John Rebchook is a former Rocky Mountain News reporter with more than 30 years of experience in writing and communications... 
Here is the first look at the proposed design for the new boutique building on the Argonaut site at Colfax and Washington Street in Capitol Hill.
Like the idea of a boutique building on the Argonaut site? Vote at the end of this blog.
The old and vacant Argonaut Wine and Liquor store building in Capitol Hill will be torn down later this year, to make way for a smaller, new building to be constructed at the corner of Washington Street and East Colfax Avenue, officials associated with Denver’s busiest liquor store have confirmed to InsideRealEstateNews.
While a tenant for the new building, anticipated to have about 950 square feet of space has not yet been chosen, one possible operator would be Jim Pittinger, better known as “Biker Jim,” who sells gourmet hot dogs made out everything from bison to wild boar meat, from carts.
This building will be razed to make way for a new boutique that will take its architectural cues from the Argonaut-store to the east.
The old liquor store has sat empty since the new, larger one was built immediately to the east, almost two years ago. The two-year anniversary for the new 40,000-square-foot store, with more than 12,000 bottles of wine, beer, liquor and other items, will be in early December. Not only is the new store about twice as big as the one to face the wrecking ball, but it has been lauded as the most energy efficient liquor store in the world. The building sports everything from roof-top solar panels, water-free toilets, and even a machine to recycle tons of cardboard.
“We’ve looked at about 20 alternatives,” for the old store, since the new one was built, said Scott Robinson, whose family owns the store, which traces its history back to 1934. “We’ve looked at everything from tearing the building down and build a new one, to building structured parking.”
He said the Main Street zoning would not allow them to simply tear down the building, and increase the size of the parking lot. However, he said they did consider seeking a variance that would allow them to raze it and increase the size of the parking lot.
New zoning code helps
BYG, or Buchanan Yonushewski Group, designed and built the new Argonaut store and is designing the boutique on the site.
Brad Buchanan, principal of the the Buchanan Yonushewski Group, said the recent overhaul of the Denver zoning code provided them with another option – tearing down the old building and constructing a new one on the parking lot.
“I think this is very exciting,” said Buchanan, the architect who designed and built the new building two years ago, and is designing and constructing the new boutique building. Because the new building is smaller than the existing one, it will create about 30 to 35 new, much-needed parking spaces, he added. The boutique building will be constructed with materials to match the new building to the east, Buchanan said. A glass curtain wall will face Colfax, and the entrance is proposed to be on the eastern side in the parking lot, facing the new building, although Buchanan said that is flexible and could be moved.
The size of the building also is flexible, he said. While the current idea is a 950-square-foot building, he said it could be made larger, depending on the tenant.
Main Street zoning
“This is an excellent use of the new Main Street zoning,” Buchanan said. “It brings more retail to that important corner along Colfax. And it gets rid of a really ugly building. Everyone wanted to see that eyesore torn down. It was a real blight on the neighborhood.”
Stephanie Salazar, economic development director of the Colfax Business Improvement District, said the new plan sounds “awesome,” especially if the architecture of the boutique ties into the structure to the east.
“I think as long as they are compliant with the Main Street zoning, and the design fits in, it sounds like a big improvement and we would support it,” she said. “We certainly will be glad to see the old building go. And we certainly know they have a need for more parking. And Scott (Robinson) indicated to us that they might be able to provide the property for public purposes from time to time.”
On the other hand, she said the association also probably would have supported redeveloping the old building.
“From an environmental perspective, it is nice to be able to save and re-use existing buildings,” she said.
“And sometimes what people call redevelopment, is just a matter of keeping one or two walls of the new building, so it really is new construction. I guess we always thought the old building would end up being scrapped.”
Indeed, a former commercial real estate broker who lives in the neighborhood, said he has a multiple restaurant scheme for the existing building that he thinks would better serve the site, neighborhood and the new Argonaut better than the tiny new building. However, he has neither spoken to the Robinson family about his plan, nor does he have any tenants lined up, although he insists he could.
David Fried, a senior vice president of Cassidy Turley Fuller and Co., is leasing the new building that will open next year. Buchanan said they are at the early stages of leasing. He said many prospective tenants probably are not even aware of the new building yet.
Main and Main
“There’s going to be a lot of interest in that building,” Buchanan said. “It really is Main and Main. It’s a very high-profile corner on Colfax and in Capitol Hill.”
One person who is already interested in the new building is Biker Jim Pittinger. If he does lease it, it would be his second restaurant. He currently is working to open his first restaurant in a 1,900-square-foot building at 2148 Larimer St., which will have about 65 seats, as well as a patio that could handle another dozen or so diners.
Biker Jim hot on site
“Your timing is cool,” Pittinger told InsideRealEstateNews on Thursday. “My broker spoke to David Fried (the broker listing the property) yesterday.” Pittinger currently sells his gourmet dogs for $5 each on Saturday and Sunday at the parking lot at Argonaut. During the week, lines form daily around his cart at Arapahoe Street and the 16th Street Mall.
- Biker Jim would like to expand his wild-game, gourmet dog empire with a new store on the Argonaut site.
“I think it would be great,” Pittinger said last Sunday, while grilling dogs at Argonaut. “Just look at this. It’s a great corner. But I don’t know where the they are as far as negotiation.” On Friday, he told InsideRealEstateNews that “there isn’t really any reason to write about us and Argonaut unless or until we get an arrangement worked out with those guys for the space. Not saying it isn’t gonna happen. Not saying it is, either.”
Biker Jim already sells his dogs from a cart on the Argonaut parking lot on Saturays and Sundays.
Buchanan said that whoever the tenant is, it must complement Argonaut.
“It definitely won’t be a liquor store,” Buchanan said. “And it won’t be a marijuana clinic, either. Believe me, they’ve gotten a lot of calls from people who want open a marijuana dispensary there. It’s not going to happen.”
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Anything is better than the abandoned, ugly, useless building that sits there now.
“I think as long as they are compliant with the Main Street zoning, and the design fits in, it sounds like a big improvement and we would support it,” she said. “We certainly will be glad to see the old building go. And we certainly know they have a need for more parking. And Scott (Robinson) indicated to us that they might be able to provide the property for public purposes from time to time.”
Wonderful, wonderful. An opportunity to revamp the corner that has for the last forty years hosted – x-rated everything, whiskey, flop-houses, casual meetings of long time friendly vagrants… a murder or two. Not to leave out the all important – drug distribution activity. All of which are sooooo toxic. The best plan would be to create a hole – in any manner consistent with public safety of course -, fence it and let that poor ole piece of dirt rest. Then develop something that leaves out – fast food, marijuana, bail bonds, places to pray, etc. Maybe a bicycle hippodrome for the ever burgeoning Spandex set to let them demonstrate their prowess in sweating.