A cacophony of sounds behind the coffee bar starts many mornings at Prodigy Coffeehouse in Denver’s Globeville neighborhood, waking up early customers before they’ve even had their first cup of coffee.
But since the end of March, the constant whir of the coffee machine and the accompanying hiss of the steam wand have quieted down as the flow of customers has slowed.
Due to construction, daily sales at the café, which opened in September 2022, have been halved According to Ifen Shahrezaei, executive director of Prodigy Ventures, a nonprofit organization behind the cafe, the barrier overwhelmed the entire area and at times fenced off the store, causing customers to think it was closed.
The economic downturn doesn’t just impact Prodigy Coffeehouse’s bottom line: It also reduces on-the-job training opportunities for its baristas, or apprentices – all adolescent adults, many of whom live in the area and have turned to the coffeehouse for a sense of stability and a jumpstart in their careers.
“If there are no clients, the apprentices don’t learn,” Shahrezaei said. “They don’t understand how to engage with the community. They don’t utilize their technical skills and they don’t make drinks. They don’t celebrate success in a team environment. They don’t have any of that experience because the store is basically dead. So we have to ask ourselves, is this the right place for us? Because if there is no business, there are no apprenticeships.”
A coffee shop that has a different location which opened near Colorado Boulevard in 2015it became a gentle landing pad for adolescent adults who hadn’t fully planned their future. The space is part cafe, part shelter for the 25 interns and seven employees who keep both stores running. That’s one of the reasons why the nonprofit is asking for support from the community, including through online donation campaignto support employees survive the disruption to business caused by construction work to improve pedestrian access in the area.
Shahrezaei said that Globeville Store – Located near the corner of East 45th Avenue and Broadway, just below the intersection of Interstates 70 and 25, is not close to closing yet, but each day of fewer patrons means the organization will have to focus more on additional fundraising activities. She said the store has yet to reach its full potential, as Prodigy Ventures saw a edged decline in revenue this month after doubling its operating costs by opening a second location.
Meanwhile, demand for the year-round apprenticeship program has only grown, with the nonprofit receiving 170 applications last year for 25 positions.
“These districts have the next great leaders,” Shahrezaei said. “We give them a chance to understand that greatness and activate it. So we don’t do anything they can’t do themselves. We just give them space to activate.”
After all, this is their space to come alive, as most students have long called the neighborhoods adjacent to both Prodigy locations home.
“They want to continue to live in their neighborhoods,” Shahrezaei said, “and they should be able to showcase what they want to see in those communities. So internship programs enhance their understanding of how to be leaders.”
A second chance – followed by countless other chances
Construction to improve pedestrian conditions began this spring, and the city closed West 44th Avenue between Broadway and Cherokee streets, according to Nancy Kuhn, spokeswoman for the Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure.
The road is expected to open by the end of the month, but construction will continue through mid-June, Kuhn wrote, noting that the city has posted a bulletin board on Washington Street to let people know that local businesses are still operating.
The project is being funded primarily through Elevate Denver Bond dollars, which taxpayers agreed to in November 2017. The bond will provide $47.7 million to fill sidewalk gaps, of which approximately $17 million will go to Denver’s Globeville neighborhoods, Elyria and Swansea, Kuhn wrote.
Once the project is completed, the area will become more accessible to pedestrians and people with physical disabilities. It will also improve pedestrian access to the 41st and Fox Street airy rail station and enhance safety, including for students walking to and from Garden Place Elementary School, according to Kuhn.
Meanwhile, Prodigy Coffeehouse apprentices-turned-geniuses continue to hone their skills behind the coffee bar and dedicate several hours a week to learning a variety of life skills, including financial literacy, civic engagement, nutrition and lively lifestyles, in the on-site training room.
Among them is Lola Valdez, 20, who has perfected the art of pouring frothed milk over lattes in a fine tulip shape. Valdez, a Globeville resident, rose to one of the program’s advanced apprenticeship positions, training less experienced apprentices after she mastered the store’s sales system, helped make drinks and took over the cafe.
“Before I even found this place, I was very shy and didn’t speak out, but they helped me come out of my shell and want to speak more and just talk to more people,” Valdez said. “And I feel like it helped me grow a lot in myself.”
Valdez also began therapy at Prodigy Coffeehouse, a free mental health resource the organization provides to its interns. The nonprofit also has an education team that helps interns struggling with food and housing insecurity.
No one ever gets fired from the Prodigy Café.
“We offer people a lot of opportunities,” Shahrezaei said. “Absenteeism is something we constantly struggle with here, and that’s partly because the adolescent adults who work here struggle with other things. So we want to make sure we understand where they’re coming from and how we can offer support.”
Valdez, who will complete her internship in May, said she wants to open her own coffee shop one day. Her year at Prodigy Coffeehouse has prepared her to take steps toward that goal while providing a secure space where coworkers seamlessly transition into friends.
“I feel like every day there is more and more room for me to grow,” she said.
Danna Martinez, 22, also found a supportive work environment at Prodigy Coffeehouse, where she feels comfortable making mistakes and being more assertive.
Martinez, who has a background in youth activism, said she has become a stronger leader after working at the cafe for the past six months. She plans to pursue a career in culinary arts and has already gained experience learning how to make syrups at the cafe.
The nearby structure frustrated her because it confined her ability to put her skills into practice.
“When things are really sluggish in this facility,” Martinez said, “I don’t have a lot of opportunities to, for example, utilize my leadership skills or my team-building skills.”
