DENVER – Denver’s Westwood neighborhood is known for its vibrant murals, strong Latino culture, and unique locally owned businesses that line Morrison Road, the main thoroughfare through the neighborhood.
Denver7 | Your Voice visited the neighborhood this week to hear from its residents about living in Westwood.
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An introduction to Denver's Westwood neighborhood
The land that is now Westwood was first purchased by PT Barnum of Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1882 for $11,000, according to the City of Denver. It was founded as a town in 1929 and the City of Denver annexed it in 1947.
The neighborhood is bordered by Barnum and Barnum West to the north, Athmar Park to the east, Mar Lee to the south and South Alameda to the west.
These days, about 17,000 Denverites call Westwood home and almost 80% of residents identify as Latino.
Of those 17,000 residents, roughly 37% of residents are under the age of 18. The neighborhood is home to about 4,800 households, the city reported.
"Going through a lot of transformation"
During our visit to the neighborhood, we first stopped by Cultura Chocolate, owned by Damaris Ronkanen. The shop is home to a "bean-to-bar-chocolate-making company," its website reads, and is inspired by her own experiences of visiting her family's hometown in Mexico.
"Westwood is a community that I feel like is going through a lot of transformation, that is predominantly Latino immigrant — a lot of Mexican people in the community here," Ronkanen said. "We really want to... be able to make sure that we're telling our own stories (and) we're the ones preserving our culture."
Ronkanen is from Denver and has called Westwood home for five years. She said her business allows her to honor her personal heritage and the history of the neighborhood.
She said the shop sources from different parts of Latin America to get their cacao beans. It offers not just a space to purchase the chocolate, but a place for the community to gather.
"I really wanted to create a space that felt very much like... a space that people could connect to culturally," she said. "My mom's from Mexico. I grew up eating a lot of chocolate from Mexico, and wanted people to learn more about the significance of chocolate cacao in Mexico.”
Her shop blends seamlessly into the business landscape of the neighborhood, but she told us that the neighborhood is changing.
“It’s the reality that you see everywhere in Denver. You know how expensive everything is," she explained. "You know, people just not being able to afford to stay in this community. And you see that both from people who actually live here, but also small businesses."
She acknowledged the efforts to support small business, but it's not always enough or is happening too slowly.
"There are definitely people still being, you know, displaced out of this community, which is heartbreaking," she said.
Safety concerns are common, but there's hope a city bond will help
A few yards away from Cultura Chocolate sits La Casita, a small community center organized by Westwood Unidos, where employee Norma Bramvila took some time to tell us about one of her main frustrations with living in the community.
“There is a lot of problems with… safety,” Bramvila explained. “Right now, the system, 911, is terrible. I call sometimes for something and (get) put on hold... for a long time... For me, it's not safe. There’s no response.”
She has lived in Westwood for several decades and said while she hopes for improved neighborhood safety, she still loves her neighborhood.
“Westwood for me is the best. It's where my neighbors, my friends, my family live,” Bramvila said.
Jose Esparza, executive director of BuCu West, a nonprofit organization that helps Westwood businesses, said he loves the neighborhood too but recognizes its challenges.
“There's not a lot of open space infrastructure — that is a huge issue,” he said. “I mean, we have a diagonal road that goes through Westwood called Morrison Road, and it has all sorts of safety issues... With the improvements that are coming here soon — with the city bond — that should address a lot of it."
He's referring to Elevate Denver, a 10-year, $937-million bond program that voters approved in 2017. That bond funded the construction of the Westwood Recreation Center. It will also fund improvements along Morrison Road, which is a project still in the development phase.
To keep up with other neighborhood projects, click here.
Need for support for small businesses
Esparza said in his role at BuCu West, he has also observed several Westwood businesses struggling to stay open lately.
We asked why he thought that may be the case. He replied he believes it's in part due to national politics and conversations surrounding them.
"I think there's just a lot of volatility, and people are scared to spend money," he shared with us. "And this is an area that has locally owned businesses. These are, you know, residents that support these businesses. And so it's not your typical chain. They don't have a huge balance sheet really. So, not a lot of profits to work with. And you know, when we're hearing that revenues are down — for some down 50% — you could see why it's really affecting whether they see hope in the future, because they don't have much of a runway to keep their business open.”
Esparza said right now, Westwood businesses could use additional support.
“I think one thing that I would love to see is more people coming to Westwood, that these businesses continue to stay alive, that as improvements are coming to the neighborhood, that people support and love the fact that this is a very culturally diverse area and we try to help keep it that way and to support local businesses,” he said.
"The community, the people, the traditions"
Ronkanen, Bramvila and Esparza said there is so much to love about Westwood.
When she's not making chocolate, Ronkanen also works as the founder of Hecho en Westwood, a collectively organized community group that hosts regular neighborhood events, including the Cinco de Mayo in Westwood event and Saigon Azteca Night Market in collaboration with the Far East Center.
"You know, Westwood has a huge Vietnamese and Mexican community, so it's like bringing those communities together and celebrating their stories,” Ronkanen said.
Bramvila said La Casita hosts language workshops, computer classes and fitness classes.
“There’s cardio, Zumba, and karate,” Bramvila said. “I just love the community, the people, the traditions."
Esparza said Westwood’s mixture of traditions and cultures isn’t easily found in other parts of the city.
“I think Westwood's incredible," he said. "It is very diverse, very Hispanic, but there are a lot of Vietnamese businesses here. The Native American center is here. And when you look at the youth, it's representative of that mix and cultures. And everybody knows the best Pho place here, but they also know the best taco place here."
"There is so much food diversity and holes in the wall and events going on," he continued. "Definitely come check out Westwood.”
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