President Larry Ambrose Replaced By J.J. Niemann In 45 To 42 Vote
by Glen Richardson
The Denver Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation (“INC”) is the umbrella group of all the registered neighborhood associations and others. It has been one of the few official outlets for neighborhood groups unhappy with the high density developments overtaking Denver.
The Annual Delegate Meeting was held on March 12, 2016. Neighborhood activist Dave Felice described the meeting as “a coup d’état by interests aligned with Mayor Michael B. Hancock’s agenda to develop and increase density at all costs.” Neighborhood champion Larry Ambrose, a law graduate and Metro State teacher was replaced as President with J.J. Niemann, whose job experience is apparently limited to modifying skateboards. He had been a loud supporter of the zoo gasification plant until that plan was terminated by the Zoo Board, much to the embarrassment of Niemann and similar supporters.
The seizure of control of INC was greatly facilitated by the sudden registration of various Business Improvement Districts as voting members of INC which allowed the developers to win the close vote.
Ambrose had been a thorn in the side of Mayor Hancock for years and was even the recipient of the largest number of write-in votes in last spring’s election in the history of the city notwithstanding the fact that Ambrose did not campaign or seek out votes. Felice indicated that “Ambrose irritated City Hall because he speaks truth to power . . . and [is a] tireless advocate for the well-being of Denver residents and the neighborhoods.”
The overthrow of Ambrose was orchestrated according to insiders by a troika of developer and mayor supporters — Joel Noble, a Denver Planning Board member; Andrew Sense, an ally of Denver City Councilman Albus Brooks; and Michael Henry, the only paid employee of Denver Board of Ethics. Niemann himself is considered by many to be an intellectually challenged front person for more powerful interests.
The Denver Planning Board is wholly appointed by the Denver Mayor. Under the leadership of Executive Director Brad Buchanan the Board and the Denver Planning Commission itself are considered by some as ethically suspect and little more than bureaucratic allies for the Mayor’s favored developers.
Noble is considered a leading apologist for the Denver Planning Board’s conduct, writing, for example, a guest editorial in The Denver Post on March 28, 2015. In the article he defended the appointment by Hancock real estate developers on a purportedly civilian Planning Board claiming the Board needed “diverse perspectives.” He was also appointed by the Mayor as the spokesperson for “Vision Zero Coalition” regarding traffic deaths. Noble is also the President of Curtis Park Neighbors considered by some as little more than a developer front group.
When Anna Jones ran with heavy developer and lobbyist support against Wayne New in District 10 (Cherry Creek) for Denver City Council many voters stated that her serving on the Denver Planning Board effectively disqualified her from ever holding public office.
Michael Henry is the only paid city employee of the Denver Ethics Board which has come under heavy criticism for virtually never finding an ethics violation regarding anyone in the Hancock administration. Political consultant Ellie Reynolds said of the Ethics Board that “it’s an Orwellian named entity whose principal purpose appears to excuse and validate the most unethical conduct imaginable.” Ethics Board members assert that their hands are tied by a weak and ineffective Ethics Code which city officials have no intention of ever substantively changing.
Henry effectively ran INC prior to Ambrose being elected in 2011. Ambrose took what was a somewhat somnolent organization and transformed it into a strong voice for neighborhoods. Henry was forced out when complaints began to arise noting his conflict of interest being a city employee controlling what was supposed to a neighborhood organization. Many expect Henry will now resume, at least in part, his influence over INC.
The last of the troika is Andy Sense, a somewhat shadowy figure. He has described himself as “President of the City Council District 9 Office” although no such position appears to exist, at least according to Councilman Brook’s office. The councilman is a close ally of Mayor Hancock and Brooks is believed to want to succeed Hancock as Mayor of Denver. In 2014, Brooks, apparently believing that existing neighborhood groups in his District were not sufficiently pro Hancock, he formed his own City Park Neighborhood Advisory Committee to which Sense was appointed.
When local neighborhood groups began opposition to the City Park gasification project, Sense, like Niemann, became a leading critic of the residents. In a letter to the Chronicle published in January of this year he called the opponents “extremists” and “un-neighborly” and said that INC under Ambrose was spreading “divisiveness” with “extreme resolutions.”
Sense, Niemann and other advocates for the gasification plant (including The Denver Post) were embarrassed when the Zoo essentially acknowledged the critiques of the opponents by cancelling the plans for the plant adjoining City Park.
After the takeover INC passed a series of innocuous resolutions including one concerning the highly controversial Platte to Park Hill Stormwater Project saying the city’s decision should be based “on full study and meaningful neighborhood involvement.” The weak resolution was quickly ignored by the City.
The ouster of Ambrose and the pro-neighborhood advocates reminded many of Hancock orchestrating the removal of all the members of the Denver Parks Advisory Board who opposed his Hentzell Park open space giveaway. They were replaced by developer lobbyists including Marcus Pachner or longtime supporters of the Mayor such as “Happy”” Haynes’ sister, Khadija Haynes.
