Page 47 - ION Indie Magazine MayJune 2020 Issue

Lincoln Station Coffee/Pizza/Music in Lone Tree, Colorado, just outside of Denver, is one of
many establishments impacted by Governor Polis’ order. According to Patrick DiBartolomeo,
owner and general manager of Lincoln Station, “We are a music venue -- we have a full bar,
we have a restaurant, we have a coffee shop in the morning. So, we are a lot of different things.
We have two studios where we teach music, we have instructors. So, that has all been halted.
Live music we have scheduled every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night. My schedule is
booked into August/September right now for my Saturday nights.”

DiBartolomeo continues, “So, all the live entertainment that we are known for and really is kind
of the heartbeat of Lincoln Station, has been stopped. We also host showcases for local music
schools and instructors, and those have all been canceled. We are known for our music. We’re
a music venue that happens to have a bar. The real lifeblood of Lincoln Station is live music. It
has had a huge impact on us. Every day of the week there is activity around music at Lincoln
Station. From a revenue perspective, 75% of our sales is related to music.”

After the March 16th orders by Governor Polis, Lincoln Station started holding live stream
concerts from its venue. DiBartolomeo shared, “My wheels started turning and I talked to
several musicians that are regulars. I was talking to Andy Sydow, a local indie artist. Andy
offered to do a live stream. It evolved into a fundraiser. We set up a Venmo to try and generate
donations and we will split them with the artist because they lost all their gig revenue. So, we
were trying to figure out ways to support them. We did the three fundraisers, and God bless
them, the musician didn’t want to take any cut. They wanted to try and support us and help us
keep our doors open.”

That, however, quickly end on March 26 , when Governor Polis issued “stay at home” orders
th
for the state of Colorado. With the new stay at home orders, Lincoln Station had to end its live
stream concerts after only four live stream events. Zak Sloan, who has performed at Lincoln
Station many times, took it upon himself to host a live stream from his basement to try and
support Lincoln Station. Says DiBartolomeo, “The partnership we have with these artists, I don’t
know if it’s unique, but it feels that way because it really is a partnership between our venue
and these artists. We are doing what we can to keep the music going and they are doing their
part.”

DiBartolomeo says he is not a musician. He just loves music. As he puts it, “These guys have
accepted me in their world. I try to provide a place for them were they can come and go. They
are welcome to Lincoln Station any time on my stage. It is really them being generous with their
time; with their talent…doing what they can to try help keep this venue afloat during this period
of time. My wife Susan and I are blown away by the generosity and the heart on these guys --
Zak, Billy, and Andy -- and everyone else who has offered. They are going to try and support
us. As much as I want to be there for them and I try to be, they are doing for us right now. So,
really, I can’t put into words what it means to us because that kind of support, that kind of help,
gives us the motivation we need to keep pushing and get through. It has been a blessing I don’t
even know how to thank these guys.”