Brave New Colfax: Examining the Makeover of the Longest Commercial Street in America

by Paul M. French

It’s Monday evening and I’m parked illegally on Colfax, walking through cones and rubble with a heavy bundle of paper in each hand—what gym rats call a farmer’s carry. In theory, publishing this magazine would be a glamorous enterprise. In reality, it’s a paper route at age 37. Being a small business owner, as folks along this street will tell you, is a humbling experience.

I step inside The Learned Lemur, an oddities shop where there’s a full zebra skeleton on display for $15,000, but also, today, the mayor. Since the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Project started tearing up the street, Mike Johnston has been on a public relations tour, popping into shops and restaurants to mix with owners and patrons—even serving up drinks at spots like The 99ers Sports Bar.

It’s all part of a campaign to drum up business along the Colfax corridor while the street is tilled by a massive construction project tabbed at $280 million. It also appears to be an attempt by Johnston to reassure the community that th…