Under the eye of police and media, Five Points’ Ink! Coffee reopens

Ink! Coffee opened Tuesday as a handful of people chanted and held signs. Police officers kept watch.

AP_LOGO_02
Associated Press

A Denver coffee shop has reopened after being targeted by protesters for displaying an advertising slogan that was perceived as making light of gentrification.

Ink! Coffee opened Tuesday as a handful of people chanted and held signs. Police officers kept watch.

The shop in a historically diverse neighborhood near downtown Denver displayed a sidewalk sign last week saying, “Happily Gentrifying the Neighborhood Since 2014.”

Outrage over the message quickly spread on social media, fueled by anger over a city being dramatically transformed by an influx of newcomers. The shop also was vandalized.

It closed for Thanksgiving weekend and didn’t open Monday as originally planned.

The founder of the Colorado chain has apologized for the sign and promised to educate himself about gentrification and find ways to express his contrition.

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Tagged

moving on, Maria Empanada, ink! Coffee, Canada, gentrification, Five Points, veep watch, stormwater