How Empty Is Downtown? Plus, the Most Mayoral Madness Yet
It’s Friday and we’re talking about all the local stories that caught our eyes this week. First, we talk a lot about downtown. Is it safe? What’s going on down there? Is the Cheesecake Factory still open? But the real question is: What’s going on with all that empty office space? Are we looking at a commercial real estate crisis brewing or a big juicy opportunity? Host Bree Davies is joined by producer Paul Karolyi and returning favorite Jo Ann Allen to hash out the vacancy situation, dish on the mayor’s race, and break down all the other stories that matter.
Finally, newsletter editor Peyton Garcia joins in to share her picks for the best events this weekend!
Here are the events we discussed:
For even more weekend event recs and local stories that matter, subscribe to our weekday morning newsletter Hey Denver by texting “Denver” to 66866.
Bree mentioned a CBS4 piece on people traveling from all over the country to come to a little restaurant in Colorado called Casa Bonita that isn’t even open yet.
Even more Mayoral Madness! And don’t miss the mayoral forum Bree is hosting on May 22 with Brough and Johnston. It’s Hot Ones-style, so they’ll be answering progressively tougher questions while eating progressively spicier wings. The event is sold out, but you can RSVP for the watch party or watch the live stream on Facebook. Should be fun!
Follow our weather guy for all your weekend weather needs: Rain or Shine, it's Andy Stein!
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