Iconic Sheplers sign on I-25 stays, but the western wear store behind it is long gone

If you’ve ever driven I-25 through south Denver, you know the Sheplers sign. It’s been sitting at the Orchard Road interchange since 1977, back when Sheplers Western Wear opened its third-ever store in what was then a booming suburb expanding rapidly to the southeast. For decades, that sign was a landmark, a beacon for cowboys, country fans and anyone who needed boots, jeans or a hat on the way home from work. The store itself eventually became a Boot Barn, and Boot Barn has since moved on. Now, Grace Chapel, a non-denominational church currently in Douglas County, is under contract to take over the 86,600-square-foot building at 8500 E. Orchard Road and turn it into a church.

But the real drama? The sign. Last week, the Greenwood Village City Council got into it over whether the old Sheplers sign should stay or go as part of the property transition. Councilman Paul Wiesner didn’t mince words: “It’s an eyesore. It does not fit in with the city.” Councilwoman Libby Hilton Barnacle fired back: “Have you no mercy or nostalgia, Mr. Wiesner?” The sign is staying, at least for now, and honestly, for anyone who grew up driving past it, that feels right. Some landmarks earn their spot.

For a country station located just on the other side of the highway, this one hits close to home. That building has been part of the western wear fabric of the Denver metro area for nearly 50 years. Sheplers opened the Colorado location in 1977 as part of its expansion under the W.R. Grace conglomerate, and by the early ’80s they’d added a second Colorado store in Northglenn. The brand eventually merged into Boot Barn, the physical store downsized, and now the building with its 30-foot timber ceilings and 4.8 acres is becoming a church. Grace Chapel says it wants to create a “basecamp for worship, mission, and serving our neighbors” and envisions a community space open seven days a week, not a mega-church.