NAYSAYER OF THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, 2016 by PHIL GOODSTEIN

Editorial opinion
The Naysayer of the Month
The Naysayer of the Month Aprime achievement of Wilma Webb was transforming Martin Luther King Day from an insurgent festival into an official celebration of the establishment. Her husband, Wellington Webb, saw that the police became as brutal as ever while he was mayor. In the process, the city especially targeted young black men. This has been a continuing pattern, especially under the city’s second black mayor, Michael Hancock. Despite the latter’s alleged reform of the police department, police killings of suspects soared in 2015 to a rate that had last been seen when Wellington Webb was still in office. Amidst this, rather than listening to the endless usual blather of Martin Luther King Day speakers, members of Black Lives Matter sought to take over the affair on January 18. For failing to bow down to the pious hypocrisies of successful black politicians, its activists are the Naysayer of the Month.
❐❐
The United States government has readily resorted to violence. Not only does it have a heavily armed goon squad surrounding the president and other dignitaries, but it has rained bombs, death, and destruction on foreign enemies. Its drone program is nothing less than a new form of murder incorporated. Unfortunately, there is a virtual silence about such behavior as deadly violence has become ever more present at home. On the contrary, those with no depth and no ability to connect cause and effect, mindlessly decry guns as responsible for a culture of violence and death.
Colorado State Representative Rhonda Fields is among them. She has not only been outspoken in the demand for more gun control, but she has also been a most vocal advocate of the death penalty. Her message is clear: state sponsored violence is appropriate. Private violence, including efforts of members of the population to defend themselves, is forbidden. Not surprisingly, President Barack Obama, whose administration has embodied the sanctimony of condemning some violence while readily imposing state terror on others, has heralded Fields, arranging for her to attend his church-like condem-nation of guns. For personifying the hypocrisy of the gun-control crowd, Fields is an Associate Naysayer of the Month.
❐❐
Frederick Bonfils and Harry Tammen were the city’s ultimate pirates when they ran the Denver Post in the late 19th/early 20th century. Under them, it was as much a blackmailing operation as it was a voice of enlightenment and entertainment. The paper was quick to smear its opponents while it quickly flipped its positions depending on whether it had been paid for its editorial views. At times, the only thing it understood was violent force. It clammed up in its criticisms of architect Frank Edbrooke, for example, when he trained his rifle on the office of Bonfils and Tammen.
Among those the Post targeted in 1899–1900 was William H. “Plug Hat” Anderson, an attorney who had gotten on the wrong side of the paper during its crusade to free cannibal Alferd Packer. To settle their differences, Bonfils and Tammen invited Anderson to their office at the Post, “The Bucket of Blood,” on January 13, 1900. Anderson came armed, knowing that Bonfils and Tammen were thugs who readily assaulted those whom they could. When the two men attempted to jump him, he pulled out his revolver, badly wounding both of them. Eventually, after exposés of jury tampering by Tammen, a jury acquired Anderson. Former Governor Charles Thomas, who had long been the target of the Post’s vitriol, heralded the acquittal, informing Anderson “I congratulate you upon your intention, but must condemn your poor aim.”
The attorney’s action of defending himself was a horror to city council member Mary Beth Susman. She was among the members of the city legislature defeating the nomination of Anderson’s historic house at 2329 Eliot Street as a landmark. By rejecting the proposal, council has given a greenlight to a developer to raze the residence that is part of the architectural patrimony of the Jefferson Park neighbor-hood. Also, the vote is a message that resistance to tyranny, including that personified by Bonfils and Tammen, is intolerable. For following the lead of Susman and rejecting the landmark of the Anderson House, the majority of city council shows it has as much appreciation of Denver’s heritage as ISIS does of historic locations in Syria and Iraq which it has wantonly destroyed. This makes it an Associate Nay-sayer of the Month.
❐❐
Condominiums will be built shoddily or they will not be built at all. Such was the message of a recent ordinance city council passed 12– 1. The measure eases the liability of developers putting up poorly constructed units. Real estate speculators have loudly yelled that the shortage of condominiums stems from existing consumer protection giving buyers of badly designed homes legal recourse against those profiting from them. Opposed to such deliberation, the construction and real estate moguls have made condominium ownership a veritable utopia, a first step for people to buy ever more expensive houses. In reality, this not only means chaining purchasers to banks, institutions notorious for their shady and corrupt mortgage policies, but also entwining buyers of condominiums into compulsory homeowners associations, fre-quently with extremely steep monthly fees. It is a message that there is no alternative to such dismal policies and limited housing choices. Those benefiting from this bleak situation have launched another publicity and political campaign to get the General Assembly to ratify their short-sighted, grasping immunity for shoddy construction.
Only Paul Kashmann, a former newspaper publisher who frequently endorsed the development agenda and has voted against saving landmark houses, had the integrity to vote against the Denver ordinance. Supposed voices of opposition who won seats on council last year such as Rafael Espinosa and Wayne New went along with it. For saying no to a really bad act, Kashmann is an Associate Naysayer of the Month.

