Colorado Real Estate Journal - February 21, 2018
The Neenan Co., a fully integrated design-build firm based in Colorado, recently completed a new music venue facility in downtown Fort Collins. The two-story, 21,256-square foot historic redevelopment is almost twice the size of the former 11,000-sf building. The facility has been renovated to include performance space accommodating a 900-person audience, mix station, two-level lobby and two full-service bars. The adaptive reuse project broke ground in January 2017 and is located at 132 Laporte Ave. in Old Town Fort Collins. The historic sandstone building originally housed the warehouse portion of the Akin Building, planned by Montezuma Fuller in 1903. Through the years it was home to many businesses, most recently Washington’s Sports Bar and Grill, a business that opened in 1978. The new Washington’s venue honors the building’s history by retaining the name Washington’s, by preserving some of the original architecture and by incorporating several nostalgic artifacts that existed in the space prior to its renovation. The Neenan Co. served as the design-build partner for the redevelopment, marking its third project with Bohemian Cos. San Francisco-based design firm Auerbach Pollock Friedlander provided design assistance; Barbizon Lighting Co. and Second Opinion Audio provided support with the project’s lighting and sound package.