As for the future for INC many neighborhood groups and advocates are not sanguine. “All that will happen now is that INC will hold a worthless awards dinner and send out pro Administration propaganda pre-approved by the Mayor and his developer friends,” stated political consultant Ellie Reynolds.
As for Larry Ambrose he plans to take the Colorado Bar this summer and continue the fight for Denver neighborhoods even if INC is now little more than an adjunct of the Hancock administration. He plans to stay actively involved in the controversial Platte to Park Hill Stormwater Project by “keeping them honest, or more accurately, making them honest.”
Dave Felice notes that while some question whether INC will have any remaining relevance now that it is under Hancock’s control, the committees on Zoning and Parks retain strong neighborhood advocates.
Ambrose also thinks Niemann and the power brokers behind him like Noble will find that shoving all the neighborhood outrage back in the bottle will not be easy. “Not all of the delegates of INC will go quietly into the night. There are some real advocates for the neighborhoods who will be challenging for Noble and his buddies to try to shut up.”
Many citizens are actively beginning to advocate Ambrose to run for the Mayor’s office and he has not ruled out the possibility. He knows it will take money and the lobbyists like CRL Associates and Brownstein, Farber will dump huge sums into Hancock’s coffers. But the run of Bernie Sanders and his amazing success in raising money with small donations is encouraging to Ambrose. “You never know what the future may bring,” stated Ambrose.
CLICK HEREfor the entire raw, unedited and unaltered transcript and audio recording of the incredible Tehranian Death Star meeting with the wealthy Persian rug merchants Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi and Nasrin Kholghy, and their high-powered consultants Dana Crawford, David Tryba, Chris Shears and Bill James, seeking to pressure Glendale officials — Police Captain Mike Gross and Deputy City Managers Chuck Line and Linda Cassaday — into tentatively approving a massive 50- to 60-story condo high-rise on Colorado Boulevard abutting Cherry Creek.
Listen for yourself to the so-called “historic preservationist” Dana Crawford declaring that citizens in Denver were “hysterical about blocking their views” as well as offering “special sugar” for approval of the massive project. Hear famed architect David Tryba demand that Glendale be “more encouraging [about] more verticality” and RTD Director Bill James asserting that because Glendale is a separate jurisdiction surrounded by Denver it would be “easier to get away with” this type of massive high-rise.
Experts are calling the recording and transcript “unprecedented” and “extraordinary” and “a must hear and read” for any citizen in the Denver/Glendale area concerned about how developers and their consultants try to, and usually succeed, in running roughshod over zoning and Master Plans put in place by citizens.
The Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle has been inundated with e-mails, letters and correspondence concerning its March story “Wealthy Rug Merchants Plans Exposed.” To be able to print more of the correspondence the Chronicle has elected to devote its entire editorial page to “We Get Letters . . . .”
I must congratulate the Chronicle. Over a year ago you indicated that the real goal of the wealthy rug merchants at Authentic Persian & Oriental Rugs was to build a massive high-rise on the 3.5 acres of land they own off Colorado Boulevard. They constantly denied the same to the public and then you capture them on tape doing exactly that. Amazing. Kheirkhahi and his sister-in-law as well as their high priced consultants certainly know how run into a doorknob at full speed.
S. Johnson
Denver, CO
Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi and his sister-in-law Nasrin Kholghy are not nice people and I should know, I was one of their stalking targets in Glendale.
Douglas Stiff
Glendale, CO
I can’t tell you the outpouring of support I have gotten throughout Cherry Creek Valley for publically standing up to Kheirkhahi and against his proposed massive condo project. I want to thank the Chronicle for being the one publication in the Denver area that is never afraid to print the truth. Keep up the good fight
R. Wayne King
Glendale, CO
I am not a big fan of the Rug Merchants, but I support the idea of having a high-rise condo in Glendale and I think it could be a very successful development. Nobody is building condos these days and the city is saturated with rental properties. I’d be very interested in buying in a high-rise, providing it is a modern design with floor to ceiling windows and doesn’t have Tehran in its name.
Sasha Veysbeyn
Denver, CO
Thank you for continuing to update the Glendale public on the transformation of this situation. I want to thank the City Officials of Glendale for staying strong to protect the zoning codes and the city as it currently stands. I want the city of Glendale to know that we support you and do not want a building such as this in our neighborhood.
Laura Haas
Denver, CO
I have always had such admiration for Dana Crawford but it is easy to see the dollar signs in her eyes with this one. Since I don’t, I can easily see what a hideous monstrosity this would be, not to mention the nightmare it would create for people commuting. I hope the lawsuit ties this up for years. Who says we have to aspire to be like New York or Tehran… I think all of us who live here prefer a relatively unfettered view of our beautiful mountains. Stay strong, Glendale. Don’t let these people bully you into a disaster (and an ugly one at that).
