Somehow, that gray cylinder labeled “United Artists” is still there, a more important landmark to me than the Clock Tower down the street. Coming from Aurora, this was the place that my mom brought me when she wanted me to enjoy some time downtown. Even now, when people say “Denver,” the Pavilions’ gray cylinder is the first place that pops into my mind.
Heading from Broadway down 16th Street, construction finally stops at the Denver Pavilions. That last line of fencing gives way, and jazz swells from a spot between the benches and flowers in front of the Pavilions, or maybe from inside. But the transformation only goes so far. The Pavilions escalators work going up, but they don’t work going down. Many of the stores are empty. Walking through the space, a lot of it looks the same as it did ten or even twenty years ago.
The Hard Rock Cafe is gone, but Coyote Ugly is still here. The I Heart Denver store is always a great place to find a present or to take a visiting cousin, and it’s survived in its tucked-away corner on the second floor. Lucky Strike is the only public bowling alley downtown, and it’s kept some liveliness. And rows and rows of little balls of chocolate are still visible behind the glass at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory…