A drone view of East Colfax Ave. shows several murals that have been completed in the region over the past four years. Courtesy of Colfax Canvas

There isn’t always a big, shining sign pointing to the future. But on East Colfax Ave., there is, and the local arts community in northwest Aurora believes it’s a beacon of what’s to come for the neighborhood and its overlapping 16-block creative district.

In July, the Aurora Fox Arts Center unveiled its iconic marker, refurbished for the first time in nearly four decades. The Fox sign is a vibrant reminder of a past life with its ArtDeco design and nostalgic neon glow that once blanketed the Colfax corridor.

Aurora Cultural Arts District president Morgan Schreiber envisions a bright future for the northwest Aurora arts scene. Front Porch photo by Christie Gosch

It also signifies rejuvenation in a region that’s all too often reduced to its lackluster reputation.

“It feels like the neighborhood got its symbol back,” says Aaron Vega, a project manager for the City of Aurora and curator of the nearby People’s Building. Vega wears several hats for the region’s art scene these days, but perhaps most importantly he counts himself as a “proud neighborhood resident.”

“It’s time for us as a neighborhood to reclaim the narrative when people say that this place is empty or crime-ridden. Colfax Ave. has its issues, of course, but there are so many people here who care deeply about the area. There are so many small businesses that are immigrant owned, or refugee owned, or BIPOC owned. They are doing stellar work and need to be lifted up and sort of shouted out.”

There’s also lots of art.

The Aurora Cultural Arts District (ACAD) is one of 30 creative districts certified by the state. It largely spans the 80010 ZIP code, covering either side of East Colfax Ave. from Clinton St. to Geneva St. The district includes cornerstones like the Fox, the Vintage Theater, Stanley Marketplace, and smaller operations. Inside the Orchestra, Red Delicious Press, and many independent artists also call the district home.

Morgan Schreiber, who was elected president of ACAD’s non-profit arm this summer, describes the district as the type of place that’s propelled by its spirit of individuality. ACAD works with the city in a partnership to boost the district’s reach.

“It’s not all polished and refined for one particular audience,” Schreiber says of northwest Aurora’s art scene. “It’s where a lot of artists are getting started, but there are artists who have also been doing this for decades. There’s a huge range. I think people like the diversity and the collaboration that happens here.”

ACAD is in the planning stages of a project that aims to involve residents more heavily in future plans for the district. “Our goal is to show that people are here and want to be here,” Schreiber says.

Even as northwest Aurora is rife with questions and concerns of disinvestment following the closure of the Walmart at the corner of East Colfax Ave. and Havana St.—which sits just outside the district—there are signs of new life in the area.

Among the highlights are the arrival of Cerebral Brewing at 9990 E Colfax Ave., which opened in June, and Manos Sagrados, a forthcoming music venue that will act as a community hub for locals.

Not dissimilar to the Fox sign’s renovation, which cost more than $143,000 and was half-funded through a state preservation grant leaving the rest up to donations, the new additions represent development in a neighborhood that’s attempting to weave its history into the next steps. Vega likens the process to having an entire puzzle, but all the pieces are in different boxes.

Denver artist Anna Charney stands in front of one of her completed murals. She will co-create a mural at Mango House during this year’s Colfax Canvas that highlights the experiences of immigrants. Photo Courtesy of Colfax Canvas

“We’re starting to put the puzzle pieces together, and it’s an opportunity to make sure that we’re all saying the same thing and we’re all on the same page. It’s when folks are in their own silos that you start to have decisions made about an area that don’t necessarily reflect the area,” he says.

The Colfax Canvas Mural Fest emerged from those types of collaborative conversations and helped produce 30 murals in the past four years. This month, even more murals are slated for walls across the corridor as artists work together with local business owners to find ways to showcase the neighborhood.

“It was an opportunity to put a visual boundary around the district,” says Vega, who is the event’s executive producer. “There were a lot of small businesses in that area that people assumed were closed or empty and we knew that wasn’t true. We just wanted to see if there was a way that residents could come together and help draw attention to all the cool stuff that was happening in the area. So now we’re going on year five.”

Artist Anna Charney is returning to the festival this year with plans to put up a mural on Mango House, a nonprofit space dedicated to opportunities and health care for refugees and immigrants, that captures the experiences of Venezuelan immigrants.

“So much of being a street artist is the creation of public art and making sure that what you’re doing resonates with the people that you are creating it for, the people that will experience it on a daily basis,” Charney says. “I think it’s really important to think through the location and surroundings and who the viewers are of your art and what will inspire them or resonate with them.”

Vega and Schreiber say they and others involved in creative industries across the district recognize the fine line between new development and gentrification, so moving thoughtfully toward the future is part of what makes the opportunity along Colfax so special.

“Colfax Ave. is, and probably always will be, a bastion for independent business and independent thinking. Good luck trying to tame it,” Vega says. “You have to wrap your arms around what makes this place beautiful, which also sometimes takes a lot of conversations about how we think of beauty and what we think of when we think of successful businesses.

“Colfax is a place where free thinkers can sort of test an idea, and that’s what we need right now. We need to throw a lot of spaghetti against a wall and see what sticks, and to have people who are brave enough to have those conversations openly and honestly and dialogue together.”

The People’s Building on the corner of East Colfax Ave. and Florence St. Front Porch file photo by Christie Gosch