CPFAN BOARD OF DIRECTORS VOTES "NO" ON 2 of DENVER’S STORM WATER DRAINAGE OPTIONS.

by Louis Plachowski

ASKS CITY TO SLOW DOWN AND DEVELOP BETTER OPTIONS.
"We must take the time to bring the neighborhoods together to find a mutually satisfactory solution."
CPFAN's Board of Directors recently voted to reject  the 2 OPTIONS proposed by the City of Denver and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) for storm water flood mitigation and asked the city for different options that would have less impact on neighborhoods.

The OPTIONS seem to be designed mainly to protect  the Highway I 70 expansion from a 100 year flood. See the I 70  Environmental Impact Statement. (EIS)
Storm water flooding is a concern for CDOT because it plans to lower and cover a section of Highway  I 70, 40 feet down into a trench, 20 feet below the water table, next to the South Platte River and in the path of a major drainage.
If it were not for the requirement that the lowered, partially covered highway must be protected against a 100 year flood, it seems that neither the need nor the urgency to build such storm water detention basins as Option 1 &2,  would be necessary.
Denver Public Works has a backlog of $1.5 billion in projects of equal or more immediate concern to neighborhoods, all outlined in its 2014 Storm Drainage Plan. Will citizens be asked to pay higher Storm Water fees to help pay for this project?
These options were developed through a multi-agency task force which included representatives from CDOT, RTD, Denver and Urban Drainage sometime in 2014 and never presented to any members of the public until Nov. 2015 and Feb. 2016.   Thousands of citizens are totally unaware that a major drainage project is being quickly advanced by the City. They were presented in community meetings by GBSM, a PR firm hired by the city.
The initial GBSM presentations seemed to imply that flooding in neighborhoods such as North Park Hill and others would get some flood relief from the proposed Options , but it was later confirmed that the flood relief from these Options would not extend to those neighborhoods.
O PTION 1:
Bulldoze 50 acres of Historic City Park Golf Course (NRHP) ( 1/3 rd of the course) designed by nationally renowned course designer,Tom Bendelow. Cut down 280+ historic, mature trees and bulldoze the recently completed ( 2001) Club House on 26th and York that houses Bogey's restaurant, a large community room and the pro shop. Regrade the land to accomodate  a 50 acre, industrial dry detention pond,a utility,  to hold toxic storm water run off. The visual is hard to imagine.
OPTION 2:
Bulldoze 55 + historic homes in the Cole Neighborhood , and replace them with a dry detention pond, a utility, and a 100 foot wide open ditch to capture fast moving storm water run off. The area is already, it seems , impacted by PCE toxins and is an EPA Superfund site. This Option seems drastic, severe and totally unnecessary.
CPFAN's REQUEST TO DENVER :CPFAN's Board of Directors asked that the city go back to the drawing board, with neighborhood input from the start, and come up with options that protect existing neighborhoods and parks.
THE CITY SEEMS ANXIOUS TO PUSH THIS THROUGH.... OVER NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERNS AND PROTESTS.
The city seems to be pushing this project through very quickly.  They want a decision on which OPTION will be chosen by the Mayor as early as the middle of February , 2016. The city, through GBSM, may have done an excellent job of telling people what they were going to do, at myriad meetings, but they never asked what the citizens thought or wanted,in the beginning of the flawed process. This seems to be a recurring issue with Denver.
WHATS the RUSH? CDOT SAYS THAT THEY DON’T EVEN NEED DENVER’S HELP.
The City of Denver and CDOT seem to take the position that their plans to share the costs of some elements of I 70, are,  somehow, NOT connected  to The Denver Storm Water Mitigation plans,

Options 1 & 2. See the  Inter Governmental Agreement.  (IGA)
CDOT’s Tony Devido has stated publicly, that CDOT doesn’t need Denver’s Storm Mitigation project to protect I 70 from a 100 year flood. He says that CDOT has its own coverage. If there is no hurry to protect I 70 from flooding then what is the rush? Denver has time to find more suitable storm water mitigation options.

