Elsa Harberg never thought she\u2019d be in the gas station business.<\/p>\n
But as the landlord of 2200 E. Colfax Ave., she didn\u2019t have much of a choice.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe spent eight months with brokerage trying to sell or lease to traditional (convenience) store gas station concepts, but they want tons of pumps and more square footage,\u201d Harberg said of the property, which used to be home to Choice Market.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt became clear \u2026 we needed to do something different,\u201d added the executive with St. Charles Town Co.<\/p>\n
So, the firm, which Harberg\u2019s father, Charlie Woolley, started 30 years ago, decided to open and operate a business within it itself.<\/p>\n
The 2,300-square-foot Wyman\u2019s Mercantile, named after the historic district it resides in, will open in early July, Harberg said. It will essentially be a rebrand of Choice, which described itself as a combination of 7-Eleven and Whole Foods.<\/p>\n
\u201cWyman\u2019s will have all the locally sourced, naturally made, high-quality products that Choice had,\u201d Harberg said, specifically mentioning Hinman Pie \u2014 which makes \u201cthe best cherry pie in the world\u201d \u2014 as one of the vendors. \u201cAnd we will also have the Lay\u2019s and Coca-Colas that East High School students can afford.\u201d<\/p>\n
General Manager Sarah Dolfi, who handled retail operations for Choice Market, said local chain Renegade Burrito will likely man the kitchen and food service counter, though the deal is not 100% done. When Wyman\u2019s opens, she said, it will have grab-and-go options such as salads, sandwiches and wraps.<\/p>\n
At full strength, Wyman\u2019s could have the fast-casual burrito option, coffee and pastries as well, Dolfi said.<\/p>\n
Cars also can fuel up. The property has four gas pumps and two electric vehicle charging stations.<\/p>\n
\u201cChoice was so spread out and everyone was spread so thin,\u201d Dolfi said, saying that an energized and focused staff will be the main difference with her store. \u201cThis store got left in the dust.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wyman\u2019s is the first retail outfit for St. Charles Town Co., an investment and development firm active in the retail and income-restricted housing sectors. Urban preservation is also a focus, Harberg said. <\/p>\n
The firm has been on East Colfax since the early 2000s, Harberg said, and owns nearby Lowenstein Theater, which is home to Tattered Cover Book Store. The company also redeveloped the Savageau Building next door to Wyman\u2019s at 2260 E. Colfax Ave., buying it in 2017 for $1.1 million and selling it in 2023 for $2.7 million.<\/p>\n
St. Charles Town Co. was an investor in Choice Market and bought the Wyman\u2019s property in 2018 for $1.5 million. Choice opened there in 2020 and shuttered last May. The local chain closed for good in the fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cBetween the pandemic and everything that happened in 2020, they were struggling with a lot of issues like safety, security, theft, things like that,\u201d Harberg said. \u201cThey eventually had to file for bankruptcy, and as a result we as landlords were left with this building.\u201d<\/p>\n
St. Charles initially tried to sell the property, listing it for $3.6 million, but didn\u2019t get any bites. Toward the end of 2024, Harberg said she and Woolley decided something had to go into the building. People had been breaking through the fence and hanging out on the property, and St. Charles was paying for security to check the property multiple times a day.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got on top of that pretty quickly because we knew it was going to be problematic. We deeply care about the neighborhood and Colfax,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd we want to limit vacancies because I know they contribute to this sort of antisocial behavior we see along the corridor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even though the father-daughter duo knew what they wanted to do there for the past six or so months, it wasn\u2019t smooth sailing.<\/p>\n
Between switching around licenses and permits, Harberg said Denver gave them headaches throughout. The changes, she said, triggered several inspections of the property, with staffers \u201cvery adamant\u201d about properly placing bike racks and signage. Harberg thinks there shouldn\u2019t have been as many hoops to jump through, given there wasn\u2019t much build-out.<\/p>\n