by Jessica Hughes | Mar 28, 2025 | General Featured
by Jessica Hughes
A packed house of players at the Denver Metro Bridge Studio.
Weekly bridge games are played at the Denver Metro Bridge Studio.
The tight-knit community of bridge players at the Denver Metro Bridge Studio in the greater Glendale area (Leetsdale Drive and Forest Street) works to rebuild five years after the COVID pandemic while preserving a game that offers far more than just entertainment.
Five years after a bridge tournament in Colorado Springs, turned into a COVID superspreader claiming the lives of six players, the Denver bridge community is still working to recover its momentum. “It became difficult after COVID. Bridge clubs closed and were going away,” explains Kathy McMahon, a dedicated member and player at the Denver Metro Bridge Studio. Like many social institutions, bridge clubs faced an existential threat during the pandemic.
For the game to survive, it had to pivot quickly. “We had to play online,” McMahon recounts. The American Contract Bridge League (ACBL), which governs competitive bridge in North America, developed online platforms where players could continue earning masterpoints — the currency of achievement in bridge competitions.
Despite these efforts, the pandemic created significant gaps in the community. The club lost many instructors and an entire generation of potential new players. “We missed the opportunity to train new people during COVID.
With the average age of bridge players in their late 60s or older, recruiting new enthusiasts has become vital for the game’s future. While the game is played by people of all ages, the benefits for seniors are particularly compelling: mental exercise, social con-
nection, and continuous learning. Bridge demands strategy, memory, and problem-solving skills — a true mental workout that research suggests may help delay cognitive decline. The game also provides crucial social connections, particularly important for seniors vulnerable to isolation.
“For seniors, playing bridge keeps them social and happy. It keeps brains healthy and keeps your brain going,” McMahon explains. These benefits extend beyond the individual to create vibrant communities centered around the game.
The Denver Metro Bridge Studio serves multiple roles — it’s both a competitive venue and a teaching center. The club offers lessons for beginners, mentorship programs, and games for various skill levels throughout the week. “We want bridge clubs to continue to be the social networks that they are,” says McMahon. “Playing in person brings this
Denver Metro Bridge Studio Club Owner, Elly Larson.
social aspect, which is so important.”
A typical sanctioned game at the club takes about three hours, with players rotating to play the same hands against different opponents. While competitive games allow players to earn points toward rankings like Life Master (requiring 500 master points) or the prestigious Grand Life Master (requiring 10,000 master points), the club also hosts more casual social games for those who aren’t concerned with earning points.
The community is diverse in age and gender, with its oldest member turning 100 this year. McMahon herself didn’t begin playing until near retirement, proving it’s never too late to start. She now plays approximately three times per week with various partners.
“We are in the post-pandemic r
Denver Metro Bridge Studio meets at 5250 Leetsdale Dr. in Denver.
ebound, so there’s been much more of a need to advertise these clubs,” McMahon notes. The Denver Metro Bridge Studio has invested in outreach efforts aimed at attracting both seniors and younger players.
For newcomers interested in learning, the club offers beginner classes and assistance with finding partners. They provide food and drinks during games and maintain a welcoming atmosphere for players of all levels — though McMahon says that depending on when you play, beginners might find themselves facing off against the club’s “sharks,” their most accomplished players.
As online bridge helped save the game during pandemic lockdowns, the Denver Metro Bridge Studio is working to preserve what makes in-person play special: the bonds formed across the card table, the shared excitement of a well-played hand, and the community that grows around a common passion.
For those looking to exercise their minds, expand their social circles, or simply find a fulfilling hobby, visit www.bridgewebs.com/denvermetro.
Photos provided by Kathy McMahon
by Valley Gadfly | Jan 16, 2025 | General Featured
City’s 2025 Working Budget To Increase By Only 0.6%; An Added 1.1% Drop In Home Prices Is Predicted By Mid-2025
by Glen Richardson
Conventions Rebound: The Colorado Convention Center is rebounding from the tailspin caused by homelessness and crime downtown. More than a half-dozen conventions with 10,000 or more attendees are booked for 2025.
