. The firm currently operates out of a 29,000-sq. ft. space at 252 Clayton, a structure that Broe purchased in 1983. Active negotiations are reportedly underway with unaffiliated prospective tenants for the remaining office space on floors four through eight.
Broe played a role in the development of downtown office tower The Tabor Center back in the 1980s. The firm built Country Club Towers II & III, twin 32-story apartment towers in West Wash Park that were completed in 2017. Much of its work, however is outside Colorado, including an industrial warehouse project outside the Port of Savannah in Georgia.
The Creek-based firm directs a multibillion-dollar portfolio of real estate, transportation, energy and investment assets that span North America. Broe Group and its managed affiliates employ more than 1,000 people. Up until now, however, the only thing the company has built in Cherry Creek is the building at 216 Clayton St., which houses the headquarters of both The Broe Group and its real estate subsidiary.
Street Spruce-Up
The company is working with Beck Architecture to design the buildings in the makeover. Planning and landscape firm Dunn + Kiley is creating the streetscape design. Initial plans for the four contiguous parcels on the street include use of local stone plinths as street f
Street Conversion: Broe Real Estate Group — which owns the bulk of the east side of Clayton St. in Cherry Creek North — is starting a phased $35 million makeover of the block.
urniture and play elements and possibly roof top terraces.
Broe Real Estate Group CEO Doug Wells says uncertainty caused by the pandemic pushed the project back until this year. “We were gearing up pre-pandemic to start this last August,” he acknowledges.
The 200 Clayton project is just the first phase of the firm’s expansive Clayton Street redevelopment. Wells is hopeful the first project will be completed in early 2023, although mid-2024 is likely more realistic. That being said, the street conversion probably won’t be finished until near the end of the decade.
Stressed Street
Streetscape Plans: Planning-landscape firm Dunn + Kiley is creating the streetscape design. Use of local stone plinths as street furniture and play elements plus possibly roof top terraces are being considered.
Construction, of course, isn’t new along the block of Clayton Street between 2nd and 3rd Ave. in Cherry Creek.
Shoppers and business owners have encountered constant sidewalk and street slowdowns and blockage since 2018 when Matt Joblon’s BMC Investments demolished the Inn at Cherry Creek and started construction of The Clayton.
In November 2017 Joblon said, “renovation should take about a year to complete.” The hotel and membership club — across the street from the newly launched Broe development — just opened this summer. The two-story parking garage to be demolished following the 200 Clayton work is directly across from the posh new hotel.
Bottlenecks Ahead
Fenced Out: Building site construction fencing was installed along the southeast side of Clayton at 2nd Ave. in mid-July as street conversion gets underway.
Yet another redevelopment bottleneck is likely to begin soon nearby between 1st and 2nd Ave. from Josephine to Detroit St. Clayton Lane Investors LLC — a partnership between Brookfield and Invesco Real Estate — just purchased the portion of the Clayton Lane parking garage it didn’t own from the Nichols Partnership for $14.9 million.
The entity now owns the entire retail portion of the Clayton Lane project, which includes Whole Foods, a shuttered Sears store, and the retail spaces along 2nd Ave. The deal is significant because Clayton Lane Investors has previously discussed redeveloping Clayton Lane, including demolishing Whole Foods and the parking garage. Previous plans called for Whole Foods to be rebuilt on what is now the west portion of the parking lot. The development has been delayed by Nichols owning a portion of the garage.
The ownership group, however hasn’t released in new information about future plans for the massive retail site.
Pending Projects
While the first post-pandemic new construction is likely to be on the Creek’s west end, new construction could pop up at these three spots: BMC owns the infill site at 235 Fillmore that has set vacant for several years. Joblon, who has proposed an office building with ground-floor retail, could start up the project at any time.
Another potential building hot spot is at 2nd Ave. and Adams. A two-story office building and home were cleared from the site a year ago. Local owner Blair Richardson originally said he planned to construct an all-glass building with ground floor retail and four levels of office space.
Finally, a seven-story, 136-unit senior living project is proposed near the intersection of Alameda Ave. and Colorado Blvd. Named Solterra Senior Living, that project site has also sat vacant for more than two years. The latest chapter in the growth of Cherry Creek North restarts the district’s boomtown buildup that lasted eight straight years before the pandemic hit. The district was known for decades as a shopping mecca of charm and hospitality.
by Luke Schmaltz | Jul 23, 2021 | Main Articles
“Anybody who doesn’t know what soap tastes like never washed a dog.” Franklin P. Jones
by Luke Schmaltz
Dogs are best friends, counselors, consolers, and confidants — they can share your emotional highs and spiritual lows with equal enthusiasm. Perhaps the only thing they love as much as being with their humans is the chance to run and play with their fellow canines. Across the Mile High City, there are numerous places where dogs can go for a leash-free romp. Yet, as with the rest of Denver’s infrastructure, this aspect has been placed in lopsidedly-high demand by the population boom. A recent article on denverite .com cites an estimate that there are somewhere around 150,000 dogs in Denver across 99,000 households.
