3045 E. 1st Ave
Occupied, Secondary Road
Gigantic Cleaners Laundry
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Site: Mississippi & Kendall
W. Mississippi Ave
Vacant Lot, Secondary Road, Lower Visibility
Vacant Storage
Site: Federal & Ida
845 S Federal Blvd
Occupied, High Visibility, Primary Location
BCI Second Life Electro
Site: 1st & Sheridan
5185 W 1st Ave.
Corner condition on main intersection - High visibility
Carniceria Guadalajara Mexican Supermarket
History
In 1957 Big Tops was introduced into the Denver metro area
as a convenience store/auto mart. They were among the first convenience stores
in the nation. John Roscoe, president and founder, hired William Sayer from the
Denver architecture firm of Kellogg & Sayre to design the building’s
circus-tent appearance. Big Tops uniqueness allowed engineers to use 3 inch
thick concrete over much larger roof expands for the high-end hyperbolic
paraboloid design. The 60-feet in diameter plan radiated from the center out.
The auto mart was a success and by 1967, there were a total of 15 locations.
There were plans to build 100 stores in the Denver area by 1970. However, by
the early 1970s, Big Top sold off the buildings to other convenience store and
the chains fail to prosper. Still some of the buildings were able to survive
and today, five of the seven surviving buildings have been repurposed into
small neighborhood business such as hair dresser, electronic dealer and
florist.
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