Mom- son duo puts holdings on block
A dozen properties owned by Tavern Hospitality Group founders Frank Schultz and Terry Papay hit the market last week, weeks after the mother- son duo reached a deal to end their legal spat.
Denver’s Henry Group Real Estate is marketing the properties, which span from Lohi to the Denver Tech Center, and include a handful of buildings a fly ball away from Coors Field.
“There’s some really, really good assets,” Henry Group founder Pat Henry told BusinessDen. “You’ve got to give them credit — they bought some nice properties.”
The properties comprise all the joint real estate holdings of Schultz and Papay, with the exception of the former Tavern Littleton property at 2589 Main St. in downtown Littleton. That property was already on the market, and is listed by Legend Partners.
The bulk of the properties listed last week are retail — some with tenants, some vacant and some with an office component — but the offerings also include an industrial property in unincorporated Arapahoe County and a Greenwood Village parking lot where an office project could be developed.
It’s not a portfolio sale; properties can be sold individually. And it’s not a fire sale. Schultz said Friday that there’s no timeline for when deals need to be completed, and “as little as zero of them could sell, or all of them.”
“If it’s not going to bring the numbers we want for the property, I’ll either buy her ( out) or she’ll buy me,” he said.
Papay and Schultz have operated Tavern Hospitality Group since 1997, when they turned a warehouse at 20th and Market into The Soiled Dove music venue. The company expanded to include restaurants — many, but not all, with Tavern in their name — around the metro area.
In March 2023, Papay sued Schultz, accusing her son of stealing from the business. Schultz expressed disappointment that his mother had “made a years- long family dispute open to the public,” and countersued her not long after, saying Papay was actually the one misusing company funds.
Schultz warned the dispute would “destroy the business,” which he said had been “wildly profitable.” In February, he confirmed that the pair had reached a settlement that would involve selling real estate.
Only three Tavern Hospitality spots remain open: Otra Vez Cantina on the 16th Street Mall, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot in Union Station North neighborhood, and Chopper’s sports bar in Cherry Creek. The first two lease their real estate, but Tavern owns the Chopper’s real estate, and it’s
among the 12 properties listed last week.
Schultz said the settlement agreement revolved mostly around some residential property he and his mother own in Florida. But the pair also agreed to put all their local properties on the market and see what interest they got.
“We both have to agree on a sale,” Schultz said.
Schultz is looking ahead to the next part of his career, which could look very similar to the previous part, just minus his mother.
“My option for round two is going to be real estate and bars, because that’s what I know,” he said.
He would like to buy his mother out and keep some properties — “Chopper’s I’d love to keep in the portfolio, but Chopper’s is also really good land” — but said everything could sell if the price is right.
“If they all sell at full price, I’ll have some time to decide” on what’s next, Schultz said.
As of Friday morning, there were already more than 20 showings on the books for this week.
“We’ve gotten the most interest on everything in Lohi, and we’ve gotten a lot of interest in the Choppers property — 80 S. Madison,” said Henry, the pair’s broker.
Schultz said he has one thing already planned for when he and his mother officially split their business
relationship.
“When the partnership of business comes out of it, I want to work on our relationship,” he said. “I’m definitely not going to not try. She’s a great woman.”
According to marketing materials, the dozen properties for sale that hit the market last week are:
• Lohi: 1615 W. 33rd Ave. and 3317 Osage St., home to a small commercial building and duplex. The two lots, 0.36 acres combined, are billed as a “prominent site for redevelopment with attractive zoning” of U- MX
3. List price of $ 3.7 million.
• Lohi: 2563 15th St., an 11,000- square- foot office/ retail building on a 0.46acre lot, offering a “unique opportunity for infill covered land play with existing income while owner pursues entitlements for development/ redevelopment.” No list price given.
• Lodo: 1948 Blake St., a 6,200- square- foot retail/ multifamily building. No list price given.
• Lodo: 1962 Blake St., a 12,300- square- foot office/ retail building. No list price given.
• Ballpark: 2009 Market St., a 6,600- square- foot office building. No list price given.
• Uptown: 538 E. 17th Ave., a vacant 18,400- square- foot office/ retail building that connects to the AMLI Uptown apartment complex. Comes with 50 deeded garage parking spaces. No list price given.
• Cherry Creek: 5080 S. Madison St., a 7,400- square- foot retail building currently home to Tavern Hospitality’s Chopper Sports Grill. The two parcels with C- MX- 3 zoning are 0.58 acres combined and billed as a redevelopment site. No list price given.
• Lowry: 7401 E. First Ave., a 13,200- square- foot building formerly home to Tavern Hospitality’s Tavern Lowry and music venue Soiled Dove. The property has a transferable cabaret license. A buyer could also purchase the interior fixtures. List price of $ 5.8 million.
• DTC: 5336 DTC Blvd. in Greenwood Village, formerly home to Tavern Hospitality’s Tavern Tech Center. The building is 9,800 square feet with a 1,600- square- foot rooftop patio. A buyer could assume the dormant cabaret liquor license. List price of $ 6.35 million.
• DTC: 5342 DTC Blvd. in Greenwood Village, a 0.78- acre parking lot that is zoned for office use, with banking and credit union use excluded. List price of $ 1.5 million.
• Arapahoe County: 2101- 2133 S. Wabash St., a 7,400- square- foot building with an additional 4,500 square feet of cold storage that sits on 2.2 acres. List price of $ 3.2 million.
• Arapahoe County: 2153 S. Wabash St., a 25,000- square- foot industrial/ office building on 1.21 acres. List price of $ 3.1 million.
• The former Tavern Littleton property, which was listed months ago, is a twostory, 6,000- square- foot retail building at 2589 Main St. The asking price is $ 3.9 million, according to the Legend Partners listing.