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DENVER (KDVR) — The fight to preserve one of Denver’s most valued historic properties continues as a building that once stood as a convent continues to be targeted by vandals.
Built in 1921, the building located at the corner of 19th and Grant was once home to a Catholic high school, convent and in recent times a crisis shelter. Now its grace is marred by wall-to-wall graffiti.
“It makes me sad, it’s a beautiful, beautiful building and I wish somebody would fix it up and take care of it,” said one neighborhood resident.
Jed Michal provided FOX31 with video of individuals trespassing, throwing rocks and
breaking windows. Others have witnessed the destruction as well.
“I walked by yesterday and somebody had broken the glass; it was all over the sidewalk,” said one resident.
In 2011, Historic Denver joined Capitol Hill United Neighbors and Colorado Preservation to oppose any demolition of the building and push for a landmark designation.
Historic Denver shared a letter with FOX31 the organization sent to city officials saying when the current owners acquired the site in 2016 with a proposal for adaptive reuse it was well received, but now the organization wants the city to slap the owners with fines and other reprimands, saying “these conditions not only put the building at risk but also pose real safety concerns for the surrounding community.”
Instead of maintaining its stature as a prime example of 1920s architecture, FOX31 found the building now just remains on the city’s Neglected and Derelict Buildings List.
FOX31 reached out to the city and owners of the property and we are still waiting for a response.
Historic Denver says the structure remains eligible for designation as a landmark and remains the single most valuable asset in any redevelopment of the property.
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Shaul Turner
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