Dreams on hold: These Greeley business owners had plans to expand before the pandemic

Many local businesses have experienced economic hardships as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Joshua Polson.

By Jenna VandeBrake-Page

Aaron Wooten, owner of the Greeley Chophouse and Cranford Cove Tea Tavern, had plans to expand his business.

He’d been renting part of the building that houses Cranford Cove for years, but he finally rented out the whole building. He planned to create a more open floor plan with a full commercial kitchen and a large event space. He also wanted to open a speakeasy in the basement and create a covered rooftop bar that could be used all year.  

But then the pandemic hit, and plans changed. 

Wooten was able to keep some of his chefs from the Chophouse employed during the shutdown doing some basic renovation and demolition work at Cranford Cove, but as the pandemic continues and money gets tight, and he said he can’t keep up with it.

“I had been working with the SBA (Small Business Administration) for almost eight months to get my funding to finish my project, and I think it was the last week in February I got contacted by the SBA, saying I had been approved, finally, and literally a week later they called me and said that all funding had been frozen because of COVID,” Wooten said. 

He already spent over $200,000 out-of-pocket on his renovations and will have to spend at least another $50,000 to get even a portion of the building up and running since the space is practically gutted, Wooten said. 

Wooten said he qualified for the SBA’s Payroll Protection Program, but he’s not holding out hope he will get the money for his construction loan anytime soon. So, his plans for expansion will be on hold indefinitely.

He’s not alone.  

Matt Estrin, the owner of Tower 56, also had plans to expand. 

With co-owners Austin and Janna Jenkins, Estrin planned to open the Greeley Hatchet House by July 2020 at the latest. 

“You would come and grab your favorite beer or glass of wine and then spend a couple hours throwing hatchets at a target, similar to bowling,” Estrin said. “There are a lot of fun games that you could do and usually every lane has a guide that walks you through how to throw a hatchet.”

The space was previously home to Florio’s Shoes.

The landlord planned to make some renovations before Estrin and his co-owners took over, Estrin said. 

“She was getting ready to start her renovations right when the shutdown happened in March, and when it happened, the city stopped issuing building permits for construction,” Estrin said. 

Fortunately for the Hatchet House, Estrin and the Jenkins, were financing the project themselves, so once their landlord finishes her renovations and releases the space, they’ll be ready to hit the ground running.

Estrin hopes that they will be ready to open around October. 

“It’s still coming. It’s not really costing us anything right now because the lease isn’t in effect. We’re not paying employees. It’s kind of one of those things where it’s all in place, and we’re ready to go,” Estrin said. 

As for Tower 56, the distillery Estrin owns, Estrin said he feels optimistic about the response from the community. 

“Greeley’s such a great city and they really, really care for their small businesses, and I’ve heard of some small businesses closing, but for the most part, all my friends that are business owners are all surviving pretty well because the Greeley community here has been so incredibly generous,” Estrin said. 

This summer, Wooten and Estrin, along with several other downtown business owners, worked together to craft a plan for an open consumption area in downtown Greeley. The goal was to find a way to bring customers to the downtown area safely during the pandemic.

“Think of it like a glorified food court where people could go to Luna’s and get tacos. They could go to the Rio and get margaritas,” Wooten said. “They could come over and get pizza from Right Coast Pizza, and they could get dessert from the Chophouse and sit at large tables in the plaza all together.” 

Greeley City Council approved the plan, and it went into effect July 1. The permit will expire September 12. 

Despite this victory, businesses are still feeling the effects of COVID. 

Wooten said he has major concerns about the future of downtown Greeley. 

“We’ve done such a good job over the last 10 years in rebuilding this downtown, and I think that within a month to 6 weeks, you’re going to see half of these places close,” Wooten said. “I’m worried about these poor folks who have put their heart and soul, blood, sweat and tears into these businesses, and into trying to help revitalize downtown. They could lose everything—everything that they tried to do and be and that, to me, is just heartbreaking.”

Resources for local businesses

The Greeley Area Recovery Fund still has grant money available. To learn more, go to https://greeleyarearecoveryfund.com/.