In 2024, La Plaza, a sprawling Latin marketplace with 125 vendors, debuted in the former Super K-Mart at 15200 East Colfax in Aurora. The project had been in the works for nearly four years, and one key part of the business took much longer than expected to come together.
But now La Plaza’s food hall, which has space for 24 vendors, is finally ready for its debut. “This is like a little village. We have entertainment, food, a grocery store, barbershops, hair salons. You can buy flowers, go to the law office, transfer money, buy your jewelry,” says developer Doug McMurrain, who co-owns the project with his daughter, Isabel. “Our average stay time is over four hours.”
On the first weekend in April, La Plaza will celebrate its second anniversary. That milestone will double as the official grand opening of the food hall, which is billed as the largest Hispanic food hall in the United States.
Buying Into the Vision
McMurrain acquired the La Plaza property in 2019, just months before COVID hit. The pandemic created immediate setbacks. Investors pulled back, supply chain disruptions delayed construction, and portions of the original buildout were scaled back as costs doubled…