Aside from home prices, Denver’s Outlook for 2025 remains strong. Nevertheless, in the aftermath of the millions spent last year on the immigrant influx, the city is cutting its full-time staff by 200 people.
The Mile High City’s 2025 operating budget is set at $4.4 billion. Quietly and unanimously approved by the Denver City Council, it is just 0.6% more than the $1.75 billion spent in 2024.
This is the first time in a decade — other than the pandemic — that the city is reducing full-time employees. The city will lower staff by not filling vacant positions, rather than through layoffs or furloughs. The cutback is expected to create $30 million in savings.
Tourism Rebound
The Mile High City’s conventions and tourism that was put in a tailspin by homelessness and crime downtown, is expected to make a significant rebound in 2025. Already more than a half-dozen conventions with 10,000 or more attendees have been booked in Denver.
The National Corn Growers Assn. is bringing 11,000 to Denver March 2-4. They will be followed by 11,000 or more for the American Water Works in June. Then in September and October three conventions with 15,000 to 17,000 attendees are booked: The Congress & Expos National Safety Council, Sept. 15-17; the American Academy of Pediatrics, Sept. 25-30; and the Assn. of Chiefs of Police, Oct. 18-21.
Denver Trade Show: The 2025 Dot Foods Innovations show will be held at the Colorado Convention Center from April 15-17, 2025.
“In 2025, we are literally up about 15% over 2019 — the year that saw record travel spending of $24.2 billion and attendance of 813,662,” — according to Richard Scharf, CEO of Visit Denver, the city’s convention and visitor’s bureau. The city’s 2025 Destination Plan includes initiatives to expand convention infrastructure, attract more events, create new attractions, and improve connectivity. Moreover, Denver was named to Condé Nast Traveler’s list of Best Places to Go in North America and the Caribbean in 2025.
GDP Outpaces U.S.
A study by Coworking Café ranks Denver 13th among the best large cities for economic growth. The Mile High City recorded some of the largest rises in earnings, housing units, education attainment, and employment rates.
Metro Denver’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is estimated to have increased by 2.9% during Q3 of 2024. GDP represents the total monetary value of all final goods and services produced within a market — in this case Denver.
Over the past four quarters, metro Denver’s GDP growth has outpaced that of the U.S., averaging 3.0% versus a national average of 2.7%.
Urban Upgrade
Little Gem: Near the Convention Center, the Magnolia is the only Denver hotel to make Meeting & Convention Magazine’s “Best Hotels.”
A study from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition recently found that Denver is the second-most gentrified city — change due to influx of affluent residents & investments — in the entire country.
With LoDo (Lower Downtown) and LoHi (Lower Highlands) already hot spots, a new wave of neighborhoods is poised for explosive growth in 2025, Mile High observers are predicting.
Neighborhoods experiencing new residents and money are North Park Hill, West Colfax, plus West Barnum. Southwest of downtown, with a suburban feel, Barnum’s northern boundary is the Sixth Ave. Freeway, the eastern boundary is Federal Blvd., Alameda Ave. to the south, with Perry St. on the west.
Still Seller’s Market
While the housing market improved for buyers during 2024, it remains tight enough that real estate authorities indicate that 2025 is likely to remain a seller’s market in most sections of Denver.
By October of 2024, Mile High home prices were up 3.1% from a year earlier, selling for a median price of $593,000. On average, homes city-wide were selling after 34 days on the market, compared to just 19 days in 2023.
Interest rates will be pivotal to Denver’s 2025 real estate outlook. Short-term rates are anticipated to decline, but the steadiness of long-term rates remain uncertain. In October, government-sponsored Fannie Mae predicted that the 30-year mortgage rate would be 6% by the end of 2024, dropping to 5.60% by Q5 of 2025.
Crime Challenge
Highrise Haven: Skyscrapers seem like they pop-up overnight in the Mile High City. Denver is the second most gentrified in the nation.
Crime remains one of Denver’s biggest challenges. Denver’s violent crime rate through mid-Nov. 2024 was 7.3 crimes per 1,000 residents, a decrease compared to the last two years.
