Among the winners is a combined Remix Award for the GBX Group and Tom's Diner, which worked together on a win-win solution for 601 East Colfax Avenue.
The building there got its start in 1967 as a link in the now-defunct local White Spot chain; it's a classic example of the California coffee-shop design known as Googie. By the time Tom Messina took it over in 1999, it had already left the White Spot group and become the Sun Diner; he turned it into Tom's Diner, a 24/7 joint that quickly became a mainstay for night owls. In 2003, Messina bought the building for $800,000. Fourteen years later, when he was getting ready to retire, he put it on the market for $4.8 million; a developer was interested in developing apartments on the property — which would have been last call for Tom's.
But in May 2019, the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission released a report on the building, calling it "potentially historic." Tom's had already been declared eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009; the city's report cited both the building's history and its distinctive architecture. A group of fans were ready to push for historic designation, which would have protected the building from demolition if that status were approved by Denver City Council — and also definitely hurt Messina's retirement plans, as he shared with council during one rancorous meeting.
"It's so hard to manage," he told Westword. "I would get calls at 3 a.m. about cooks that broke out in a fight, that kind of stuff. Or the crazy guy that came in all cracked out at 4 a.m. because it was the only game in town, so you would get that element. Looking back, I would never do it again. I sacrificed a lot of my soul. It's never closed. I took it over with the key in my hand and the staff working, and it never closed, for twenty years."
But then Historic Denver stepped in and helped negotiate a deal that called for history-friendly GBX Group to buy the property, putting it on the National Register and also under a protective easement from the Colorado Historical Foundation; while the land behind it could be developed, the building housing Tom's itself would stay. Messina decided he might, too, at least for a while. And then the pandemic hit, putting the project on hold.
Finally, in September 2022, Tom's reopened as Tom's Starlight, a cocktail lounge and restaurant with far less expansive hours than the diner, but which still "pays homage to the past," Historic Denver notes in its award language. "From the astroturf patio to the Tiki head sculptures and walnut-covered bar, 1970s Palm Springs vibes abound, while the colorful modern contemporary style evokes a space remixed for the present and future."
But suddenly, that future seems a little less certain. While the building housing Tom's Starlight must be preserved because of its historic status, the restaurant itself is for lease, according to David, Hicks & Lampert. Here's the listing:
• 3,684 SF turnkey restaurant available for Lease with a 91 person capacity.We did disturb the tenant, and called Messina; he suggested he could talk next week.
• Large patio with outdoor bar, cabanas, fire pits and a 245 person capacity.
• Newly renovated in 2022.
• 8 designated parking spaces.
• Currently being operated as Tom’s Starlight. DO NOT DISTURB Tenant.
• Over 25,000 CPD on Colfax Avenue.
• Trade area features 241,537 residents with an average household income of $141,743 and 255,899 daytime employees within a 3-mile radius of the site.
In the meantime, Tom's is open for business — and picking up a much-deserved award tonight. The rest is history.