Julie [last name not provided]
Denver, CO
Given the traffic congestion on Colorado Blvd., they should design a heliport on the top of this tower so that residents can access their condos.
Will Cameron
Denver, CO
Here’s to hoping that Death Star never gets started. The land and look and feel of Glendale just doesn’t lend itself to skyscrapers. Case in point, the perpetually abandoned looking, relic Lowes building. The biggest thing in Glendale that no one ever wants to even look at. That’s how out of place that monstrosity seems. So no, we don’t need a circa 1980’s Diehard movie, Nakatomi Plaza smack dab in the middle of what could be a a very nice, river-walk style, pedestrian, open retail area.
Jose Rosario
Denver, CO
You are the biggest racist I have ever seen. You Make Donald Trump look like Mother Teresa.
Whether the rug people are bad or not is not the issue. but your constant degradation of Iranians and Muslims is ridiculous. I hope the FBI has you on a watch list dude you are dangerous.
Donnie Smith
Denver, CO
I am so grateful to the Glendale city officials who have blocked the progress of M.A.K. development and the Kheirkhahi family with their monstrosity residential idea. I hope this blockage is forever. How unfair of them to corral the hi-falutin’ Denver city celebrities and power brokers to push their idea of a 56-story nightmare onto Glendale’s Colorado Boulevard profile. Also how unfair of them to request an exception to the city plan, rather than be good citizens and follow the plan. I held my breath until the final sentences of last month’s article. I shop in Glendale and Belcaro, eat at City Set, and use the Post Office and feel it’s my neighborhood still, even though I’ve moved to Windsor Gardens. I have sorely regretted the development that has already taken place in Glendale that has caused the lines of traffic on S. Cherry Creek Blvd. and increased traffic on Leetsdale and Colorado Blvd. South Cherry Creek Blvd. used to be an unknown, lightly-used and quick route down to Holly and Monaco and Quebec streets — a back way to go south. Now it’s stop-and-go most times of the day. And it is often hard to find parking at City Set where popular local restaurants are located. Glendale used to be a place where people could rent for less expense. More luxury condominiums are not what Denver needs. More low and middle income rentals are what is needed. Just what point are the Kheirkhahis trying to make with this monstrosity?
Colleen Nunn
Denver, CO
I was particularly surprised and dismayed to hear Crawford’s statement that “If we want to double Denver metropolitan population we’re going to have to get over our hysteria about high-rise buildings because Denver just, you know, the neighborhoods just get bonkers over the subject.” For one, who wants Denver’s population to double? Certainly not current residents! Denver is already plagued with heavy traffic, especially along Colorado Boulevard. Denver residents are proud to live in Denver and are grateful for this beautiful city — of course we don’t want to destroy it by over-populating it! For another, if the neighborhoods “get bonkers” over something, it is because it is an important topic and there are strong and majority opinions about it — someone truly looking out for the benefit of the city and its residents would not belittle or ignore those opinions.
I applaud and thank the City representatives for standing their ground and not being unduly influenced by a wealthy minority.
In perhaps a new low, a fake, unlicensed private investigator, Charles Johnson, was flown in from Nashville, Tennessee, to go to the homes and businesses of citizens of Glendale, Denver and Lakewood, who had all made remarks quoted in the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle that might be deemed critical of Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi, the principal owner of the Authentic Persian and Oriental Rugs store and his proposed massive 50- to 60-story high rise condo project on Colorado Boulevard abutting Cherry Creek (See Chronicle, March 2016, “Wealthy Rug Merchants Plans Exposed”).
Harassment And Stalking
Various citizens from Glendale, Denver and Lakewood called the police complaining about the ongoing harassment and stalking from Johnson. He apparently is not licensed either in Colorado or Tennessee to conduct private investigations. Johnson even went to the private residence of Glendale City Clerk Sherry Frame and tried to obtain access into her complex.
Johnson Arrested
Johnson was arrested at 5:10 a.m. on Thursday, March 17, 2016, at Advantage Rent-A-Car trying to flee back to Nashville via an early morning plane flight. According to the police report obtained by the Chronicle through an open records request, Johnson stated “he was ‘hired’ by a female writer in Denver Colorado to conduct interviews with people who recently provided interviews to the [Glendale] Cherry Creek Chronicle regarding Glendale 180 . . . .” and later stated he was under contract with an “individual female writer/ journalist in the local area.” Johnson repeatedly refused to say who the individual was who hired him saying “she may want to get an attorney” and he had signed a non-disclosure agreement with the woman.
To some, the description appeared to perfectly fit Jeanne Price (see Chronicle, Feb. 2016, page 1, “Persian Rug merchants have Denverite Jeanne Price Digging Hard for Dirt”), who at different times has described herself as a reporter, writer, freelance columnist and senior researcher.
Calls by the Chronicle to Ms. Price inquiring whether she had contracted with or knew Charles Johnson were not returned. Price sits next to Kheirkhahi at Glendale City Council meetings and is believed to be employed by Kheirkhahi or his affiliated entities. Calls to Kheirkhahi from the Chronicle were also not returned. Legal experts indicate that individuals who knowingly contract with another to break the law may in some instances be charged themselves.
Scare Citizens
If the purpose of Johnson’s trip was to scare and intimidate citizens critical of the Persian rug merchants from talking with the media and in particular the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle, he was successful at least partially.
Trish Abbott had published in the Chronicle a communication critical of the Kholghys (the in-laws of Kheirkhahi) in the December 2015 “We Get Letters . . .” He attempted to harass her at her former address and at her current one although she repeatedly told him she did not want to speak with him.
Abbott filed a harassment complaint against Johnson with the Glendale Police. The police report indicates that Abbott was clearly concerned that someone could find her address and track her down simply because of what she had said in a newspaper article. Abbott told the police “she would never make a statement or go on record for a paper again.”
Johnson asserted to the police that he tried to access the City Clerk’s complex because he did not want to meet with her in her office at City Hall. According to the police report, he indicated that “in his experience when he wants to talk with people they usually do not like to do so at their place of employment.”
Harassed At Work
That concept apparently did not apply to Richard Witholder who works in Lakewood. In a statement filed in Glendale and to be filed with the Lakewood police, Johnson showed up at Witholder’s place of employment in Lakewood, where he is the manager of a restaurant. An employee told him that a male was in the restaurant demanding to speak to “Richard.” When Witholder came out he declared that “I’m investigating your quotes you made in the [Glendale] Cherry Creek Chronicle” and insisted that Witholder sit down for an interview. When Witholder repeatedly refused he handed him his card and told him to call him.
Witholder immediately contacted the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle which indicated he should contact the police if he felt threatened. Witholder then contacted the Glendale police and arranged for a meeting with Johnson at the Starbucks in Glendale where Witholder hoped the threatening Johnson would be arrested.
At the same time Johnson had been harassing Glendale resident Douglas Stiff about his quotes. Stiff also contacted the Glendale police and immediately arranged to meet with Johnson at Carve Restaurant in Glendale. Because of statements made at the meeting with Stiff, the Glendale Police were able to determine whether Johnson was acting in the capacity of a private investigator in violation of Colorado law. Johnson never showed up for the meeting with Witholder.
Johnson was later arrested for acting as a private investigator in Colorado without a license in violation of C.R.S. Sec. 12-58.5-101. If convicted he is subject to being incarcerated for up to one year and/or up to a $1,000 fine. Witholder hopes that Lakewood will also file charges against Johnson when he returns to Colorado.
According the police report Johnson was carrying active drivers licenses from three different states — Hawaii, Florida and Tennessee. Most states make it a crime to possess more than one driver’s license at the same time. See Cal. V.C. Section 12511. It is not known whether Johnson when he returns to Colorado to face charges on not possessing a private investigators license whether he will also face charges of possessing drivers licenses from multiple states.
Giving False Information
The somewhat crude business cards handed out by Johnson in Colorado were printed at a angle and with an address of 3200 West End Avenue, Nashville, Tennessee 37203 without a suite number. That address is a large office building at which he is not listed. He provided his home address to the Glendale Police as 2479 Murfreesboro Road, 222 Nashville, Tennessee 37217 which the Chronicle determined to be a UPS store.
The office phone listed on his card appears to be simply part of a general voicemail system. The cell phone number listed on the card may be to a so called “burner phone.” A burner phone is a prepaid device used specially for one purpose and then disposed. Burner phones are used for various purposes including by persons engaged in potentially illegal activities who do not want their phone to be traced back to them. The Chronicle called both numbers and left messages asking Johnson to call back. Both phone numbers went automatically into voice mail. The Chronicle did not receive any return calls from Johnson.
Unbowed And Unafraid
But if Johnson and his yet to be named employers here in Colorado were hoping to cower all citizens critical of Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi and his affiliated entities they were unsuccessful. As noted above, Johnson tried to contact Douglas Stiff who both lives and works in Glendale. When Johnson harassed him in both locations Stiff not only contacted the Glendale Police but assisted with a face to face meeting which helped confirm to the Glendale Police that Johnson was engaged in illegal activities.