WHY WOULD THE CITY/CDOT NOT WANT I70 AND STORM WATER PROJECTS CONNECTED?
One theory is that by trying to seperate out the funding and the function of the flood mitigation project  from I70, that gets federal money,  the City and CDOT, will escape the Federal government's NEPA requirements and the potentially expensive inclusion of Cole Neighborhood and Denver City Park Golf Course in the I 70 Environmental Impact Statement.

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE.....IF THEY ARE NOT CONNECTED..
 Then we have lots of time to consider better options. . We requested that locations with less impact on neighborhoods be considered, namely parking lots, industrial sites, vacant lots, superfund clean up areas, etc. and -- even better -- that the city adopt green infrastructure solutions to detain water and distribute the load by requiring that all new development play a part in the solution.

WHAT IF THERY ARE CONNECTED?
The stakes  could be high for Cole Neighborhood and/or City Park Golf Course  AND  Denver /CDOT.
The National Environmental Protection Act(NEPA) seems to offer protections for all land and communities impacted by a project that receives federal dollars or is connected to one by function, like I 70.  The Cole Neighborhood and the City Park Golf Course could be included in the Environmental Impact Statement
If they are connected, Cole could, for example,  receive an EPA reviewed , Environmental Justice report, Many of the Cole neighbors are minorities and low income . The toxins that plague the Cole neighborhood could be assessed by EPA.   City Park Golf Course, on the National Register of Historic Places,  Could be eligible for many protections offered historic properties by the Federal government, in a Section 106 Review.

DO YOU THINK THAT THE TWO PROJECTS ARE CONNECTED?
When you read the Inter Governmental Agreement (IGA) you see references that the projects seem to be connected. For example, on page 5H of the IGA, Denver agrees to pay $5000 a day  in liquidated damages, for each day that it is "late to deliver" its section of the I 70  flood mitigation project to CDOT. And:
"The IGA provides that the City of Denver will provide funding support for the I-70 East Project in the form of an annual availability payment totaling $37M net present value, in the form of equal annual installments of $2,688,010 over 30 years. Annual installments will commence upon completion of the project. In addition, the City will ensure in-kind contributions to the efficiency and risk reduction of the I-70 East project, valued at $46M."


Above you can hear Denver city officials explain the terms that they negotiated on THE "I 70 East Montclair Park Hill Drainage. "
 If they are connected, by virtue of the fact that they are all a part of the I 70  project that is federally funded, then the Cole Neighborhood and City Park Golf Course could be included in the Environmental Impact Statement and could receive all of the protections afforded to them by Federal law.
_________________________________________________________________________________

CONSIDER LETTING THE MAYOR AND YOUR CITY COUNCIL PEOPLE KNOW WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT OPTION 1 &2 AND THE NEED FOR OPTIONS THAT DON’T NEGATIVELY IMPACT NEIGHBORHOODS.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Extra Credit Reading:
This apparently flood prone I-70 Lowered alternative is not necessarily the preferred alternative of Denver citizens and I-70 neighbors. COPIRG  has labeled a big Boondoggle. Consider: I70 Expansion Alternative
I look forward to hearing your thoughts about this matter.
Louis Plachowski,
CPFAN President 720.425.3768
 lplachowski@gmail.com

HORSE PROPERTY - by TOM ANTHONY

Although the slaughterhouses moved out of Denver to Greeley in 1982, with the approval of the $2 billion 2C tax extension and adoption of the "Land Acquisition Ordinance" the livestock industry is once again poised to dominate north central Denver, this time with exhibition halls, equestrian centers, a horse hospital and stock pens that will double as an activity park. This 300 acre campus will mass around the new commuter rail station at 48th and Brighton Blvd, essentially forming its own "fiefdom" called the National Western Center between Elyria and Globeville.

Although the horse and buggy went out of vogue somewhere around 1904 apparently the city planners decided that not only did Denver voters need to fork over $2 billion to revitalize the industry, but "horse and cow central" needed to butt up to the RTD transit stop in case the horses needed to hop the light rail to Mineral Avenue.

Strangely, these same planners felt apartments, grocery stores and restaurants ought to be near the stops at Broadway Marketplace, Dartmouth, Evans, Belleview and so on, but apparently those types of arrangements have become too "pedestrian." What was needed in north Denver had to be more "equestrian." Consequently, although keeping a horse in the city limits is against the law, perhaps it's time to adjust the zoning ordinances for the north neighborhoods to accommodate the new lifestyle which will soon supplant the past 30 years of being in "limbo." It's time to make Globeville and Elyria "horse property."

