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Experienced builder
To Jlake who stated on the Internet I lacked sufficient knowledge to offer my Nov. 4 opinion on West Ward, I offer the following:
In 1969, at age 29, 1 acquired 56 lots in the Valleyview Subdivision in a Denver suburb. I joint ventured the buildout of all 56 homes. In 1971 I accepted the position as Colorado manager for a mortgage company from Chicago owned by U.S. Steel. This company's major push was land acquisition, development and construction loans. As manager, my job was to review feasibility studies, cost break-downs, etc. On proposals submitted to us by developers and builders. Once a loan was made, I made confirmation inspections of projects under construction, I would then approve construction loan draws based on completed work. I had to know every single component of construction and its cost.
A partial list of said construction projects follows: I can verify with press releases) Lamar Hills, 48 homes, Arvada, Co ... Trapper's Glen, Jefferson County, 110 homes ... Grandview Estates, Arvada, 40 homes ... Bellview Ridge, Jefferson County, 100 homes ... 51,000 Sq. Ft. six building office complex, Lakewood, Colo. 36,000 s.f. office building, Rustic Hills, Colorado Springs ... 28,000 s.f. industrial /distribution facility, Mile High West Industrial Park, Lakewood ... Norfolk Glen,72 homes Aurora, Colo., .... Gate 'N Green 90 homes Bromfield... 76 Townhomes, The Shores, Aurora ... 31,000 sq. Ft. industrial building for Montgomery Ward, Bromfield .... 27,875 sq. ft. industrial building for Scott's Liquid Gold, Montbello Industrial Park ... Belleview Acres 60 homes, Jefferson County ... 68 unit apartment complex, Lopata Construction, Arvada... 58,020 industrial /office building, Atlas Industrial Park, Bromfield... 25 condo units, The Oaks, Arvada ... needless to say there were many others ranging from a single custom home to 20 homes.
In the mid-'70s the residential market collapsed and we foreclosed on many lots and spec. homes at various stages of construction. It became my job to complete the homes and in two cases, because of contractual agreements, we had to build out he project. Working with construction managers, I over saw these build-outs. In 1977, I moved to Alliance and built custom homes. (At this point I was even drawing my own plans) I built a home for the City Manager at the time. He had his pick of any contractor in town. I acquired the F.W. Woolworth building and re-habbed into a minimall. With mortgage rates at 21 percent, no one wanted to build a new home, so in 1981, returned to Denver and became a managing partner in Lincoln Center, a run-down 70 percent vacant strip mall with 14,000 sq. ft., we rehabbed it into office space resulting in 100 percent occupancy.
My "small" event center began as a 3,200 sq. ft. "mansion" that was built in the 1920s ... it had been vacant and vandalized for years. After acquisition, we moved it nine miles to red rock formations west of Denver We re-habbed it, adding another 3,000 sq. ft. (6,200 total). I continued to build custom homes until 1991 when I took over full operations of the event center. Finally to Jlake and the few critics, why do you hide behind a user name on the internet? It may surprise some of you but I have had dozens of folks say they appreciate and share my position. I will let my experience speak for itself.
'Nuff said,