But more than that, Stiff was incensed by the actions of Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi. “To get a massive high rise condo building in violation of Glendale’s zoning laws and Master Plan Mohammad forced our African American citizens who wanted to attend a City Council meeting to run a gauntlet set up by a racist para military unit of the Oath Keepers outside the door to City Hall,” said Stiff. “To intimidate the Hispanics in our community he brought in anti-immigration zealot Tom Tancredo wearing a Border Patrol hat. Now to silence Mohammad’s critics quoted in the Chronicle, someone hired an illegal private investigator who harasses me and others. If Mohammad and Jeanne Price are behind Johnson I hope they are fully prosecuted along with Johnson.”
But Stiff does not intend to be passive. “I am going to apply to be on the Planning Commission to be a voice in our community for upholding our zoning and Master Plan so that we don’t get projects like the Tehranian Death Star approved.” Stiff noted, “I know Mohammad’s sister-in-law [Nasrin Kholghy] objects to the mention of “Tehran” and cried on cue for Channel 7 in reference to her home city.”
Stiff pointed out that, “Mohammad’s agents tell the city staff at an openly recorded meeting they want a high rise condo project like those in Tehran and other cities, but after that nobody else is allowed to mention Tehran because to do so is racist or xenophobic or Islamophobic or everything else phobic. These people in my opinion are evil, despicable thugs and I doubt anyone from Hilltop or anywhere else would want to go to the Persian and Oriental Rug store if they found out what these individuals actually do to people and what they plan to do to our community.”
Stiff also indicated that he and some of his friends are considering picketing in front of the store to let people know who they are potentially dealing with and what they in fact want to build on Colorado Boulevard by Cherry Creek.
At the time of press, nobody from the Kheirkhahi team had responded to our inquiries for comment. After The Chronicle had gone to press, Ms. Jeanne Price and Ms. Nasrin Kholghy submitted separate letters denying that anyone from their team had hired Mr. Johnson. Their letters in their entirety are below:
Let us be clear: Our team has not now, nor at any point in the past, hired Charles Johnson as the newspaper irresponsibly hints. We have no need for such tactics and we have always been open about our position.
We also do not have any plans for a 60-story building. We also have nothing to do with this most recent allegation, which seems to be just the latest in a long line of attempts to disparage us, incite fear, inflame bigotry and racism, discourage our customers and try to run us out of business. As these wild accusations and misleading stories continue, our suspicions are growing stronger that this has indeed been the City’s plan for a long time.
Nasrin Kholghy
Let me state emphatically that I DID NOT hire an investigator nor do I need help from an investigator with my research. I have been seeking PUBLIC records from the City of Glendale and evidently that makes someone very uncomfortable at City Hall and/or at this publication. My efforts have been met with a great deal of resistance and now inflated charges for simple requests.
Apparently, this is why I’m being attacked a second time by Mr. Smiley. I’m not sure who is pulling his strings but this is not reporting in any sense of the word. It’s harassment, disparagement and intimidation from a so-called newspaper but sadly, it’s all we have come to expect from this publication.
Jazz singer/songwriter Terri Jo Jenkins wowed a jam-packed audience at the nightclub DazzleJazz located at 9th and
Lincoln. The event on Sunday night, March 13, was the live introduction of her newest CD release From this Moment. In the audience were local musical luminaries including singer Lannie Garrett. DazzleJazz has been ranked as one of the “Top 100” jazz clubs in the world according to Downbeat Magazine.
Jenkins was backed by what many are calling the best ensemble band in the Rocky Mountain region led by her husband Jeff Jenkins on piano and featuring John Gunther on clarinet and sax and Greg Gisbert blasting it out on trumpet. In addition Mike Mariler was on drums and Ken Walker on bass. Tia Rebolz provided the vocal harmonies.
While Jenkins has done CDs featuring only her original songs, this CD features songs and artists she admires along with a new song of hers, Afternoon Tea. The CD’s title comes from the Cole Porter song she sings on the CD From This Moment On. The theme of the CD is, however, perhaps best exemplified by the first song on the CD by Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen Accentuate the Positive:
You’ve got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don’t mess with Mister In-Between
Having sung for her supper since age 5 and occasioned the many ups and downs of life, the simple verities of lyrics she found do have a profound effect on helping to lead a happy and productive life. Jenkins calls herself a Nebraska farm girl being brought up in Venango, Neb., with a dad, Dean Dodson, who was a farmer who loved music, and a mother, Willadean Dodson, who was a classical pianist and a fish out of water in the western Nebraska farming community of Venango.
Willadean channeled her considerable energy into becoming a classic “stage mom” taking Terri Jo and her two sisters around the country hoping to catch the “big break.” They traveled to Los Angeles for The Lawrence Welk Show hoping to be a replacement for the Lennon Sisters who after 13 years on the show were going out on their own. They met Lawrence Welk but he had just signed another sister act so it was back to Nebraska for the Dodson Sisters who would record their first song when Jenkins was 14 years old.
In the intervening years Jenkins has toured the country and abroad as a vocalist, guitarist, and flute player in folk, Americana, New Age and jazz groups. She has done everything from a Joni Mitchell Tribute Show to traveling for the past few summers to France to perform at the Jazz en Vercors festival.
