04 17 NONPROFIT FRANK'S FOOD MART STILL FIGHTING TO STAY OPEN
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By Kevin Ryan While Frank’s Food Mart avoided closing on January 31st, owner Gerald Hamel still faces a number of challenges to keep the neighborhood grocery store open into the foreseeable future. Fortunately for the Skyland neighborhood, where the “soul food grocer” has resided for 65 years, Gerald Hamel, community leaders and a dedicated congregation of patrons are pushing to make Frank’s a vibrant fresh food oasis on the edge of one of Denver’s most significant food deserts. Frank’s earned its namesake from Frank Aboud, who opened the store in 1952 as a second location to his Frank’s Supermarket, which was located in Denver’s Golden Triangle neighborhood, at 8th Avenue and Bannock Street. Frank’s has seen a number of owners in its 65 years; most were immigrants who came from Japan, Palestine and Ethiopia. Gerald Hamel’s non-profit, Love Uprising, purchased the store in February 2016 with funding assistance provided by the Colorado Fresh Food Financing Fund, Denver’s Office of Economic Development and Colorado Enterprise Fund. In addition to the daily operations of Frank’s, Hamel also reluctantly assumed the name Frank, which he is often referred to as by people in the neighborhood. His reluctance doesn’t come from being called by another’s name, but rather because of humility. Hamel says Frank’s Food Mart is not his, “the store belongs to this community.”
Jordan Lisson fishes in the Platte River after a friend of his at REI told him the fish were biting under the bridge outside the store. Photo by Sara Hertwig. An issue that Hamel is wrestling with is the cost of rent. Denver has seen the median rent increase 41 percent since 2007, according to the American Community Survey. Currently, Hamel is paying $6000 monthly to the building’s owner, which includes the rent and debt for purchase of the business. Hamel states in a petition to the landlord that “the store’s average sales of $26,000 per month do not support these payments.” These numbers put Frank’s Market at a rent to revenue ratio of around 17 percent, which is nearly 13 points higher than the average, according to statistics at bizminer.com. Hamel’s petition requests that “rent payments do not exceed the standard range of 5-10 percent rent of annual gross sales.” The landlord petition to keep Frank’s open came about at the request of the neighborhood. Hamel says,
“People kept asking me to get a petition that they can sign.” He continues to explain that while a petition might not be the right way to address a “landlord thing,” it is symbolic of “how long people go back, and the connectivity of this space, and the uniqueness of Frank’s.” Speaking of one of his cashiers, he says, “What Pat has been really instrumental in creating is the relationship with the customers. She’ll check them down to grade school and say where she first met you.” Dr. Ryan Ross, President and CEO of the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado, grew up around the corner from Frank’s and says Frank’s was, and always has been, a “pillar for the community.” Ross referred to how the prices and fresh food reflect that Hamel aims continued on 3
BLUEPRINT DENVER SEEKS TO CHART CITY’S EVOLUTION By Stacey McDole Blueprint Denver, an integrated land use and transportation plan adopted in 2002, was the catalyst behind Denver’s Comprehensive Plan. Together, they outlined projected economic, land use and job growth for the burgeoning City of Denver. Earlier in 2017, the city produced a diagnosis of the original Blueprint Denver, assessing Denver’s growth and to assess how well Blueprint Denver performed. Now that the diagnosis is complete, a revamped Blueprint Denver is underway. But this time, the city is calling on its residents to help direct Denver’s future.
Time to say goodbye to Neighborhood Life. Read up on next steps
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“It’s important to use community values and their vision elements when planning for Denver’s future growth,” says David Gaspers, project manager for Blueprint Denver. A new Blueprint won’t be written; lessons learned and other takeaways from the diagnosis will be used to overlay a new plan to project growth over the next 20 years. Gaspers says he hopes to have the new Blueprint Denver finalized by the end of March 2018. Gaspers also says the city plans to revisit the new Blueprint more often, and not to wait almost 20 years between visits. A city-appointed task force, a community think tank and civic engagement are the driving forces influ-
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INC's J.J. Niemann points a finger re: a changing Denver
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encing changes to the new Blueprint Denver. To compile data directly from the community, the City of Denver created Denveright. Per the website, Denveright is a community-driven planning process that challenges residents to shape how they want Denver to evolve in four key areas: land use, mobility, parks and recreational resources. October 2016 marked the beginning of an 18-month planning and information gathering session. Through different channels, whether during community planning events or online continued on 6
Lots of school news to read up on as we head to exams
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