A 2020 proposal called for retail and housing at 1727-1737 Pearl St. in Boulder. (Boulder County)
An architecture firm believes it should be allowed to foreclose on property along Pearl Street in Boulder because it wasn’t paid $350,000 for designing a hotel there.
Modellus Novus, in New York, is asking Boulder Judge Robert Gunning to let it take 1727 and 1737 Pearl St., which were purchased in recent years for a combined $3.9 million.
In 2020, Confluence Capital told the City of Boulder about its plans to demolish the existing retail buildings there and replace them with a 28,000-square-foot mixed-use building.
Confluence was founded in Boulder by Adam Wertz, who describes himself online as “a serial entrepreneur and real estate visionary.” Confluence’s other projects include a sleep disorder treatment facility in Longmont and a 28,000-square-foot retail space in Firestone.
Though its initial plans for Pearl called for apartments above retail, it has since pivoted and now wants to build a boutique hotel at the site. In 2021, it hired Modellus Novus to design one.
Modellus Novus claims that it was to be paid $878,000 for the job, along with a $100,000 “hospitality credit” redeemable after the Navy Square hotel was completed. The architecture firm worked on the project from September 2021 to December 2022, it said.
By the end of 2022, Confluence was months behind on paying invoices, so Modellus Novus, which was owed $300,000 by then, stopped working on the project, it claims.
Then, in February of this year, Modellus Novus filed a $355,000 mechanic’s lien on 1727 and 1737 Pearl St. On March 20, it sued Confluence in an attempt to foreclose on that lien.
It’s not the first foreclosure threat that the properties have faced. Last June, MDP Engineering Group in Denver asked that it be allowed to foreclose on a $73,000 mechanic’s lien there. The company dropped its request two months later without explanation, records show.
Wertz and Confluence did not respond to requests to discuss Modellus Novus’s accusations and the future of the Pearl Street project. Wertz’s LinkedIn page claims that he “is working with three partners on a new boutique hotel concept that focuses on connecting the nervous system with culinary experiences. The project is due to launch in 2025.”
Modellus Novus, which declined to discuss its case, is represented by attorney Jason Hermele of Holzer Patel Drennan in Denver, who didn’t answer requests to discuss it.
A 2020 proposal called for retail and housing at 1727-1737 Pearl St. in Boulder. (Boulder County)
An architecture firm believes it should be allowed to foreclose on property along Pearl Street in Boulder because it wasn’t paid $350,000 for designing a hotel there.
Modellus Novus, in New York, is asking Boulder Judge Robert Gunning to let it take 1727 and 1737 Pearl St., which were purchased in recent years for a combined $3.9 million.
In 2020, Confluence Capital told the City of Boulder about its plans to demolish the existing retail buildings there and replace them with a 28,000-square-foot mixed-use building.
Confluence was founded in Boulder by Adam Wertz, who describes himself online as “a serial entrepreneur and real estate visionary.” Confluence’s other projects include a sleep disorder treatment facility in Longmont and a 28,000-square-foot retail space in Firestone.
Though its initial plans for Pearl called for apartments above retail, it has since pivoted and now wants to build a boutique hotel at the site. In 2021, it hired Modellus Novus to design one.
Modellus Novus claims that it was to be paid $878,000 for the job, along with a $100,000 “hospitality credit” redeemable after the Navy Square hotel was completed. The architecture firm worked on the project from September 2021 to December 2022, it said.
By the end of 2022, Confluence was months behind on paying invoices, so Modellus Novus, which was owed $300,000 by then, stopped working on the project, it claims.
Then, in February of this year, Modellus Novus filed a $355,000 mechanic’s lien on 1727 and 1737 Pearl St. On March 20, it sued Confluence in an attempt to foreclose on that lien.
It’s not the first foreclosure threat that the properties have faced. Last June, MDP Engineering Group in Denver asked that it be allowed to foreclose on a $73,000 mechanic’s lien there. The company dropped its request two months later without explanation, records show.
Wertz and Confluence did not respond to requests to discuss Modellus Novus’s accusations and the future of the Pearl Street project. Wertz’s LinkedIn page claims that he “is working with three partners on a new boutique hotel concept that focuses on connecting the nervous system with culinary experiences. The project is due to launch in 2025.”
Modellus Novus, which declined to discuss its case, is represented by attorney Jason Hermele of Holzer Patel Drennan in Denver, who didn’t answer requests to discuss it.