The new CD is very much a family/band affair. The CD was produced by her husband Jeff Jenkins who teaches doctoral students on music theory. The graphics for the CD were done by her guitarist Ken Walker while the painting that graces the front cover is by her daughter Molly Anne Ruhlman who lives in Baltimore. She received a grant for the project from the Boulder County Arts Alliance which had a representative at the gala opening.
To help pay the bills Jenkins also teaches guitar and piano to both adults and children and is deemed one of the top music teachers in the Denver metropolitan area. Those interested in lessons can simply Google “Terri Jo Jenkins – Music Lessons.”
After singing through the CD songs at DazzleJazz the crowd clearly wanted more. After a standing ovation Jenkins came back and belted out an incredible rendition of St. James Infirmary Blues first made famous by Louis Armstrong in a 1928 recording. A happy crowd then filtered out into a warm pre-spring evening lengthened by the coming of daylight saving that Sunday.
Copies of the From this Moment CD can be obtained by going to www.terri jomusic.com. Her email is terrijojenkins@gmail.com and phone 720-320-6254.
Want Massive High-Rise Condo Building Right On Cherry Creek, Could Be Tallest Building In State
by Charles C. Bonniwell
The dark rumors that M.A.K. Investment Group, headed by Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi, its registered agent and part owner, wants to build a massive super high density high-rise on only 3.8 acres of developable land it owns in Glendale along Cherry Creek, have proven to be true.
M.A.K. owns and runs the Authentic Persian and Oriental Rugs, located at 550 South Colorado Boulevard, and have tried to present themselves to the media as small business people being threatened by the City of Glendale by condemnation, notwithstanding the fact that the city has consistently stated it has no plans to use eminent domain regarding the property.
M.A.K.’s Real Plans
It has been surmised by some that M.A.K. was really attempting to intimidate the city and its elected officials into waiving all of its zoning and Master Plan limitations along Cherry Creek in order to allow a super high density development which would bring the highest possible price for the land for M.A.K.
Kheirkhahi and M.A.K. have brought lawsuits in state and federal court against the city with some of the state claims having already been dismissed by the courts. They have hired one of the largest and most expensive law firms in the country, Kirkland and Ellis, to bring a federal court action in order to nullify Glendale and the state’s urban renewal statutes.
The firm has a well-known reputation for its work in cases that go to trial. Kirkland and Ellis was the primary outside law firm representing oil giant BP in litigation regarding the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Rare Inside View
Seldom does the public get to see the inner workings of wealthy developers obtaining or trying to obtain super high density projects that appear to violate a city’s zoning and master plans. Meetings prior to the filing of a site plan are not public. Moreover, until a “site plan” has been submitted to a city, developers are allowed to lobby public officials in favor of a project while the public is often in the dark about even the existence of a proposed project. After getting tentative oral approval for a project, developers file the “site plan” which makes the project “quasi-judicial” in nature and elected officials can then assert that they are prohibited from talking to members of the public or anyone else about the proposed project.
But because the M.A.K. and Mohammad Ali Kheirkhahi are in litigation with the City of Glendale, the pre-site plan meeting held was openly recorded which made the recording a public record. The Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle, pursuant to the Colorado Open Records Act, demanded and received a copy of the recording. Experts are calling the information in the recording “unprecedented” and “extraordinary.”
M.A.K. Team
M.A.K. brought some of the highest priced and most influential advisors in Colorado to the meeting. Leading the group was Dana Crawford, best known for being the developer of Larimer Square in downtown Denver. Also on the team was David Tryba, the principal of Tryba Architects the Denver based architecture, planning and urban design firm most recently involved with the downtown Union Station development. Tryba along with his wife, were the recipients of the 2012 “Dana Crawford Award” from Colorado Preservation, Inc.
Also heading up the advisory team was Chris Shears of the planning and designing firm Shears Adkins Rockmore Architects. Perhaps demonstrating how incestuous such a meeting can be, Shears co-wrote Glendale’s latest Master Plan whose limitations Kheirkhahi and M.A.K. are now seeking to evade.
Rounding out the team was Bill James, RTD Director for District A, which includes Glendale and Cherry Creek, as well as being the Chair of RTD’s Planning and Development Committee. James has his own real estate brokerage and investment advisory firm in Denver called James Real Estate Services, Inc. Kheirkhahi brought along his sister-in-law Nasrin Kholghy who is also a principal in M.A.K.
Attending the meeting on behalf of the City of Glendale were Co-Deputy City Managers Chuck Line and Linda Cassaday as well as Police Captain Mike Gross who is the project head for Glendale 180, the city’s proposed entertainment development district along Cherry Creek.