Violent gun crime is down 14.5%, and nonfatal shootings are down nearly 20%. Nonetheless, Denver still has a higher-than- average crime rate, and ranks high among cities with the highest homicide rate per capita.
The violent crime rate in Denver is more than double the national median. Similarly, the chance of experiencing a property crime in Denver is 1 in 16, far exceeding Colorado’s average of 1 in 32 or the national median.
Hotels Stay Soft
Hotel occupancy downtown, however, is anticipating gains of just 1.5% in 2025. That pace will put revenue per available room (RevPAR growth) at about 3.0% in 2025. Sluggish occupancy gains are despite the renovated convention center and airport development.
Downtown has about 13,000 hotel rooms near the Colorado Convention Center, plus more than 51,000 rooms the city classifies as “first-class.” Newer hotels such as the Populus at Civic Center Park have rece
Crude Conversion: Converting the Petroleum Bldg. and other downtown structures is slow due to construction costs and interest rates.
ived extensive publicity.
Nevertheless, only one hotel in the Mile High City — the Magnolia Hotel — made Meetings & Conventions Magazine’s Best Hotels, far less than other major U.S. convention cities.
Even so, the Magnolia was only given a Silver Ranking, behind the JW Marriott, Houston.
Downtown Dilemma
With office buildings the last gasp of another era, as 2025 begins downtown Denver has to resolve what it wants to become, and quickly. Office space is glutted, and several buildings are in default. In the third quarter of 2024, office vacancy hit 30.6%, the first time it’s been above 30% since 2000.
Even more disturbing and worrisome, downtown restaurants and retailers are increasingly struggling. That’s huge because those are jobs about to be lost. Doubly distressing, it also impacts people’s perception of downtown when the streets are not active and busy. Furthermore, it cuts into Denver’s sales tax revenue.
Moody’s is predicting that office real estate value downtown will get messier in the year ahead. Values, they say, will likely continue plunging through 2025. The free-fall: A humungous 26% decline!
by Mark Smiley | Nov 15, 2024 | General Featured
The Family-Owned Restaurant Makes Big Moves Into The Mile High City After Decades In Surrounding Suburban Cities
by Mark Smiley
Coming Soon: Los Dos Potrillos will open in early 2025 in the space formerly occupied by Hacienda on South Colorado Boulevard. It will be the first restaurant for the family in the city of Denver after decades in the suburbs.
Los Dos Potrillos, the family-owned Mexican restaurant known for its Mexican comfort food, will open its first Denver location near Colorado Boulevard and I-25 at 4100 E. Mexico Avenue. The space was formerly occupied by Hacienda. Los Dos Potrillos aims to open in early 2025 with space for 253 patrons inside and 70 more on its patio.
They have been eyeing locations in Denver over the last several years but could not find the right area. “Whenever we look at any type of location, we always want to make sure it fits our way of going into any type of property,” said Danny Ramirez, CEO of Ramirez Hospitality Group, who owns Los Dos Potrillos. “We look forward to becoming a welcoming haven for our growing community, offering the same quality, consistency, service, and commitment that defines the Los Dos family,” Ramirez.
“Expanding to Denver is an important step for us, allowing us to connect and serve a new group of diners. Our Los Dos family is excited about this growth and cannot wait to bring our delicious food and overall dining experience to a new community in such a centralized location,” added Luis Ramirez, COO and President.
This milestone brings their family recipes and welcoming atmosphere to the heart of the Mile High City, marking a new chapter and the seventh Los Dos Potrillos full service restaurant opening in the Ramirez family’s journey.
Founded by Jose Ramirez in 2002, Los Dos Potrillos has grown from a single restaurant in Centennial to a popular local brand with multiple locations across the Denver metro area. This Denver location represents the seventh addition to their growing family, joining the ranks of their other establishments.
The Denver announcement comes just seven months after the successful opening of their Castle Rock location, featuring a 8,000-square-foot restaurant and brewery. The Colorado Boulevard location will be the second largest footprint for the restaurant family next to the aforementioned Castle Rock location.
The Denver Los Dos Potrillos will uphold the traditions and quality that have made Ramirez Hospitality Group a beloved household name across the region. Customers can expect the same welcoming atmosphere, excellent service, and Mexican comfort food that have earned the restaurant group a loyal following.
