Diner boss: 'I might as well close'

By Jean Torkelson, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published June 13, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
Updated June 13, 2008 at 12:19 p.m.

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The owner of the Denver Diner may have a national network camped out in his restaurant during the convention.

But he wonders if he'll have any customers.

"This is gonna kill me," said George Skordos, who has owned the city landmark at Speer and Colfax since 1990.

Skordos shook his head Thursday as he surveyed the proposed protesters' parade route, which appears to effectively shut down access to the storied diner.

Its broad bank of windows offers such a panoramic view of the action that MSNBC has inquired about broadcasting from there during the convention.

But the audience Skordos really wants to reach are his 500 customers a day, including heavy crowds at breakfast and lunch.

As he studied the map for the first time, Skordos said, "I might as well close my restaurant down for three hours. They won't have any way to reach my destination."

Skordos also isn't happy that while the city unveiled the parade map to the media Thursday, it never bothered to alert him to the plan.

"They could have made a phone call," Skordos said.

It appears the city did not contact other businesses along the route, such as the Colorado Business Bank at 1275 Tremont Place. The bank's manager, Lulu Roybal, asked to photocopy the map because it was the first she had heard of it.

Still, Skordos is trying to be philosophical. Though it grates on him, he says he's learned to live with the fact that the city never alerts him to parade-route shutdowns, which affect his business about 10 times a year.

But in the case of this route, if anybody had asked, he might have offered the city an alternative.

"In my opinion, they should have put the route down the 16th street mall," he said. "No traffic."

torkelsonj@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5055

• June 13, 2008

  8:34 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  kevin3 writes:

  Wow, what a heartbreaker....NOT! Too bad this diner does not shut down for good. Terrible food and a dirty diner also. Tom's diner down the street beats the table cloths off of Denver diner.

• June 13, 2008

  2:10 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Citizen21 writes:

  Kevin3, do you own the diner down the road? The Denver Diner is always packed - especially late night. Try the burrito santefe!

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