A rendering of the project included in materials submitted to the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission. (Public records)
A city design commission on Thursday signed off on a plan to demolish the former El Chapultepec building in LoDo and fashion it into a venue incorporating the neighboring Giggling Grizzly structure.
The unanimous decision by the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission came one month after the body had rejected the original submission by Denver-based Monfort Cos., with only one vote in favor of approval.
That initial rejection sent Monfort back to the drawing board.
“A lot of what we did here was address concerns relative to the rooftop and its subordination,” Matt Runyon, Monfort director of business development, told BusinessDen.
The Giggling Grizzly building at 1320 20th St. is two stories, but Monfort plans to add a third level with a rooftop deck that extends over the adjacent El Chapultepec lot at 1962 Market St.
The Pec building itself will be largely demolished, although a portion of its facade on the corner of 20th and Market will be retained. Glass walls, meanwhile, will extend from there, maintaining the silhouette of the existing building.
Kenneth Monfort, left, and Matt Runyon of Monfort Cos. stand in the former El Chapultepec building on Tuesday, March 26, 2024. (BusinessDen file)
El Chapultepec, a well-known jazz club, closed in late 2020 after a nearly 90-year run. Monfort Cos., led by Kenneth Monfort, bought it and the Giggling Grizzly buildings in 2022 for $5.4 million.
Monfort said he originally planned to preserve the “Pec” building before deciding that was not feasible due to its condition. When he moved to demolish the structure, however, the nonprofit Historic Denver applied to make it a city landmark — a designation that would mandate the building be preserved.
The parties then settled on the facade-preserving design as a compromise.
Runyon said Thursday that “I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t frustrating” to see that design rejected by the LoDo commission last month. It wasn’t clear at the end of that meeting what Monfort needed to address, he said, but the company was able to sit down with Landmark Preservation staff that same day.
“You can either lick your wounds or you can get to work,” he said.
“This win feels even greater as a result.”
A rendering of the project included in materials submitted to the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission. (Public records)
The company wanted to move quickly so as to not miss its target opening date for the venue, in March 2026. It hopes to start construction next spring.
Runyon said maximizing square footage at the site is key to ensuring the business that eventually opens there is successful. He estimated the changes made in the last month, which included reducing how far the roof deck extends over the El Chapultepec lots, may have cut the seat count by 20 to 25, although he cautioned floor layouts haven’t been finalized.
This is the third project that Monfort Cos. is going in on the 1900 block of Market Street. The company has already redeveloped existing buildings to house Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row and Riot House, both concepts from Arizona-based Riot Hospitality.
Runyon said the brand for this project hasn’t been determined, although it will be “complementary” to the previous two and fitting for a “flagship corner.”
The design commission approval, he said, lets the company “shift focus from concept to programming.”
A rendering of the project included in materials submitted to the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission. (Public records)
A city design commission on Thursday signed off on a plan to demolish the former El Chapultepec building in LoDo and fashion it into a venue incorporating the neighboring Giggling Grizzly structure.
The unanimous decision by the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission came one month after the body had rejected the original submission by Denver-based Monfort Cos., with only one vote in favor of approval.
That initial rejection sent Monfort back to the drawing board.
“A lot of what we did here was address concerns relative to the rooftop and its subordination,” Matt Runyon, Monfort director of business development, told BusinessDen.
The Giggling Grizzly building at 1320 20th St. is two stories, but Monfort plans to add a third level with a rooftop deck that extends over the adjacent El Chapultepec lot at 1962 Market St.
The Pec building itself will be largely demolished, although a portion of its facade on the corner of 20th and Market will be retained. Glass walls, meanwhile, will extend from there, maintaining the silhouette of the existing building.
Kenneth Monfort, left, and Matt Runyon of Monfort Cos. stand in the former El Chapultepec building on Tuesday, March 26, 2024. (BusinessDen file)
El Chapultepec, a well-known jazz club, closed in late 2020 after a nearly 90-year run. Monfort Cos., led by Kenneth Monfort, bought it and the Giggling Grizzly buildings in 2022 for $5.4 million.
Monfort said he originally planned to preserve the “Pec” building before deciding that was not feasible due to its condition. When he moved to demolish the structure, however, the nonprofit Historic Denver applied to make it a city landmark — a designation that would mandate the building be preserved.
The parties then settled on the facade-preserving design as a compromise.
Runyon said Thursday that “I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t frustrating” to see that design rejected by the LoDo commission last month. It wasn’t clear at the end of that meeting what Monfort needed to address, he said, but the company was able to sit down with Landmark Preservation staff that same day.
“You can either lick your wounds or you can get to work,” he said.
“This win feels even greater as a result.”
A rendering of the project included in materials submitted to the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission. (Public records)
The company wanted to move quickly so as to not miss its target opening date for the venue, in March 2026. It hopes to start construction next spring.
Runyon said maximizing square footage at the site is key to ensuring the business that eventually opens there is successful. He estimated the changes made in the last month, which included reducing how far the roof deck extends over the El Chapultepec lots, may have cut the seat count by 20 to 25, although he cautioned floor layouts haven’t been finalized.
This is the third project that Monfort Cos. is going in on the 1900 block of Market Street. The company has already redeveloped existing buildings to house Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row and Riot House, both concepts from Arizona-based Riot Hospitality.
Runyon said the brand for this project hasn’t been determined, although it will be “complementary” to the previous two and fitting for a “flagship corner.”
The design commission approval, he said, lets the company “shift focus from concept to programming.”
