BEAUTY SCHOOL KNOCKOUT

The former Antique Mall of Colorado Springs, on the western edge of downtown, is getting a massive makeover and will open soon as a cosmetology school.

Paul Mitchell the School, set to open Nov. 27, is part of the fast-growing chain of Paul Mitchell schools. The Colorado Springs Cosmetology school will start small, with four instructors and a couple of dozen students, director Micah McDougle said. But in a couple of years, he said, it could grow to 300 students200 during the day and 100 at night.

"From where I sit, this is a huge deal for downtown," said Beth Kosley, executive director of the Downtown Partnership advocacy group. The school represents a national brand that chose to locate downtown, she said. It means more people there. And it means education and jobs, two hallmarks of the Downtown Partnership's Imagine Downtown development plan.

The 14,500-square-foot building at 118 W. Colorado Ave., on the east side of the Colorado Avenue bridge, has had many uses in its 60 years, said Bob Louden, whose Louden Family Partnerships owns the building. Those include a skating rink, a furniture store and, most recently, the Antique Mall of Colorado Springs, which closed a couple of years ago.

More than $2 million is being poured into renovations to transform the space, which is being leased, McDougle said.

"We did a complete interior demolition of the building," he said. The renovation includes building four classrooms, new heating and air conditioning, a new lighting system and refinishing the original hardwood floors.

"It's going to be gorgeous," Louden said.

About 40 parking spots are in front of the building. A property owner on the other side of Colorado Avenue will provide additional parking, McDougle said.

McDougle is a graduate of the Paul Mitchell school in Costa Mesa, Calif. He went on to become an instructortermed a learning leaderthere. Wanting to run his own school, he began looking outside California for places to locate a franchise.

"We were lucky enough to get Colorado Springs as our territory," he said.

The Springs school, the first Paul Mitchell school in Colorado, is a family enterprise. McDougle's father, Ray, is the general contractor for the renovation. His mother, Kathy, will be financial aid leader. And his sister, Cori Rivard, who worked at a Paul Mitchell school in Los Angeles, will be admissions leader for the Springs school.

The family moved from Southern California to support Micah McDougle in his dream, and his parents have provided financial backing. "We're not financing it, we're investing in it," Kathy McDougle said.

The curriculum is 1,800 hours, about a 14-month program, Micah McDougle said. It's split into three phases: the basics; a mix of classwork and time with clients; and preparing for state exams and a salon career.

Tuition is $14,000. A night program will begin early next year.

The school goes beyond basics such as cutting and coloring hair to prepare "future professionals," McDougle said.

"We have what we call a forward-focused culture, which is really a process of managing your life in a positive way. We try to avoid gossip or any kind of negativity and focus on developing ourselves personally and professionally."

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0272 or bill.radford@gazette.com

ADMISSION

To apply for admission to Paul Mitchell Beauty & Hair Schools, call 636-1426. For more information, check out the school's Web site at http://paulmitchell.edu.