Taking over an existing Mexican restaurant makes it a bit easier to move forward. “There is not much to do since it was a Mexican restaurant,” said Daniel Ramirez. “All we have to do is come in and put our touch to it. We are going to change the outside of course and change the interior. The kitchen is in immaculate condition. We just need to add our spice to it, literally,” Ramirez said with a smile.
For more information, visit www.los2potrillos.com.
by Mark Smiley | Oct 16, 2024 | General Featured
Photo Credit: Philip Macías
Photo Credit: Philip Macías
By Mark Smiley
Meghan Trainor toured for the first time in eight years and brought her Timeless Tour to Red Rocks Amphitheatre on October 8, 2024. The 30-year-old singer toured with Natasha Bedingfield, Paul Russell, Chris Olsen, and her brother Ryan Trainor to warm up the crowd.
Trainor kicked off the show by appearing atop a hydraulic lift high above the main stage to sing a remixed version of her 2023 single “Mother.” She performed 22 songs in an over 90 minute set. She performed her biggest hits such as Lips Are Movin, Better When I’m Dancin’, Dear Future Husband, and her debut single and number one smash, All About That Bass.
Trainor, who has been writing songs since she was 11 years old last performed in Denver at the Paramount Theater in Denver eight years ago. She repeatedly mentioned how it was nice to perform in Colorado again and especially at Red Rocks which she indicated was a bucket list item for her.
She delivered her songs with a smile on her face, and energetically dancing with her six back up dancers during nearly every song. The show was upbeat and kept the crowd which was a mix of teenage girls, younger kids, and parents toe tapping and singing along.
All in all, people left the amphitheatre happy and satisfied with all of the performers throughout the evening. The Timeless Tour concludes on October 19 in Inglewood, California. For more, visit www.meghan-trainor.com.
by Mark Smiley | Aug 23, 2024 | General Featured
by Mark Smiley
Megan McNeil, who reported for the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle before moving to Arizona, has written her first book.
The beautifully written and illustrated “The Silver Lining” is available at Amazon.
Megan McNeil is a former reporter for this publication and since leaving the newspaper, moved to Tucson, Arizona, and became a television reporter for Channel 13 News in Tucson. She left the station in 2022 to pursue her dream of writing books. McNeil graduated with a BA in Electronic Media and a Political Science minor from San Marcos Texas State and shortly thereafter, began her career with the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle. She has fond memories of the start to her career at this publication.
McNeil joined the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle staff in October 2015 and wrote articles until her 2017 departure including a piece on Tiny Houses in Denver which in 2015, were just starting to become prevalent. “I used to write these horrible stories as a child, but I that’s where my passion for writing started,” said McNeil. “In college it developed into journalistic writing as I became more aware of the world around me.”
McNeil has now written a children’s book for ages 5-10 which came out in May 2024. This 34-page paperback book is beautifully illustrated by Venus Angelica and tells the story about a little cloud with a big decision to make. Which cloud will it be? The cloud sets out on a fun-filled journey across the skies, meeting cloudy characters along the way. Get to know what makes each cloud unique and how to spot them in the sky. Will the little cloud find out what it is meant to be? And what lesson will it learn along the way?
In this “whatever you are be a good one” story, colorful illustrations, and a heartwarming tale make learning fun. This scientific children’s book about clouds is great for kids 5-10 and guided reading for younger children. A pronunciation guide helps young readers with cloud names.
The Silver Lining retails for $12 on Amazon and can be purchased at https://a.co/d/07xuWjIT.
by Valley Gadfly | Jul 18, 2024 | General Featured
by Glen Richardson
Bassist Baier: Frank Baier and his wife Christine host the neighborhood music series on their front lawn, where his band Groove Machine entertains.
Singing With Soul: New singer-soloist at this year’s summer lawn singalongs is Biff Gore, dubbed “The Ambassador of Soul” by LA pop rock band Maroon 5.
