The nurses dorm on the University of Colorado Hospital campus was built in the classical style 1924. The architect was Maurice B. Biscoe who helped organize the Denver Cactus Club, was the second president of the Colorado Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. While in Denver he also designed the Dickinson Branch Library, Bemis and Cossitt Halls for Colorado College and the Physics Building on the campus of Colorado A&M in Fort Collins. (Now CSU).
In 1925, The University of Colorado’s Colorado General Hospital — University Hospital, opened on Colorado Boulevard. The first buildings were built on seventeen acres of land, donated by Frederick Bonfils, publisher of The Denver Post. The campus included a medical school, a nursing school, the hospital, the Colorado Psychopathic Hospital, the nurses dorm and a power plant. This campus was referred to as being “out in the prairie”. Just think, how times have changed.
The dorm was to serve as the “cultural center” of the new Fuqua development with offices on the second floor and upscale sit-down restaurants on the first. Now the future in unknown. In the statement from Fuqua a few days ago, it appeared that a hotel may be planned for the re-use of building.
It may not be a bad idea, given the area. As we reported prior, the land where trader Joe’s will be built was going to have a 160-room Residence Inn by Marriott, which the the neighborhood was in favor of. So it should not be an issue this time unless Fuqua decides to put in a W Hotel. Does that stand for Wallmart Hotel?
Well we will see.
In the photo you see how the area looked it was when first built.
With Walmart pulling out, it will be interesting to see how this changes the Character of the development.
If you are wondering, the W in W Hotels stands for worldwide.
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- Redevelopment Interruptus: Walmart Pulls Out of Fuqua Deal (downmainstreet.com)
- Tired of the Speculation, Trader Joe’s Confirms (downmainstreet.com)
- Walmart pulls out of 9th and Colorado redevelopment project in Denver – The Denver Post (artstarzz.wordpress.com)
- Mayor Hancock Speaks Out On Walmart (downmainstreet.com)
I have never been given a satisfactory reason for why the nurses dorm was selected over the Psychiatric Hospital as the one historic building saved from this campus. Having been inside both, I think the Hospital is a more interesting building (minus the addition along 8th Ave). At one of the neighborhood meetings two years ago, I asked this question and was told, “we thought the hospital was full of too many bad memories.” I think this is a terrible reason to select one historic building over another. Do you have any insight on how the selection was made and by whom? Was someone with expertise involved or just someone from the neighborhood with “an opinion”?