Dog parks tend to coincide with areas which are in some stage of the gentrification process. As with most other urban issues, dog parks are a divisive topic — with non-owners being unsympathetic to the tax burden and dog owners being unanimously for it. The result is a network of areas across the city which are specifically designated for communal, off-leash dog play. Additionally, many residents choose to run their dogs in any open area across the Denver Parks and Recreation system, which is for the most part a benign practice with a few legal caveats.
According to BringFido.com, “There are 46 off-leash dog parks within 20 miles of Glendale.” This guide will keep you relatively close to home, featuring outdoor dog-friendly destinations within several miles of the Glendale/Cherry Creek area.
Top Dog Parks Near Glendale And Cherry Creek
Playa Del Carmen Park: Perfect for locals who need a convenient place to let their dogs get some exercise without making a long trip to a larger, out-of-the-way destination.
Playa Del Carmen Park Dog Run
Named after Glendale’s sister city in Mexico, this park with a dog run is situated along Kentucky Ave. just west of E. Cherry Creek Drive. This place is perfect for locals who need a convenient place to let their dogs get some exercise without making a long trip to a larger, out-of-the-way destination.
Lowry Dog Park
The Lowry Dog Park: High energy, low energy and agility runs for a wide variety of dogs.
Located at Yosemite Way and E. 4th Place, the park is known for its “agility” section for young dogs who want to show off their physical prowess as well as its “high energy” and “low energy” zones for younger, older, smaller, and larger breeds, respectively. Owners are encouraged to bring their own water, especially on a hot day, and are reminded to also bring baggies for cleaning up after their four-legged friends.
Kennedy Dog Park
This park is located at 9700 E. Hampden Ave. and features off-street parking as well as high and low-energy dog runs in separate fenced areas. The ground in the play areas is dirt, making cleanup after your pets easy. Meanwhile, the regulars — human and canine — are known to be friendly and easy going. Visitors are advised to bring their own water and, as shade can be scarce, folks should bring sunscreen, an umbrella, or both.
Stapleton Dog Park
Located at 2002 Spruce St. just north of E. Montview Blvd., the designated area in this park is one expansive dirt field for dogs of all sizes and energy levels to roam, run, and play. There are some water fountains in various states of working order, so owners are advised to bring water and, as always, arrive prepared to clean up after your pets. In the play area, there is a posted (unenforced) rule of “no children under 12” most likely for liability reasons but the shade trees, benches and other park features offer plenty of options for those not in the fenced area.
Carla Madison Dog Park
Located off the corner of 16th and Josephine near the 2400 block of E. Colfax, this small but clean park adjacent to East High is perfect for city dogs who need a bit of open space to run and play. The parking lot and grounds are wheelchair accessible, and visitors must bring their own water and dog waste cleanup bags.
Grandview Dog Park
Located in Aurora, east of Glendale, and near Quincy Reservoir, this park at 17500 E. Quincy Ave. features ample parking and a massive five-acre play area designed exclusively for dogs. There is a bit of a hike involved between the parking lot and the park, so visitors should be prepared to keep dogs leashed until inside the fenced-off play area. There are separate large and small dog sections, with the former offering agility obstacles for high-energy breeds. As with most dog parks, owners should bring water for their pets and arrive prepared to clean up the inevitable evacuation piles.
Railyard Dog Park
The Railyard Dog Park: Popular, centrally located destination.
Located in lower downtown, this park is located at 19th and Bassett Streets and is perfect for folks who like to take their dogs for an afternoon drive. The grounds feature a soft, sandy surface rather than grass as well as separate high-energy and low-energy play areas. As with all dog parks, the BYO water and poop bags protocol applies here. Plus, the park at large offers beaches and shady areas for visitors.
Denver Leash Laws:
More Like Loose Guidelines
The law simply states that, in public areas, all dogs must be kept on a leash unless within confined, designated areas and must be under the supervision of a keeper or an owner who is at least 18 years old. This includes areas of public parks that are not penned-in dog runs. As you may have noticed, however, this rule is being largely dismissed by dog owners. This is because, like most local ordinances, leash laws are not being enforced.
The Denver library.municode.com website explains, “It shall be the duty of the chief of police, and all other police officers and all animal protection officers, to see that a dog found running at large is taken up and impounded in the Denver Animal Shelter, and such dog may be so taken up without the necessity of filing a complaint and shall be impounded and disposed of in accordance with provisions of article VII of this chapter.” Similarly, the Warshauer McLaughlin Law Group website (https://w-mlawgroup.com/) states: “Dogs are considered “running at large,” if they are not on the premise of the dog’s owner, not on leash, cord, or chain held by the owner or guardian. They are also considered running at large, if they are on the owner’s property, but the dog still has access to the ‘public right of way,’ such as sitting in the front yard unrestrained.”
Were this policy to be enforced to the letter, Denver officials would be working overtime to corral and impound all of the dogs running around off-leash in local parks and open-space areas. Similarly, the posted rules in most dog parks state that dogs within the facility must be registered, vaccinated, and spayed or neutered if they are over six months of age. This is not always the case, not by a long stretch, so dog park users are advised that other pet owners may not follow the rules. But — as far as the authorities and the average citizen are concerned — no one seems to give a woof.