As sure as the sun rises and sets, summer graces us with its warm embraces, bringing with it delightful lawn singalongs. None is more charming, nor more quintessentially local, than the sunset serenades of Cory- Merrill neighborhood bassist Frank Baier and his band Groove Machine.
Gems on the lawn providing spirited musical entertainment with a good beat, lots of feeling, plus easy listening singalong lyrics. Like George Gershwin’s Summertime composition for Porgy and Bess, the music has a rhythmical hook and instrumental beat that embodies “Good Vibrations.” Tunes as rhythmic as the Beach Boys’ pop and rock songs, with an edge and a synthesized beat with electric guitar riffs. Neighbors, friends, walkers, bicyclists, music fans, and their dogs flock to the neighborhood to listen-dance to the jam sessions that in recent years have progressively become a ball and blast. They stand, sit on chairs, or stretch out on lawns at homes adjacent, across the street, or nearby to enjoy the sunset concerts.
A top musician, Baier has worked on Broadway shows including Grease, and Jesus Christ Superstar. He has performed with such musical talent as Brook Benton, Hall & Oates, and the Bee Gee’s. He’s also played with the Minneapolis and St Louis Philharmonics, and New York’s finest society orchestras. Each summer Baier and his wife Christine treat the neighborhood to the summer music series on their front lawn.
Top Talent
Lawn Keynoter: Groove Machine’s keyboardist Tim Greenhouse adds depth and color to lawn singalong sunset serenade in the Cory-Merrill neighborhood.
Keyboards add depth and texture to a band’s sound, and Tim Greenhouse is one of Colorado’s best. Sometimes flashy, his work allows the band to add extra layers while often adding some edge. Moreover, he gives the band the opportunity to vary the sound and atmosphere of a song.
Artistic Greenhouse is a Denverite who has played with such stars as Bob Hope. Furthermore, he has participated in Switzerland’s prestigious annual Montreux Jazz Festival that annual draws nearly 250,000 spectators. He has also played with celebrated Colorado-based entertainers Hazel Miller and Lannie Garrett.
Adding captivating sounds and emotional expression to every concert is longtime Groove Machine percussionist Doug Bainbridge. A top musician, he helps maintain the rhythm and adds vibrancy to the music. Bainbridge spent several years playing around the Pacific Rim. He worked for a half-dozen years as a drummer-percussionist on South Korea television before returning to the U.S.
New as singer-soloist at this year’s summer lawn singalongs is Biff Gore, a powerful soul-singer with down home guitar styling. Dubbed “The Ambassador of Soul” by LA pop rock band Maroon 5, the soloist-guitarist adds a feeling of connection that engages the lawn crowd. While providing entertainment and joy to listeners, his performances create bonding, lower stress, improve the mood, while also adding emotion.
Lawn Lineup: Neighbors, friends, walkers, and music fans line up along the sidewalk to enjoy a diverse genre of music at a lawn event that has become a ball and blast.
His rich vocals landed him a spot on the sixth season of NBC’s talent show The Voice, in the spring of 2014. His grueling blues sound moved him to the top eight. During his time on The Voice, Gore realized his desire to share his musical gifts with people, so he returned to Denver. Worship Pastor at the Highline Community Church, he has “The Biff Gore Radio Show” on KLTT-670 AM, where soul meets sound in a symphony of inspirational stories, music, and wisdom.
Harmony & Bonding
The music is rhythmic, warm, lyrical, and melodious. But it’s about more than the music. It’s about moments between people. Families and friends getting together who haven’t seen each other in a year, and picking up a conversation like they’d just seen each other yesterday. It’s about kids enjoying the music with mom and pop. There’s a family feel that you rarely experience.
Concerts are not just an evening of pleasure, but a true immersion into the heart of our communities. From the toe-tapping rhythms of the band, the lawn singalongs are a true sensory feast that beckons both young and old to revel in the joys of summer.
Family-friendly, offering diverse genres of music, they are a great way to enjoy being outside in the evening when temperatures cool off. Sometimes soft, smooth, and gentle, other times rich, loud, and wild, they signal everyone to chill out, and take it day by day. Giving people a sense of freedom, an escape to “let loose” through the means of music. It boosts everyone’s moods and dispositions.
