The sprawling, pale-pink building near the corner of 12th Avenue and Logan Street looks like a storybook castle. From the turret windows to the vine trellises painted on the columns framing the front door, it reeks of romance and history.
According to the website of Maison de Fleur, its last occupant, the building has been home to flower shops for more than a century, starting in the 1880s with the Mauff Floral Co. and continuing into the 1980s with Ardelt-Hardesty Floral Co. From there, it morphed into Ardelt’s Victorian Garden, which served tea in opulent Victorian surroundings. Last year, Charlene Thibault bought the building and reopened it as Maison de Fleur, a florist and event center that took advantage of the site’s historic assets. Weddings and bridal showers were celebrated in spacious rooms with arched ceilings and views of the rose bushes outside.
But last month, the fairytale ended suddenly. The building was shuttered and abandoned, and today, the rose bushes are overgrown and dying, with a for-sale sign stuck between them.
The Maison’s phone has been disconnected, e-mails are not returned and no one answers the home phone number listed for Thibault. According to Denver County property records, the building’s title was transferred from Thibault to Aurora Loan Services LLC on September 8.
The building’s future is a mystery. But if you’re looking to snag a few free roses, stop by before they die off. -- Lisa Rab