There may not be any carpet, but Colorado Mills mall is ready to reopen by Black Friday.
In a media tour Monday morning, press liaisons showed off the Colorado Mills Mall's newly renovated interior.
Cement floors and neutral colors have replaced the colorful interior of the past.
The shopping center has been closed since a massive hail storm in May caused millions of dollars in damages.
And the mall has about $2.7 million reasons to reopen. That's how much Lakewood City Council was told the city missed in mall sales tax revenue.
Though, the mall's general manager gave a different reason for why it's going to open before its full face is ready.
"Our commitment has been to getting people back to work as fast as we can," said General Manager Kimra Perkins. "I'm delighted to welcome you to the opening of Colorado Mills. We've been waiting for this day for over six months."
For six months, restoration crews have worked inside the mall, repairing damaged roofing, tearing out destroyed carpeting and more. More than 21 football fields worth of roofing is being replaced.
"It's 1.3 million square feet of roofing," said Perkins. "I think it's really fitting that we're really opening the week of Thanksgiving. We couldn't be more excited because we're so grateful."
The most destructive hail storm in recent Colorado history squarely targeted the Colorado Mills mall on May 8. Hail broke through the mall's roof, causing massive flooding inside various stores.
A few of the businesses have already reopened. Some construction continued Monday during the tour, and will be ongoing through 2018 (like that carpet installation).
"I'm so excited to talk to you today about our recovery," said Perkins as she looked up to the sound of construction workers hammering on the roof. "And as you look around, you can see that we're a work in progress."
"We are ready to go. Ready to open," said Mailie Medina, owner of Kataluma Chai, through the sound of a power saw from the nearby Orange Julius.
Medina said her store suffered water damage, but was covered through insurance. She was asked to take part in Monday's show-and-tell, but almost missed her deadline.
"When I was originally asked to participate in this, I was like 'Monday? Yeah, we'll be ready by Monday.' If I'm being completely honest, about eight o'clock last night, my staff and I, we were like little kids that were supposed to be cleaning their bedroom, and then you hear your mom coming up the stairs and you're shoving everything under your bed," said Medina. "We made it look nice, and we're about there. We're ready to open tomorrow."
The mall will reopen officially on Nov. 21.
“It’s definitely been a challenge.” @ColoradoMills store owner of Kataluna Chai (seen in background). #9News pic.twitter.com/fV4ib0h17z
— Marshall Zelinger (@Marshall9News) November 20, 2017
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