Proposed development could replace Asia Center on Federal Boulevard

DENVER — The Asia Center, a strip mall on Federal Boulevard and Tennessee Avenue in southwest Denver, is at risk of demolition to make way for a four-story mixed-use building. 

Developers with Asia Center Development, LLC, including the center’s landlord Jason Truong, filed preliminary plans with the City of Denver Monday, proposing a new development with ground-floor retail spaces and affordable housing on the upper levels. The city is still reviewing the proposal and has yet to receive affordable housing documents from the developers.

NakedDenver, a local real estate news site, posted about the proposed development Tuesday. Since then, Denver residents have voiced their concerns about replacing the popular strip of Asian-owned shops and restaurants with a “generic” apartment building, though some on social media said the building is in need of repair. 

The Asia Center’s current one-story building was built in 1956. Along with the Far East Center, it bookends the stretch of Federal Boulevard, between Alameda Avenue and Mississippi Avenue, that serves as Denver’s official Little Saigon Business District. The area is an important cultural hub for Denver’s Vietnamese and Asian communities.

Katrina Nguyen, a realtor and southwest Denver native, started a Change.org petition called “Save the Asia Center on Federal Boulevard” to demonstrate community support for preserving the center. The petition received more than 6,900 signatures in two days.

Nguyen’s family members have owned and worked at businesses in the center over the years. Her aunt owned Ba Le Sandwich, and her mom’s first job in America was at the hair salon next door. She’s worried that the new development will erase the cultural and personal history that many community members have with the center.

“There's not a lot of places that are truly authentic to our culture anymore,” Nguyen said. “There's a lot of, I would say, westernization when it comes to our culture these days. And so for a place where our parents have built businesses and that we grew up around and the recipes have been the same for decades and stuff like that, that's very rare.”

Less than 4% of the Denver population identifies as Asian, and that small community, Nguyen said, makes representation — like the businesses and culture in the Asia Center — even more important.

In a statement, Asia Center Development, LLC said that there are no finalized plans or timeline for construction, and that the group — made up of Asian-American immigrants and people from the area — wants to honor the center’s cultural significance and engage with the community’s input.

The proposed development would replace the building that currently houses businesses like Tony Pho, Ba Le Sandwich, Hong Kong Barbecue and Golden Pho & Grill. Adjacent buildings in the center — that house New Saigon Supermarket, Star Kitchen and Pho 555 — are not part of the proposed construction site.

Angel Dao has worked at Tony Pho since the restaurant opened in 2016 and describes her manager and coworkers as family. She said she learned about the proposed demolition of the center from customers, not from the building’s landlord or developers. 

Dao is concerned about the restaurant’s future if the development goes through. She can’t imagine the business would move into the renovated retail spaces in the proposed development because she thinks the rent will be higher than what they pay right now.

“We build a business. We build a community. We know each other very well,” said Dao, who lives near the center. “Right now, with the old building, we have a good price for the rent, so that is why we can lower the food [prices], lower everything in order to support the community because the community around this area is kind of low income.”

Dao said she’d like to see the current building structurally improved, but she doesn’t want it to be torn down and replaced entirely.

Eight-year Athmar Park resident Ruth Poliakon feels “cautiously optimistic” about the proposed development but wants the community to have a say in what the redevelopment looks like, if it moves forward.

Poliakon sees the new sidewalks, shade trees and affordable housing options as potential benefits of the new construction. But she would like to see the proposed design updated to include culturally-relevant architectural details and a binding agreement to allow the current tenants to keep their locations after construction.

“I don't want my friends and neighbors (or myself) priced out of the neighborhood. If my neighborhood became bougie and whitewashed I would honestly consider leaving. I feel that we can improve things and avoid the pitfalls of gentrification,” Poliakon said in an email.

Developers and business owners are set to meet next Wednesday at a Little Saigon Business District Meeting.

Nguyen said she is working on creating an opportunity for public comment, where community members can share their opinions about the potential redevelopment with the City Council.

This is a developing story, and Rocky Mountain PBS will provide updates as we learn more.