Historic Ballpark Saloon Hard Hat Tour

THIS TOUR IS SOLD OUT

This is a members only tour. DAF Membership will be verified upon ticket purchase. Click here to become a DAF member.

About the tour: Join us as we step inside one of Denver Ballpark’s few early 20th-century hotel and saloon buildings that is still intact. This guided hard hat tour offers a rare look at 2100 Larimer Street in its current state—featuring a partially demolished interior alongside a fully restored brick façade. Participants will gain insight into the building’s original construction, its evolution through multiple hospitality and commercial uses, its period of decline, and the preservation-first approach guiding its stabilization and future reimagining. Participants will explore the original brick masonry and structural systems, surviving historic hotel and saloon elements, and current stabilization efforts and future preservation goals.

About the building: Constructed in 1908, 2100 Larimer is an 11,600-square-foot, two-story mixed-use brick building that is believed to have originally been built as a one-story, 4,000-square-foot saloon with commercial space. A second level later added to house the pay-by-the-hour Western Hotel serving travelers, rail workers, precious metal miners, and early Denver residents. The building was last fully operational in 1962, when it was purchased by Pat Delatorre, a member of a Mexican American family deeply rooted in Denver’s cultural and hospitality scene. The Delatorre family is connected to the former Juarez, MexiDans, and El Charrito restaurants and continues to operate Mexico City, La Popular, and El Toro. They maintained the second-floor hotel as low-cost monthly rentals into the early 2000s, while Pat’s son-in-law, Matt Orrin, later operated the El Charrito dive bar in the original saloon space from 2009 to 2018.

Located on a prominent corner at 21st and Larimer, just two blocks from Coors Field, the building features load-bearing brick masonry with original lime-based mortar, a mix of historic soft and hard brick that has been carefully repointed and restored, an original staircase, full-dimension timber framing reflecting the former hotel and restaurant layouts, an ornate cast iron coal heating system, historic window openings, and tin parapet detailing. Designated as a contributing structure within the city’s Ballpark Historic District, 2100 Larimer represents a rare surviving example of early commercial architecture in the neighborhood. The building is considered historic contributing within the city’s Landmark Ballpark Historic Neighborhood designation and represents a rare surviving example of early commercial architecture in the district.

About the tour guide: Matt Van Sistine is an owner and developer of the project, as well as a local resident, property owner, and business owner. His hyper-local, preservation-focused developments are defined by historic restoration and adaptive reuse. He serves as Board Chair of the Ballpark Collective RNO neighborhood association and was a key figure in establishing the Ballpark General Improvement District. His work focuses on stabilizing historic structures while strengthening the cultural fabric of the Ballpark neighborhood.

Accessibility: Due to the nature of an active construction site, the group is likely to be traversing uneven surfaces or using stairs that may not be suitable for wheelchairs or other mobility devices. There will be limited opportunity for seated rest throughout this tour.

******* IMPORTANT *******

This is an active construction site and anything can happen. PPE (hard hat, safety vest and safety glasses) is required for a portion of this tour. DAF will have loaner sets available for use, but if you would prefer to bring your own, please do so.

For safety purposes, attendees’ clothing must adhere to the following guidelines:

• Close-toed sturdy shoes: Boots do not have to be steel toe. Hiking boots are permitted if they are durable and at least ankle high. Tennis shoes, high heels, sandals, flip flops, and fashion boots are not acceptable footwear for the tour.
• Full-length pants or jeans: Pants must be long enough to touch the top of your shoes. Shorts, capri pants, skirts and dresses should not be worn.
• Shirts with minimum four-inch sleeves.

Refund policy: The Denver Architecture Foundation is a nonprofit educational organization. Ticket sales support the Foundation in continuing to provide quality events to the public. We are unable to provide refunds or credits for any reason less than 48 hours prior to the event.

This tour is likely to be filmed for Silver City Denver’s YouTube series highlighting the ongoing development of 2100 Larimer St. By purchasing a ticket to this event, you acknowledge and agree that you may be filmed while in attendance for the purposes of showcasing this development to the public.

Please note that DAF tours take place rain, snow or shine. If your tour includes an outdoor portion, please dress for the weather. DAF staff will contact all attendees directly should a tour be cancelled for any reason.

Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post