Santa Fe's Aztlan Theatre will be up for sale and this could mean yet another departure and significant blow to the district's historical landscape.
The venue's owner, Timeo Correa, has mulled over the idea of selling for years, and after 51 years of ownership, the theatre will hit the market with a $5 million price tag. This would include the theatre, the bar, and a cabaret license.
"It's just not right. Denver is scamming small businesses for higher taxes that really don't apply," said Correa. "Plus the fact that I'm a lot older, you know. It's a double whammy."
District 3 City Councilmember Jamie Torres and others had reached out to Correa about applying for landmark designation around the time that the Aztlan Theatre was hit with rising property taxes.
"It would be such a shame to lose its history and importance," Torres said.
Despite calls to sell, Correa refused and gathered community members in protest of the city's taxation to no avail.
Acquiring a landmark designation for the building could help preserve the historic fabric of a building that was originally built in 1927. Exterior changes that require a city building permit would require an additional design review to ensure thoughtful development.
This could, however, hurt Correa's chances of selling the building if an aspiring developer is prohibited because of its historical designation.
"I'm thinking of that, yeah. I'm trying to weigh the odds here," Correa said. "I would like that they don't tear it down."
Aztlan could join Tortillas Mexico and CHAC in its departure of Santa Fe Drive.
Tortillas Mexico sold its building that sat a block north of the Aztlan Theatre in 2021. Despite efforts to obtain landmark preservation status, the building sold to Holland Partner Group and is now being developed into spaces for retail and apartments.
The Chicano Humanities and Arts Council was priced out of the area in 2022. Thanks to the generosity of a Denverite reader who donated gallery space at 834 Santa Fe Dr. to the organization, CHAC returned to Santa Fe Drive earlier this year.
Correa purchased the old Santa Fe Theatre in 1972. It was renamed to the Aztlan Theatre and at the time was one of only a few Spanish-language movie theaters in Denver. For years it's been a hub for film, live music and public forums in the arts district.
