May 22, 2015
CONGRATULATIONS Class of
VO LUM E 1 4 | IS S U E 26 | FREE
2015
SPECIAL TRIBUTE INSIDE CentennialCitizen.net A R A P A H O E C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
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BRUIN UP A CHAMPIONSHIP
Hooters moves forward Liquor license approved for eatery amid Centennial residents’ concerns By Jane Reuter
jreuter@colorado communitymedia.com
Cherry Creek lacrosse players celebrate their 5A state championship game victory over Regis Jesuit on May 15 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Bruins captured their fifth state title since the sport was sanctioned by the Colorado High School Activities Association in 1999. Find more coverage on Page 25. Photo by Paul DiSalvo
Safeway on County Line among stores closing Lagging profits led to decision, company says By Taryn Walker
twalker@colorado communitymedia.com The Safeway supermarket at the Willow Creek Shopping Center in Centennial is among nine of the grocery chain’s stores in the metro area that will close next month. The stores that are closing June 13 “have not been profitable for quite some time,” said Kristine J. Staaf, director of public affairs/government relations for Safeway’s Denver division, adding that “despite the best efforts of the company and our employees, we have not been able to reposition them to better compete in the market place.” A broker for the trust that owns the Willow Creek Shopping Center, located just north of County Line Road on Quebec Street, said it is too early to tell what the future will bring for the space occupied by the Safeway. On May 13, the Centennial store was marked up with bright orange signs, informing customers of its closing sales. Employee Jennifer Reagan has been with the store for 16 years, she said. “I’m going to miss this store so much,” Reagan said. “I live so close, it’s been easy to get to.” She said there’s been less business in the last few years, and that she has plans to transfer to a store on Arapahoe Road, although her commute will be longer. George and Cheryl Varga of Highlands Ranch were filling up their shopping cart with their favorite Safeway soups — items you can’t get at competing grocers like King Soopers or Walmart, Cheryl said. “We’re very frustrated,” she said. “I’m not happy with this. We moved from Pueblo and that’s all we had there, so that’s what we’re used to.” Varga said instead of closing the store on Quebec, the company should have rebuilt it, or updated it.
Shoppers take advantage of sales at the Safeway at 8200 S. Quebec St., Centennial, on May 13. The store is one of nine in the metro area that will close June 13 because of lagging profits. Photo by Taryn Walker
THE FOLLOWING ARE THE SAFEWAY STORES THAT WILL CLOSE JUNE 13: • 560 Castle Pines Parkway, Castle Pines • 8200 S. Quebec St., Centennial
Blvd., Denver • 7500 S. Pierce St., Littleton (Jefferson
• 22675 East Aurora Parkway, Aurora
County)
• 1730 S. Buckley Road, Aurora
• 3904 E. 120th Ave., Thornton
• 16921 E. Quincy Ave., Aurora
• 12900 Zuni St.,
• 1955 South Sheridan
Westminster
“It’s too old and small,” she said. The Vargas said they’d be following Safeway until the end, no matter where they had to do their shopping.
“I just feel so terrible for these employees,” George Varga said. “People are terrific here, we know many by name, and they know us, too.” Emiliano Dominguez, of Lakewood, agreed and said there are a lot of items at Safeway you can’t get anywhere else. Dominguez lives closer to a King Soopers, but he chooses to shop Safeway because it’s near his work. “Their beer selection is the best; that’s why I come here,” he said. “I’m guessing they just couldn’t pull in the right kind of revenue.” Safeway is making every effort to place store employees affected at other supermarkets, Staaf said. “This was a very difficult decision made after long and careful deliberation,” she said in a news release. “For more than a year, we evaluated these stores extensively and looked at options to improve their performance. Ultimately, our business analysis indicated that we needed to cease operations at these locations.”
Before a standing-room-only crowd of concerned area residents, the Lone Tree City Council unanimously approved Hooters’ liquor-license application May 19. The council showed none of the hesitation some members exhibited during the May 5 meeting, when a motion to approve the license died for lack of a second. The council’s swift action came after comments from numerous people, most of them Centennial residents opposed to the business. Mayor Jim Gunning denied a motion from an attorney representing Centennial’s Willow Creek neighborhood to reopen a public hearing on the application, but allowed people to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting. Several people said they didn’t learn about plans to open the Hooters until after the May 5 meeting. The former TGI Fridays site on Yosemite Street in which Hooters plans to open is across County Line Road from Centennial’s Willow Creek, closer to those homes than to any in Lone Tree. “Nobody knew about the hearing that happened on the fifth,” attorney Neil Lipson said. “We just feel we would like to have been given a chance to speak.” Two petitions circulated in Centennial since the initial meeting gathered 198 signatures against the proposal. Hooters is a national chain famous for its chicken wings and “Hooters Girls” — waitresses who are typically young and lightly attired. Karby Allington-Goldfain was one of two Centennial residents who said they likely wouldn’t have bought their homes if Hooters had been nearby. “I think Lone Tree is a lovely city,” she said. “You have a reputation for the arts and culture. I think Hooters will really bring it down.” Several people urged the council to approve the application. Hooters continues on Page 9
A standing-room-only crowd fills the Lone Tree Council chambers May 19 to weigh in on Hooters’ liquor license. The council unanimously approved the license for the planned new business at Yosemite and County Line Road. Photo by Jane Reuter