Once a spot where hopeful gold miners set up tents and lean-tos along the South Platte River, and, many years later, a place that accommodated office workers and then closed up tight at nights and on weekends, downtown Denver has blossomed into a go-to destination, filled with activity every day of the week. Young people are flocking to Denver’s urban center in record numbers, attracted by its burgeoning array of restaurants, bars, music venues, dispensaries, coffee shops—not to mention Coors Field, where spending a day watching baseball includes soaking in a magnificent view of the Front Range. Residents living in apartments, condos and lofts enjoy easy access to cultural events at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, upscale restaurants in Larimer Square and Union Station, and concert and sporting events at the Pepsi Center — all reminders of how far the city has come since those early days of the wild West.