How does one accomplish this in an urban environment? Well, for one thing, you've got to outlaw cars. Tear up the pavement for a nice clay surface. This can be done while they're tearing out I-70. Take out about 90% of the single family homes and build mid-rise housing, thus leaving enough open ground for fields of hay, watering troughs, and stables. Make sure all arrivals and departures are either by light rail or bicycle; once people are here they can tap into the "uber-horse-force" and simply swipe their credit card through the saddle horn and hop aboard.

For a very good reason the planners did not include any new schools. Children in these neighborhoods won't have to learn factoring and spelling, they can become cowboys and of course, cowgirls. This new fusion of country in the city will produce steer wrestlers, bronc busters, calf ropers, barrel racers and the like, to compete in the huge new exhibition centers. For those who can't break into the big money purses, they can drive forklifts in the new "Crossroads Center" in Globeville, which is close enough to canter to. They won't have to own cars; they can either get on the light rail or fork a pony and point him up the nearest trail.

As to grocery stores, everyone knows horse manure is the perfect medium for growing all sorts of healthy vegetables, which can be done hydroponically inside your mid-rise buildings in the hallways and such, even the bedrooms. The marijuana growers have tons of technicians to help you get the LED lights just right and the mixture at the perfect fertilizer blend, and thus eliminate the middle man. Since the "governance" of this new district is still being arranged by secret meetings at city hall, once everyone's agreed who's going to run things they can appoint building captains and stable boys and so on to keep it all running in tip top shape. In fact, it will be the most exciting place to live for quite a distance.

Petition for certiorari filed in the Colorado Supreme Court on October 28, 2015.

View this email in your browser

All pictures are linked to documents or information Friends of Denver Parks, Steve Waldstein and Zelda Hawkins filed their petition for certiorari in the Colorado Supreme Court on October 28, 2015. The basis for the petition is that the Colorado Court of Appeals failed to follow Colorado Supreme Court precedent when it affirmed the trial court’s dismissal of our case without allowing witnesses to testify in a public trial. 2015-1028 Petition for Writ of Certiorari.FINAL 2015-1028 Appendices to Cert Petition pt 1 2015-1028 Appendices to Cert Petition pt 2 2015-1028 Appendices to Cert Petition pt 3 The witnesses, which include not only private citizens, but also former city officials and employees, would have testified that Hampden Heights North Parks was designated with other parks by the Charter amendment in 1956, and was confirmed as a park with the 1996 Charter amendment. Even though DPS has built a school in what used to be a park and natural area, petitioners are pressing the case forward so that, when the school is flooded by Cherry Creek or outlives its useful life after 40 years, the land can be returned to its rightful status as a public park, held in perpetuity for the citizens of Denver. Thanks to all our friends for their continuing support. John Case EVANS CASE, LLP Wrongful Death | Serious Injuries Civil Trials | Appeals With partners expert in Probate | Estate Planning | Real Estate | Business & Corporate | Divorce & Family 1660 S. Albion Street, Suite 1100, Denver, Colorado 80222 Phone|303-757-8300     Fax|303-753-0444   Web|www.evanscase.com

Unhappy Parks - Opinion by Phil Goodstein, the Naysayer, October 2015 Edition

Denver deserves none but the best.  Such was the message of Mayor Michael Hancock when he announced a national search to find a new manager for the department of parks and recreation.  The effort resulted in the appointment of a veteran lobbyist/political hack, Allegra “Happy” Haynes, to the post—she was originally part of the search committee.  Amazingly, those loving Denver parks were surprised by the result. 

Talent searches are among the endless charades of the government and academia.  The efforts are often nothing but ways to tab a previously selected person.  In many instances, they are a means of rewarding consultants who spend lavishly on the effort.  Particularly when they involve highly charged and controversial positions, the reviews are a way by which one institution dumps an unwanted administrator off on another community.  The national searches additionally assume that outstanding talent is extremely rare.  Mile High insecurity endlessly believes that locals are not good enough to fill leading positions.  On the contrary, boosters eagerly drool over carpetbaggers to reshape the city’s skyline and direct its educational and cultural endeavors. 

