A plan to redevelop and partially preserve the former home of El Chapultepec and a neighboring building got a key approval on Thursday.
The developer, Monfort Companies, has been trying for months to get the green light for the Ballpark neighborhood project.
Monfort hopes to create a new commercial space out of the buildings, which are on 20th Street between Market and Larimer streets. The project’s key concepts are now approved, and the developer can move ahead with construction plans and permitting.
The developer hopes to finish the project by March 2026.
Monfort and Historic Denver clashed over initial redevelopment plans for El Chapultepec
El Chapultepec, a legendary jazz club, closed in 2020. Monfort bought the property in 2002 for $5.4 million, according to property records. The site is home to the Giggling Grizzly, too.
Monfort Companies is owned by the state’s preeminent Monfort family, who also own the Colorado Rockies.
Originally, the Monforts planned to completely demolish the property, saying it had turned out to be dangerously dilapidated.
But that plan had run into opposition from Historic Denver. Structures on the property date back to 1897, according to city records.
Residents protested the plans for demolitions, asking Monfort to “stop erasing our city.”
Eventually, Historic Denver and Monfort came up with a compromise plan that would save some elements of the old building.
They were initially rejected by the Lower Downtown Design Review Commission, but made some tweaks and got the approval this week. Those revisions, such as changing setbacks, will cost more than $1 million, the developer said.
The LDDRC was the main government body that needed to be convinced to approve the project. It’s in charge of reviewing changes to buildings with historical and other significance in Lower Downtown.
'Threading the needle' to preserve pieces of the 'Pec
The former site of El Chapultepec at 1962 Market St. will be mostly demolished. However, its corner entrance, parts of its walls and two vintage signs will be preserved. (Those would be the arrow-shaped “EAT” sign and the big “CANTINA BAR CAFE” sign with the cactus. You know the one.)
All those elements will become part of a glass-walled courtyard.
The other building on the site, 1320 20th St., will go through a major renovation, including the addition of a glass-and-metal rooftop deck.
The redevelopment will preserve a corner of the original building and some vintage signage, which will be incorporated into a new courtyard. The redeveloped building will combine historic brick with new glass and metal.
“I hope you will agree we've done a fantastic job of threading a needle here, and that needle really is how do we honor a building that has cultural significance, next to a building that has architectural significance, with bringing it into the modern age from the standpoint of business,” Matt Runyon of Monfort Companies said. “We have tried our best to appease all the parties.”
There were only a few public comments at this week’s meeting, and all were supportive of the project. Historic Denver supports the revised project.
El Chapultepec’s history as a jazz club stretched back for decades. Over the years, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, all of the Marsalis brothers, all of the Tonight Show band, Tony Bennet and even ZZ Top stood on the Pec's tiny stage.
