Welcome to the Denver Gazette’s Metro Moves. You’ll get the latest metro Denver openings, closings, hiring and promotion news here. To submit your company’s news, drop an email to bernadette.berdychowski@denvergazette.com.

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON DIA CELL PHONE WAITING LOT

A new travel convenience center and cell phone waiting lot at Peña Boulevard, near a new eastbound ramp from Gun Club Road, is coming to Denver International Airport.

DIA and Aaravya Investments announced last week that construction began on the travel convenience center that will be called Elevate.

It’s set to be completed by next summer, the airport said.

The project was approved by the Denver City Council in 2023. It’s on a plot nearly 5.5 acres in size and will include 48 gas pumps under solar canopies, electric vehicle charging stations, a two-story convenience store, a drive-thru coffee shop, a tunnel car wash, a dog park and a conference room.

The travel center’s On the Rise Kitchen will offer food options and it will have a bar and lounge on the second floor with a rooftop deck.

It will also include complimentary shuttle service to Jeppesen Terminal and a secured parking area for vehicles to rent through car-sharing apps like Turo.

The airport is investing in a new waiting lot and travel center to adapt to the needs of more travelers coming through the airport, said airport CEO Phil Washington in a news release.

“We have received many comments from the public that they would prefer having the cell phone lot on the southside of Pena Boulevard for easier access to inbound Pena,” he said. “This new facility meets that need and we are excited to improve the passenger experience by introducing a large travel convenience center as well.”

VINTAGE STORE EXPANDS TO DENVER

Mountain Standard Goods, a clothing store featuring both new and vintage products, is expanding with the opening of a second shop.

The store debuted in Denver at 56 N. Broadway last weekend.

“We spent a lot of our early years coming to this area, going to shows and shopping at vintage stores,” said Jessie Gingrich, co-owner of Mountain Standard Goods, in a news release. “We love that the neighborhood has continued to be a creative, welcoming place, and we look forward to investing and growing with this community.”

Mountain Standard Goods was originally founded in Colorado Springs in 2021. It focuses on “slow fashion” and emphasizes conscious consumerism with a mountain-modern aesthetic.

The store will take the former space of Sol Tribe Tattoo and Piercing, which closed last year following a mass shooting in 2021 when a white supremacist walked in and shot and killed Alicia Cardenas and Alyssa Gun-Maldonodo.

“As we’ve prepared for our opening, we have been deeply mindful of the history of this space; particularly of the immense loss and heartache that occurred here,” said co-owner Hannah Cox. “We want to honor the memory of Alicia, Alyssa, and all those impacted, as well as honoring the legacy of strength and community that was fostered here as we begin a new chapter in this space.”

NEW WHOLE FOODS MARKET TO OPEN IN LAKEWOOD

Whole Foods Market announced it will open a new store in Lakewood on Dec. 9. The store will be located at 14225 W. Colfax Ave.

The new store is a relocation of the Whole Foods Market at 14357 W. Colfax Ave., which has been open for 27 years. It is unclear when the existing store will close.

The 49,500-square-foot store opening in December will be larger by 26,000 square feet, Whole Foods said.

It will have a larger organics department including produce from eight local farms — such as hard squash from Golden West Farms and Ray Domenico Farms, apples from Rogers Mesa Fruit Co. and potatoes from Strohauer Farms.

It will also include an expanded beer and wine department, a cheese counter with trained cheese professionals, full-service meat and seafood counters and a hot food bar, salad bar and soup bar.

The store will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.