Pursuant to the Glendale Master Plan, co-written by Shears, the height limit along Cherry Creek is 45 feet. Since the 1980s Glendale has prohibited residential development along the East Virginia side of Cherry Creek as being incongruous with a boisterous late night entertainment district.
Crawford Lead Speaker
Crawford was the primary spokesperson for the M.A.K. team and it did not take long for her to drop the hammer. She indicated that her and M.A.K.’s inspiration came from places like Tehran, Iran, and Austin, Texas, as well as Dallas, Vancouver and Las Vegas. She passed around pictures of massive luxury condominium developments which appeared to be similar to places such as the 56-story Tehran International Tower in downtown Tehran, Iran, the 56-story Austonian in Austin, Texas, and the under construction 58-story Independent also in Austin.
All buildings appeared to be equal to or exceed the tallest building in the six state region, the Republic Plaza Building in downtown Denver, which is 56 floors.
Crawford expressed her admiration for condo developers as “people with very big bucks and willing to take big risks are doing condos.” Crawford went on to declare that if we wanted to double metropolitan Denver population “we’re going to have to get over our hysteria about high-rise buildings because Denver just, you know, the neighborhoods just get bonkers over the subject.”
She then proceeded to declare that the Glendale location would be good because it is “smarter than Denver is and also because of the location to be able to do things that are not going to get people hysterical about blocking their views …”
She also went on to declare that the building “could be just sensational and observable from almost the whole metropolitan area.” Given that the M.A.K. property is at the creek level, the proposed building would probably need to be in excess of 60 stories to meet this criteria. Crawford also indicated her belief that people today want a safe community and “the safest place in the United States right now is the island of Manhattan [New York City] interestingly enough.”
Crawford’s “Special Sugar”
Crawford also added “there is, you know there’s some sugar in it, a special sugar in it for the community … taking care of some that need a little extra care.” In talking with city officials, who exactly was going to be getting the “special sugar?” How was it going to be distributed and by whom were unclear but the implications were potentially highly disturbing.
RTD Director Bill James seconded Crawford’s belief that Glendale, as a separate jurisdiction, surrounded by and in the middle of Denver, was a real benefit as this massive density would be “something easier to get away with in this environment …”
James went on to declare, apparently relating to the fact that such a massive residential building right on Colorado Boulevard would potentially create enormous traffic jams during rush hours, that people have “been sort of seduced by the car — we’re moving away from that.”
David Tryba brought forth how such mass density “leverages the value of the land” and how much money this type of project could bring to the pockets of M.A.K. as well as Kheirkhahi and the Kholghys. He stated that “just a few short years ago Dana and others were buying properties for between $1 and $5 a square foot and now the property values around those spaces are $500 to $750 a square foot.”
M.A.K. bought its Glendale property in 2007 for $6.5 million or $39 per developable foot. At $750 per developable square foot the property would be worth over $124 million. He also emphasized he and Dana had worked together on projects and what they liked about Glendale was that they were “frankly interested in having more flexibility than they could have in Denver in terms of being able to go vertically.”
Shears, the former Glendale consultant and co-author of its Master Plan which limited “verticality” brought the presentation to an end emphasizing what a “great idea” Crawford had come up with and that it was worth “proceeding with a conversation to see if it’s possible. We certainly hope.”
Nasrin Kholghy concurred, apparently keeping in mind Tryba’s economic analysis, “I was hoping we could take advantage of her vision and create something wonderful. So I’m still hopeful.”
City’s Response
It was clear that M.A.K. was hoping that its lawsuits, the constant efforts to create bad publicity for the city and its administration, along with efforts by “investigative blogger” Jeanne Price to dig up dirt on the city and staff with constant open records requests, that the city would have been softened up for the general proposal which some in the city would later nickname the “Tehranian Death Star.”
If M.A.K.’s scorched earth tactics had intimidated the elected officials it was not reflected by the remarks of the staff to the M.A.K. participants in the meeting.
Deputy City Manager Chuck Line pointed out that Glendale already had “the highest residential density in the state,” and Deputy City Manager Linda Cassaday added that Glendale was also “surrounded by density.”
Tryba appeared incredulous to the staff statements and demanded to know “would you be open to a further discussion about encouraging more verticality and integration of use and more energy and more of higher density?”
Line indicated that “there are no current plans to revisit those parts of our zoning code” and Cassaday pointed out the M.A.K.’s property was “not zoned for that [high density residential] but that “other areas within the city that are zoned for residential but that area is not.”
M.A.K. Team Not Pleased
Crawford was clearly not pleased stating “most of the communities that I’ve worked with there has been from a staff perspective an expression of flexibility.” She then demanded, “Is there any attitude of flexibility?”
Line reminded Crawford that M.A.K. and the city were in litigation which could not be discussed and would have to wind through the court system before it would even be proper to examine “if we have any flexibility or not.”
