Even if you whittle down magazine subscriptions every once in a while, at times it just seems overwhelming.
But when I found some magazines that had been buried under a pile of other magazines, I learned more about a place that mixes old and new – and it is right in Aurora. I had already discovered the Stanley Marketplace, which is among the many food halls in the metro area. But I didn’t know the back story of the Stanley.
I was out there last week with friends for lunch, but also to scope out the place as a location for a reunion next year. As we left, I wanted to learn more about the Stanley hangar and the Stanley Aviation Company. I found it when I “found” the summer 2018 issue of Preservation magazine, which included an article that answered all my questions.
Our region’s historic hangars for the most part have been put to good use. Like Hangar 2, with its cluster of restaurants and a storage operation, in Lowry, and Hangar 61 in Stapleton, an incredible thin-shell concrete structure that almost met its end despite its history. People really worked to save Hangar 61, which for years housed an airplane used by Ideal Cement Company (thus the beautiful concrete structure). It now is home to a church and event space. And the Source, in River North, has taken root in a former ironworking facility, now with a new neighbor: a contemporary building called the Source Hotel.
But the Stanley story has its own twists and turns, in terms of community input, civic engagement, and adventurous preservation. Add in the history of Stanley Aviation, founded by aviation pioneer and inventor Robert Stanley, and it’s a good read (by Lisa Selin Davis) with strong photography (by Benjamin Rasmussen).
Preservation is the magazine of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Here’s the link to the story:
Chandler in Denver 