Construction Underway on KB Paired Homes in BelMar

KB is moving relatively fast with their development of Block 9 at BelMar. The two model homes are finished, and two more paired homes (4 units) have roofs and windows. Sidewalks and utilities are in, along with some of the common landscaping.

Paciugo Gelato & Caffe

The windows are in at Paciugo Gelato & Caffe, along with cafe tables and upscale glass tile. The general contractor tells me the store will be opening as soon as a glass display case arrives from Italy (it's currently at sea).

Peeking through the windows, the general feel is upscale and classy-- and I love the garage-style door in the front! I can imagine the buzz this will create in the summer, when the neighborhood craves frozen treats. The stylish interior of Paciugo is also a far cry from the sickly green and strawberry crush interior of the Belmar Zinga!, which begs you to run, run away.

No, this new Paciugo looks like exactly the kind of ice cream shop Belmar needs. Or at least, it looks like the next best thing to getting a Liks or a Sweet Action (I'm a realist; I know the rents are too high in Belmar for a local shop ice cream shop to make it). Paciugo itself is a national chain with 38 locations, and its other locations have pretty good reviews on Yelp.

I don't have any information on why the Belmar Ben & Jerry's closed (it seemed to do a brisk business), but if the gelato is any good, Paciugo will do well.

Working With Artists Plans Eventual Move From Belmar

It looks like Working With Artists, the Belmar non-profit that offers classes in photography, is going to follow The Lab and move to a new location.

The Lab, as you may recall, moved from Belmar after merging with the Denver Musuem of Contemporary Art.

Now Working With Artists, which merged last year with the Colorado Photographic Arts Center, is looking for "new digs."

The details are buried midway through this DU Today blog post, but it looks like another disappointing loss for the Belmar's art scene and the Block 7 studios.

Ice Sculptures on the Plaza

Walgreens to Replace Office Tower at Wadsworth and Alameda

The city of Lakewood looks set to approve a redevelopment plan for the northeast corner of Wadsworth and Alameda. The plan would involve tearing down the current office tower and replacing it with a Walgreens. The site would also accommodate two other smaller buildings for potential further future development.

Of course, this isn't the first redevelopment plan for this corner. Until demolition/construction begins, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Christmas Lights in the Plaza

Rayonism Sculpture Installed

Here's the sculpture, the latest to be installed on Alameda as it passes through central Lakewood.

I very much like the hard, modern lines of it, but the scale is a little small considering its installation on the north side of Alameda-- a major, four lane arterial. Perhaps if it were fifty feet tall...

On the other hand, the scale is fine for pedestrians and bikers, and the north side of Alameda is also home to a stretch of paved bikeway. But if that's the case, I would have preferred for the piece to placed in a way that interacted with those pedestrians and bikers-- say, by having the bikeway split and go around the sculpture. Instead it's off to the side on a low concrete base, surrounded by bark. Hmm.

All in all, a nice piece of art, but I really do question its scale and location.