Mile High Mayor Sees Independent Businesses From Both Sides

John Hickenlooper, a successful, popular restaurant owner and developer, has become the successful and popular mayor of Denver. With no previous political experience, "not school treasurer, not dog catcher," Hickenlooper took office in July 2003, succeeding Mayor Wellington Webb.

John Hickenlooper, mayor of Denver

What gives the new mayor a comprehensive perspective on city government is his longtime involvement as a developer of mixed-use properties and small businesses within the city of Denver. Hickenlooper has shown remarkable foresight as a leading developer of Denver's downtown, beginning in 1988, when rents were extremely low. "The downtown was forgotten, and buildings could be bought at very low prices," he told BTW. "I bought five or six buildings and some parking lots."

He considers himself very fortunate to have partnered with Joyce Meskis, owner of Denver's Tattered Cover Book Store, in a mixed-use project that included the restoration of the Morey Mercantile Building, home of the second Tattered Cover store. "We built 94 affordable housing units, a large restaurant, and the downtown Tattered Cover," the Mayor said. "There's a little wine store, office space, a lot of housing, and a lot of retail. It's been very successful."

Hickenlooper is also a friend and great supporter of Meskis in her resistance to government encroachment on privacy or free speech rights. "She's a national resource and a national treasure," he said.

In 1988, as now, Meskis and Hickenlooper were committed to the creation of a thriving downtown featuring local, independent retailers. Not everyone was as keen on the idea, particularly those with deep pockets, the lending institutions. "There were all kinds of challenges -- particularly getting the financing," Hickenlooper explained. "We didn't want to use any chains. The restaurant developer was local, as was our wine store, and, of course, Tattered Cover. [Development with independent businesses] just makes it harder to finance. The big, national companies have such financing strength. Even local banks look at a national [chain] tenant, and for them it's like having an insurance policy.

"But if you look back over the last 10 years, national chains have gone bankrupt at an alarming rate."

Denver has changed dramatically since 1988. Now, many large chain stores occupy downtown lots. Hickenlooper recalls the importance of the $125,000 economic development loan granted him by the city. "The [loan] was subordinated to my bank loan. It made the bankers feel safer -- I couldn't have gotten started without the city providing some of that debt capital."

Now, as the head of Denver's government, does Hickenlooper want to make monies available to developers of small businesses? He responded, "My values are still the same. I think every time development includes locally owned businesses, it's always better for the community. [The national chains] do all of their marketing, their advertising, media purchasing, and a lot of their management functions -- are all done in their headquarter city. Whereas with a store like Tattered Cover, every penny that they spend is spent here, locally, except for buying the books. So you really get more of an economic benefit from their commerce."

Hickenlooper noted the findings of the Liveable City Project in Austin, Texas, which demonstrated the increased benefits from local businesses over national chain stores. "That's exactly what I'm talking about," he emphasized. [For more about the Liveable City Project, click here.]

Does Hickenlooper believe that Denver will follow the lead of other cities and legislate size limits for big box stores? He doesn't think such laws will satisfy residents. "You know, Denver's a western city, and there is a great premium based on the rights of property owners," Hickenlooper said. "'Don't Fence Me In' describes it. My guess is there will be different ways of doing it. I think it's more likely that we will have alternative incentives to make small, locally owned businesses better able to survive."

When asked how downtown shopping districts can flourish, Hickenlooper looked at the successes of Denver. "There are several factors to [keeping downtowns alive]. My predecessor, Wellington Webb, was a great champion of downtown residential development and really encouraged developers like myself to build as much housing as possible. I believe that [downtown housing] is a cornerstone that will eventually help retail gain a foothold in downtown districts. In the end, if you get enough people living in the downtown, then you get enough customers to support the retail businesses. Denver has built over 10,000 units in the last dozen years. It really is remarkable."

His own business successes are a testament to the theory -- his Wynkoop Brewing, founded in 1988, is still one of the biggest brewpubs in America, as well as the first in the Rocky Mountains. A more recently opened pizza restaurant has done record business in the last two years. Hickenlooper now owns seven restaurants in Denver. He is a great fan of the new sports arenas built in Denver because, he said, they draw money and people to the downtown. "We have, in the last 10 years, been the only city to build three major sporting facilities: Coors Field, the Pepsi Center, and Mile High Stadium. The Pepsi Center, where the Colorado Avalanche and the Denver Nuggets play, was built with private money. Coors Field and Mile High Stadium were built completely with tax dollars, and those were very contentious projects."

One arena in which Denver has found unanimity is the selection of a title for the city's first "One Book, One Denver" program. Hickenlooper knows the title of the book selected by a consortium of booksellers, teachers, and librarians, along with the mayor's office, but he can't reveal the title until March 1. Fortunately, Cathy Langer of Tattered Cover has been involved in the book's selection so, according to Meskis, the store is "well prepared for the grand event."

Hickenlooper did have a favorite book on the project's shortlist -- The Milagro Beanfield War by John Nichols (Owl Books). He told BTW that he enjoyed the tale of "the little guys against the big money interests. It's over water rights -- Joe Mondragon starts irrigating this old bean patch and little by little the whole community stands together with him." --Nomi Schwartz