RECIPIENT OF 2021 AIA COLORADO AWARD OF MERIT

The Clayton is a reanimation of a former hotel on the property. The previous hotel was stripped to it’s essence and re-imagined with a more adventurous programmatic structure – a unique blend of public eateries, hotel, private social club, and co-working space, with the ultimate goal being that this new place serve as a hub for Denver’s most creative and forward thinking citizens.

The project is experienced as one of three groups: the general public, a hotel guest, or as a member of the social club. The general public is invited into the building at ground level via the hotel lobby. Two eateries flank the lobby space, one a relaxed sit down restaurant and the other a market type establishment where two large counters serve lighter fare and drinks throughout the day. The public may also find themselves at the hidden bar, a smaller lounge space offering cocktails, public debates and live performances.

PROJECT NARRATIVE: Sitting mid-block on Clayton Street in Cherry Creek, The Clayton boasts a robust programmatic repertoire with publicly accessible eateries, private social clubs, hotel rooms, co-working spaces and even a hidden bar, if you know where to look. Such a diverse program may sound cacophonous, yet behind the quietly handsome facade, every inch has been optimized to ensure a harmonious and unique experience for all who enter.

The Clayton is built upon the bones of the former Inn at Cherry Creek, whose cluttered and claustrophobic form presented the design team with one of architecture’s more formidable challenges - playing the cards you’ve been dealt. From the outset, the difficulties of the existing structure were readily apparent, and many. The building presented poorly with a ‘wedding cake’ form and a front facade that felt uninviting and disconnected from the street and the neighborhood as a whole. The mouth of the parking garage was a commanding presence at the very center. The interiors were plagued with low ceilings and spaces that, dimensionally, were always wanting.

The function of The Clayton is to serve as the premiere destination for the creative type, a place where diverse and inventive thinkers can both work and play. As form ought to follow function, a building with such a catalytic program requires an architecture to facilitate those needs. The re-proportioned front façade presents a unified vision for the project, allowing for clarity that did not exist prior. The base level is clad in dark brick and rhythmically punctured by large expanses of glass, giving a glimpse at the life inside. The upper levels rise as a simple white stucco mass before being capped by the glass and metal rooftop bar. The design is simple and understated, but not austere. Its goal is to provide for the creative rather than to compete with it.

Inside a vibrant world unfolds among the vestiges of the former structure. Daylight is a feature of the new aesthetic. Many of the spaces, by necessity, retain their existing, cozy dimensions yet with the marketplaces, restaurants, bars, meeting spaces and guest accommodations all bathed in natural light, there is a prevailing sense of openness. Darkness is reserved for the intimate luxury of the hidden bar. The double height stair at the center of the plan injects grandeur and acts as an alluring link to the private second level where members both work and socialize in a setting that intentionally approaches a residential feel. The spaces are compartmentalized in a fashion that accommodates the challenging existing building form and allows the users a great deal of spatial flexibility.

Through it’s considered architecture, The Clayton seeks to welcome, and unify, to show what is old can be new again and that a cold drink and the comfort of home ought to never be more than a few steps away.