New owner plans to demolish ex-Hanson’s building in Platt Park

A onetime burger joint in Platt Park is coming down.

“I don’t think the neighborhood has been very appreciative of the current status of the building,” said Doug McKinnon.

The real estate professional, who runs McKinnon & Associates, spent $2.9 million in cash last week on the 1301 S. Pearl St. property. The building sits at the southwest corner of Pearl Street and Louisiana Avenue, and was last home to Hanson’s Grill & Tavern, which closed at the end of 2019.

But McKinnon isn’t after the building. He said he plans to knock it down “immediately.” The site spans 12,500 square feet, making the deal worth $232 a square foot for the land.

The seller, Greenwood Village-based real estate developer Cadence Capital, bought the property in September 2020 for $2.6 million. The company filed plans to make the building into office space, records show, but that never happened.

Cadence did not respond to a BusinessDen request for comment Monday. The firm hired Blue West Capital to market the property for sale in May this year. No list price was specified.

“It’s like the eBay effect: When competing, people will push the value or the price … Without having a price shown, everyone can underwrite it based on what they want to do with it,” said Blue West partner Robert Edwards.

Edwards worked the deal with colleague Josh Lorenzen. He said over a dozen groups were seriously interested in buying the property. One proposed a hotel, another wanted to try coworking. But McKinnon had the best offer.

“It’s a very prominent infill site that people were tripping over themselves to acquire,” Edwards said.

McKinnon isn’t sure what will go up in the restaurant building’s place. The site is zoned for up to three stories, but could go up to four with income-restricted housing there. McKinnon said he has no plans to rezone the land.

The building was constructed in 1911 and once reportedly housed apartments. But in recent history, it’s been a restaurant and watering hole for the Platt Park and West Wash Park neighborhoods.

Before Hanson’s opened in the early aughts, it was home to a Mexican spot, and before then was the Oak Alley Inn, which attracted “an eclectic mix of University of Denver students, Gates Rubber Company workers and the odd coke dealer, all drawn by the cheap beer, cheaper ambience and really cheap companionship,” Westword once wrote.

McKinnon’s other Denver holdings include three corners along Colorado Boulevard that he’s branded “Cherry Creek Gateways.” He sold a fourth last year.

Get more real estate and business news by signing up for our weekly newsletter, On the Block.