INC asks for Denver Parks and Rec for clarification

The proposed land swap between the City and County of Denver and Denver Public Schools that has been a point of controversy for months finally heads to Denver's City Council April 1.  INC PARC encourages your attendance at this meeting if at all possible.

---

On March 19 INC PARC sent out a flier received from Denver Parks and Recreation announcing 4 public meetings concerning "Outdoor fee based events" to be held April 9-20.  At the committee meeting held the same night the "committee agreed that the title was misleading and the actual reason for the meetings , and the input that DPR wished to receive from the public, was not apparent. The presumed topic was what has been called “Commercial Use Policy” heretofore.  DPR will be notified promptly that a new flier with considerably more and clearer information should be sent" (Please see meeting notes from March 19).
On March 26 an email letter was sent to Manager Lauri Dannemiller. At this time no response has been received.
See letter below:

March 26, 2013
To: Lauri Dannemiller
Manager of Parks and Recreation
From: INC Parks and Recreation Committee
We request the announcement for the four public meetings of the Outdoor
Fee-Based Policy be redistributed and better reflect what is being presented at
the meetings and what DPR wants in the way of feedback. Even the picture on the
announcement seems confusing and misleading. At the INC meeting, March 19, the
policy was not available on the Parks website. A draft policy should be
available on line before the public meetings and with sufficient time for people
to read and evaluate the policy to obtain feedback requested by DPR. The
announcement does not direct the public to the policy nor does it have an
address to find the policy on line.
We question the clarity of the policy title. It was referred to as a Commercial
Use Policy during the stakeholders' meetings and when you came to our meeting.
We believe Commercial Use Policy better represents the intent and what is
contained in the policy. With the title of Outdoor Fee-Based Policy one is
lead to believe fees will be discussed and is the focus. Will a fee structure
be discussed at these meetings?
We question what will be done with the feedback received. What flexibility is
there in making changes to the policy before it is adopted?
The Commercial Use Policy for Denver Parks is a major change in how our parks
will be viewed by businesses and users. The impact to park users will be
significant. A clarification as soon as possible of the policy and what will be
done with the feedback is crucial to have a transparent and open public process.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Katie Fisher
Maggie Price
Co-Chairs INC Parks and Rec. Committee