The response was clearly not what M.A.K. and Kheirkhahi wanted. Days after the meeting, Jeanne Price was back at the city with voluminous open records requests clearly digging once again for information that could be used against the city and its employees and elected officials in Team M.A.K.’s demand for the so-called “Tehranian Death Star.” Negotiations were over for M.A.K. and the scorched earth policy had been fully re-instituted.
Jack Barton, founder of Kacey Fine Furniture, is proving you’re never too old to start over. The 92-year-old successful businessman is now a stand-up comedian.
Barton was Governor Hickenlooper’s landlord when Hickenlooper first opened Wynkoop Brewing Co. in lower downtown Denver in 1988. Before Hickenlooper turned the brick building into Denver’s first brewpub, it had been a warehouse for Kacey Fine Furniture. Barton became Hickenlooper’s landlord and equity participant in Wynkoop Brewing Co.
Barton has always been a Denver man, growing up on the west side, and graduating from West High School. Later he attended college at D.U. Barton sold insurance for one year before he spotted a business opportunity he couldn’t pass up — furniture. Barton said he saw no “brain surgeons” in the furniture business, so he opened up his own store in in 1948 which grew to five locations. One of his daughters, Leslie Fishbein, joined the business in the mid-1970s after graduating from the University of Colorado. She was president of Kacey Fine Furniture when she tragically died in 2008.
But out of all of Barton’s accomplishments, comedy is his true passion. “I should have done this years ago,” Barton said.
Now, Barton is proving you’re never too old to start over. “My friends ask me why I’m doing this, and I said to them, ‘you know it’s like putting your penis in a fan, but this is more painful,’” Jack said starting off his set at Noonan’s Sports Bar and Grill in Aurora.
Jack’s journey to comedy has been a life-long one. Comedy and a lovingly sarcastic humor has always played a role in his and his family’s lives. In fact, comedy is a family affair. His daughter, Terri Barton Gregg, is also a stand-up comedian. So when Barton Gregg’s dad decided he wanted to be a comedian, she encouraged him to chase his life-long dream.
“I said if it’s on your bucket list, you better take it off pretty fast,” Barton Gregg said.
Pulling from his recent experiences and adventures, Jack writes all of his own jokes and material — recalling them effortlessly and confidently on stage. “It seems like magic,” Barton said. “All of a sudden you’re there and the crowd is out there and you become very calm. And the thing is, you hate to give up the mic. You want to be there all the time.”
And, Barton does want to be on the stage all the time, occasionally doubling his stage time, but no one minds. Barton’s set is not only engaging and seriously funny, it’s also very apparent he’s having fun — a contagious smile and spirit that adds to his show and radiates through the audience. His material is original, comparatively clean and classic. Barton first debuted his stand-up comedy in November 2015, close to a year after having two brain surgeries. It’s obvious Barton has lived his life to the fullest, and with that, amassed wisdom.
“If you can’t laugh at something, really you’re a very sad person. You have to be able to laugh at yourself,” Barton said. Barton often pokes fun at himself during his sets, but never at the audience. He said he doesn’t like to go for the “shock treatment” that some comedians use to get the audience’s attention. Instead, Barton’s cool demeanor, quick wit and smart presentation grab the audience. He’s even gotten four standing ovations in 11 shows. Comedy, Barton said, has always been his hidden talent.
“Most my life I’ve been able to convince somebody with humor,” Barton said.
Barton’s wife, Shirley, is a little shyer than her comical family members, but she is a regular at both Barton and Barton Gregg’s shows. She said she won’t be joining her husband on stage anytime soon, and not only fully supports his decision to be a comedian, she’s thrilled about it. “I think it’s wonderful. I think a person who can find himself a second time is really lucky,” added Shirley.
Shirley isn’t the only one who thinks what Barton is doing is wonderful. Fellow comedian Brent Gill thinks Barton is pretty awesome. “It’s the best thing you could ever see,” Gill said. “He crushed it.”
Gill describes Barton’s style of comedy as the classic and great old-school one-liners. “He comes from a different era of life and a different era of what he finds funny and what comedy is to him,” Gill said. “It’s fun to see that again. It’s like a throwback to old school comedy.”
But comedy, to its core, never gets old according to Barton. Funny is still funny, and after all, old is a relative term and age just a number. Barton Gregg said her dad truly has found his purpose, something that everyone needs.
And who is Barton’s favorite comedian? His daughter, Barton Gregg. To that, she said, “He’s my favorite dad.”
ations and others. It has been one of the few official outlets for neighborhood groups unhappy with the high density developments overtaking Denver.
ployee controlling what was supposed to a neighborhood organization. Many expect Henry will now resume, at least in part, his influence over INC.
mbarrassed when the Zoo essentially acknowledged the critiques of the opponents by cancelling the plans for the plant adjoining City Park.
