Bernadette

Gondolas in Denver? One entrepreneur believes it can lift downtown up Downtown Denver is often referred to as a trailhead — but not often the main attraction — for tourists visiting the Rocky Mountains.

Denver officials are calling on big ideas to revitalize downtown. Well here's one: a ski gondola transit system.

Strike on King Soopers hits busy Super Bowl weekend, putting grocer on defense On Thursday morning, picketing grocery workers were handing out flyers with an illustration of a football next to these words: “King Soopers dropped the ball.”

Grocery workers in Denver went on strike today. And union leaders hope to hit Colorado's Kroger chain where it hurts: their profits on Super Bowl weekend

Denver metro apartment rents fell $70, largest recorded drop ‘ever’ for region Good news, renters.

Last time rents dropped in Denver annually was after the dotcom and housing bubbles popped. But there's no recession we know of now, so what's going on?

In short: LOTS of new apartments.

Tragedy hits 16th Street Mall as businesses are months away from construction relief Moments after a woman was stabbed at 16th Street Mall and California Street, Peter Prasilik, Giordano's director of operations, said he noticed something on the street corner was happening, as

This was meant to be the year 16th Street Mall ushered in a new era. Instead, 2025 has already been clouded by a senseless tragedy

Romance bookstore boom is coming to Denver this year As Denver faces below-freezing temperatures this week, a former two-story office in the River North Arts District is being transformed into a steamy, hot place for books.

Alert alert! A romance bookstore is opening in Denver VERY soon, marking the first of this retail trend in Colorado

*But before you rush to book that flight, be wary that Rome is expecting huge crowds of tourists — much more than usual — in 2025 due to the Vatican's Jubilee 😅

Denver is getting its first nonstop flights to Rome in 2025 There’s a new road leading to Rome out of Denver.

Ciao Denver! Nonstop flights to Rome are coming soon!

Colorado will keep fighting Kroger, Albertsons as proposed merger falls apart After weeks of arguing in a Denver courtroom over the statewide effects of what could have been the largest grocery merger in the U.S., it's still unclear what a local

There's a torrent of news about the mega-grocery merger between Albertsons and Kroger over the last 24 hours, but Colorado is still waiting on a ruling from a Denver judge. The state's attorney general isn't lowering his guard though and he's hoping his lawsuit will put another nail in the coffin

5 areas in Downtown Denver targeted for major catalyzation At the recently reopened Denver Central Library on Wednesday, a map of downtown laid out across the carpet floor like a city street map for kids.

There's a major study happening in downtown to guide Denver's leaders for the next 20 years. So far, consultants on the project named five key areas to pay specific attention to:

Change is coming to Denver’s Civic Center Park. Some worry it’ll 'damage' historical features As downtown struggles with rising office vacancies and 16th Street Mall construction, Denver is planning to revitalize a key part of its urban core: Civic Center Park.

Globally-renowned architects at Studio Gang had the "eureka" idea to flip Denver's Greek Theater. But their current plan to do so may irreversibly damage some of this national landmark's historical features, several experts warned the city.

My latest deep dive:

Restaurant nonprofit hiring incarcerated teens will open in historic Denver fire station Café Momentum, a nonprofit restaurant founded in Dallas to hire youth who have gone through the justice system, is coming to Denver.

Here's a bright spot! Cafe Momentum is a restaurant that gives formerly incarcerated teens an opportunity to gain culinary & hospitality experience through paid internships.

And it's coming to Denver next

DirecTV calls off acquisition of rival Dish, possibly ending a years-long pursuit DirecTV is calling off its planned acquisition of rival Dish after the offer was rejected by bond holders at that company. The deal was reliant on Dish bond holders agreeing

Big news about DirectTV's major deal to buy Dish Network, one of the largest companies based in the Denver region

Thanks to anyone who reads my first thread on here that I spent way too much time on when I only have 3 followers

Yall are real ones 🫡

Thanks to anyone who reads my first thread on here that I spent way too much time on when I only have 3 followers

Yall are real ones 🫡

City and business leaders have repeatedly said Denver is at a crossroads since the pandemic. These economic corridors are prime examples of that.

It's important more than ever to follow these tax districts/authorities, because that's where many critical hyperlocal decisions will be made

Denver’s rushed $570M downtown plan raises questions on how it’ll work Mayor Mike Johnston’s first major initiative to revitalize downtown Denver faces an expedited timeline.

How that money will be spent is still under consideration, but I'll be covering that too once it goes before City Council in December

The area around Union Station is performing better than other parts of downtown and the mayor wants it to be a model for the rest of the city core.

The expansion would include areas hit hard by empty office buildings, and generate more than $500 million for projects between 2025 and 2038.

The DDDA already exists, but only around Denver's Union Station since it was created to support a major restoration project in 2014.

Now that the transit hubs federal loans are nearly paid off, it ceases to have a purpose. Well, until now.

DDDA stands for Denver Downtown Development Authority, which is a TIF (yay, more letters!)

Tax Increment Financing is a tool public governments use to fund development and use additional taxes generated from it to fund more projects.

Success begets more success is the thinking

Denver mayor's push to revitalize downtown runs into difficult realities on the ground Editor's note: This is the first in a four-part series looking into Mayor Mike Johnston's priorities for 2024. This installment focuses on the mayor's goal of "revitalizing" downtown Denver. Read

But there's momentum under a new mayor who's made it one of his top priorities to revitalize downtown (and it's no easy task)

His first major initiative: expanding the DDDA.

Then there's downtown Denver.

Office vacancies are high. Property valuations are plummeting. 16th Street Mall's construction has been hard on its businesses.

This business district helped fund RiNo’s growth. Its renewal sparks pushback The River North, the artsy neighborhood north of downtown Denver, has changed a lot over the last decade: transforming from an industrial zone into a hotspot for trendy office and

RiNo's BID was created in the early days of the neighborhood's development boom, but some founding members have concerns with its renewal saying the BID served its function.

It also comes as property owners are looking for relief due to ballooning costs with inflation and interest rates

RiNo leaders vote to renew business district, consider ‘alternative’ structures An organization that advocated for Denver’s River North neighborhood during its growth spurt is moving forward in its bid to get renewed for another decade, despite criticism from some of

Ballpark took inspiration from neighboring RiNo's Business Improvement District, which taxes only commercial properties (or BID).

But the term for RiNo's BID is almost up and its board just voted yesterday to renew it for another 10 years ... despite some pushback.

The money would fund safety ambassadors to support businesses in this popular nightlife hotspot who need help deescalating situations.

It would also fund projects to beautify the area and market Ballpark as a family-friendly destination for game days.

Downtown Denver's 'donut-hole' problem: Can a Ballpark taxing district fix it? Mexico City Lounge has been a staple of Denver’s Ballpark neighborhood long before Coors Field was built two blocks away. Owners throughout its 65 years in business have watched the

Leaders across Ballpark, where Coors Field is, recently moved to create a General Improvement District (GID) to tax residential and commercial properties as they struggle with crime and rising homelessness — and don't want to solely rely on the city to address their issues

Many of Denver's business corridors — including downtown and RiNO — are at major cruxes due to the pandemic, which drove inflation up and office workers out.

Hi Bluesky! I'm Bernadette and cover all things business/economy in Denver. Lately, I've been covering plenty of organizations supporting some of the city's main business corridors, from BIDS to GIDS to DDDAs.

Yaaaa, it's alphabet soup over here ... 🔡

But let me explain why it matters