On Thursday, restaurateurs Jacqueline and Frank Bonanno announced Green Russell, their speakeasy-like bar beneath Larimer Square, will close after 12 years in business. New Year's Eve will be their last night in operation, and the couple told us they have no plans to resurrect it.
"The new owners of historic Larimer Square, Asana Partners, will reimagine Green Russell as a boiler and maintenance room while they renovate the block for elevated office tenants," they wrote in a press statement.
Jacqueline told us they learned things were changing a few months ago when their lease was up.
"Originally, we were told this was permanent infrastructure. But more recently, we were told it was temporary for the construction because we've been invited to come back in two years when that work is done and renegotiate the lease, which we're not going to do," she said.
Jacqueline described her relationship with Asana as distant at best. The national investment company purchased all of Larimer Square in December 2020, and she told us her property manager has only recently moved to Colorado. Larimer Square management has not answered our request for comment, and their office was empty when we stopped by.
A number of businesses have announced departures from the square since Asana's purchase. Bistro Vendome is moving to Park Hill. Gusterman Silversmiths, a jeweler that operated on Larimer for almost 60 years, also closed. So did Victoriana Antique and Fine Jewelry and the Pendleton wool shop. The Bonannos own another restaurant on Larimer Square, Osteria Marco, which has another five years to go on its lease.
Jacqueline said she and Frank told their staff before they went public, created an emotional and sad moment in the bar. The two of them are crushed, she told us, because the restaurant had weathered COVID-19's strangeness and was in a financial place to keep paying rent and pouring drinks.
Green Russell, she told us, could only exist in that space at the bottom of the stairs. Because they lost both their lease and a willingness to work with Asana, she said these next months will be the bar's final days.
