A slew of restaurants could find a home on Mercury Village Drive overlooking the Animas River in a new project called Taste Durango.
Ed Kileen, an owner of Peak Development Partners, is proposing the 10,000- to 12,000-square-foot building that is envisioned as an incubator for restaurants.
“There is not a lot of food options, period, that play to the river,” Kileen said.
The Durango Planning Commission unanimously and enthusiastically approved an early concept of the building on Monday.
“I think it’s aesthetically interesting,” Commissioner Jason Cross said.
It would be built with recycled shipping containers that would be incorporated into the design and serve as the kitchens for restaurants, Kileen said.
It’s modeled after similar concepts that have been successful in larger cities such as Austin and Portland.
The two-story building is planned to have decks, space for about seven to nine restaurants on the first floor and a taproom. The taproom would extend to the second floor, where there would be event space, according to conceptual plans.
The second floor is expected to host meetings or fundraisers, he said.
The restaurants are expected to cater to those working in the commercial corridor, and it could have between 60 to 75 parking spaces, Kileen said.
The project could be finished by next fall, Planner Savannah Jameson said.
It faces several more layers of public review, by both the commission and Durango City Council.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
