All-Star lodging
Steve Angelo Denver, shown in the entrance hallway that doubles as a dance floor in his Riverfront Tower penthouse, is willing to rent his loft to the right person during the NBA All-Star Game events this weekend. An “undisclosed celebrity” has expressed interest in renting the penthouse for about $20,000
All-Star interest for posh penthouses
LoDo Homeowners look to score off celebrity rentals
A professional basketball player offered Stephen Angelo $17,500 to rent his 5,100-square-foot penthouse loft in Riverfront Tower for the NBA All-Star Game this weekend.
But Angelo, who heads Broadway Mortgage in Denver and is the largest shareholder of a Greenwood Village-based mineral exploration company, Calais Resources, isn’t taking the offer.
“I met with his entourage – or posse, I guess you’d call it,” Angelo said Monday while giving a tour of his 13th-floor penthouse on Little Raven Street. The loft is filled with $150,000 in rugs, antiques, high-tech TVs and sound systems, and a computerized hallway light system that provides more than a million different combinations of colors and patterns.
“I’m a good enough judge of character to know these guys are not going to leave it exactly like they found it,” added Angelo, 38, who declined to identify the basketball player.
It’s just as well because a few hours later he received a call from an agent representing an “undisclosed celebrity” who was willing to pony up about $20,000 for the penthouse during the All-Star Game.
Angelo, who is willing to rent his high-security Riverfront Park unit to the right person, is apparently at the top of the market during the
All-Star Game. Steve Angelo, who is willing to rent his high-security Riverfront Park Denver unit to the right person, is apparently at the top of the market during the long President’s Day weekend, when Denver will host the NBA All-Star Game. The event is expected to draw 20,000 people and pump $30 million into the economy.
Actor Jack Nicholson and singer Tina Turner, as well as many athletes, are reportedly among those who have made inquiries for housing during the weekend.
Virtually all of the 5,300 downtown hotel rooms are full, creating an unusual opportunity for people to rent out their homes for a quick buck.
Those willing to settle for a one-bedroom apartment can find one for about $250 a night – still about double the normal rental rate.
Lee Ann Nielson, a broker with Kentwood City Properties, said she has four or five clients who are interested in renting their downtown lofts for $3,000 to $5,000 during the All-Star events. If they hit pay dirt, they’ll head for the mountains.
“They’ll get out of Dodge,” Nielson said. “It would be the fun thing to do, and you can make a little extra money. This happened during the hockey all-star game here a few years ago. And there have been media reports about Cherry Hills homes being rented, so why not do it in LoDo and walk to the Pepsi Center and all of the other parties?”
Tim Lunistra, owner of Denver-based Apartment Finders International, said the frenzy is nowhere near what it was in 1993 when Pope John Paul II came to Denver for World Youth Day. Most of those people were seeking modest lodging, however, as many people were traveling in a tight budget. One man tried to rent his house, located across from the site where the Pope was schedule to say Mass, for $10,000 – and found no takers.
Lunistra said he doesn’t think the money is worth the risk.
“A number of years ago, we rented a penthouse off Cheesman Park to some rock stars,” Lunistra said. “It was a heck of a sum, $12,000 or $15,000. The owners were going to be out of town anyway. The (band) came in and trashed it, and the $15,000 didn’t come close to covering the cost to repair it.”
If Angelo winds up renting his loft, he plans to lock up his rugs and other valuables in a large walk-in closet.
“I prefer the mil-mannered executives and the low-key movie stars,” said Angelo, who frequently leases his $5 million condo for $2,500 a night. “I don’t mind if someone gets a little crazy, but I don’t want them to be crazy all the time.”
He said he isn’t putting his penthouse on the market just for the money.
“It’s actually a lot of fun,” Angelo said. “The design is a reflection of my creativity, and I haven’t had one negative response. And I know at $2,500 a night, I’m not renting to riff-raff. Besides, I travel a lot, and I might as well get some money from it when I’m not here.”
By John Rebchook
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