The sham talent search was an insult to the populace.  Voters elect the mayor to run the city.  Members of his cabinet are not faceless bureaucratic administrators, but political choices who reflect the values of city hall and reward various constituencies.  Hancock, following in the steps of ex-Mayor John Hickenlooper, has clearly shown a thorough contempt for parks as quiet open spaces.  On the contrary, he demands they become commercial ventures.  Where possible, he has been ready to trade or sell them off. 

Haynes fits in well with the mayor’s agenda.  Since the 1980s, she has been an available woman.  Besides serving on city council and the school board, she has been part of CRL Associates, a lobbying firm which puts Brownstein Hyatt to shame in terms of directing city council and assuring the adoption of very bad policies.  Never in her career has she stood up as a bold dissenter, challenging the mayor or 17th Street.  At the most, she well fills the bill for those who love tokenism:  they endlessly herald her as a black woman who has done well within the system. 

Haynes has always been quick to play the race card, claiming any opposition to her unquestioning devotion to the status quo is primarily a reflection of people uncomfortable with a black woman having a position of power.  The prime difference between Haynes becoming manager of parks compared to an outsider is that she will eagerly plunge into the job, doing Hancock’s bidding with a vengeance.  In contrast, it would take a outsider months to get fully in synch with the mayor’s anti-park agenda. 

Hancock’s naming Haynes to lead parks and recreation also shows the thorough waste of talent searches.  Given the revolving door between city hall, 17th Street, consultants, lobbyists, and nonprofits, powerbrokers could simply rent out such functionaries as Haynes to the mayor.  But this would be too blunt:  it would reveal the dictatorship of big money over the citizenry.  Hence the need for the sham search finding that Haynes is the best of all possible executives to lead the department of parks and recreation.  Her tenure might well spawn nostalgia remembering the first term of Hancock as a golden age of the city’s parks. 

An Appropriate Memorial - Opinion by Phil Goodstein

 For years, Denver never named public facilities after members of city council. Beginning with the dubbing of the land near 15th Street and Cleveland Place “MacIntosh Plaza” in the early 1980s, this started to become a trend. It recalled the establishment stalwart who had served on council from 1959 to 1980, never challenging the worst of the status quo. Then, in 1990, council had honored the city’s first black member of the body, Elvin Caldwell, with a small plaza at 26th Avenue and Emerson Street adjacent to the Five Points Community Center. The Blair-Caldwell Library, opened nearby in 2003, further honored him. By this time, the city had memorialized former councilmen Hiawatha Davis and Bill Scheitler with existing recreation centers.

The man who defeated Davis in the race to replace Caldwell on council in 1980, King Trimble, was honored in 2004 with the “Economic Prosperity Center” at 2980 Curtis Street. Failing to bring prosperity to the neighborhood, it soon became the home of a charter school. Elbra Wedgeworth, who was Mayor Wellington Webb’s handpicked candidate to succeed Davis in the seat in 1999, was always a dependable supporter of the administration and the estab-lishment. The city honored her in 2014 by designating a major wing of the Five Points Community Center for her.
Shortly after his death in 2005, Denver Public Schools recalled black Park Hill city councilman Bill Roberts (1971–90) with a charter school near Montview Boulevard and Akron Street. For some years, Roberts clashed with Caldwell. Eventually, he was a right-hand man of Federico Peña, especially in pushing through Denver International Airport. By that time, his early crusades against a racist establishment had long disappeared, especially when he was on the receiving end of numerous government efforts to reward black entrepreneurs who heralded working within the system.
Besides being the political patron of Davis, Caldwell was also something of the godfather of Wellington Webb. As mayor, the latter showed himself an egomaniac. Despite a statute prohibiting naming public buildings for an incumbent, he got his rubber-stamp city council to designate a new city office building for him. For the most part, it was sealed to the public, complete with extremely unfriendly private guards whose primary function was to keep everyday citizens out of the public space. The naming was indicative of a thoroughly insecure politician afraid that he would not have a legacy without having his name attached to a building.
Webb had a point. Lacking buildings recalling them, it is doubtful if many would remember Scheitler or Davis, both of whom served on council under Webb. In office, neither stood out as crusaders working to change bad policies and reorient the direction of the city. Indeed, it is hard to recall any memorable acts associated with their careers on council. To his credit, Davis had been a draft resister who preferred prison to joining the military during the Vietnam War era. In the early 1970s, he had loudly opposed Caldwell when he projected himself as a most militant black nationalist. None of this was part of dedicating what had been the Skyland Recreation Center in his memory.

Now a push is underway to christen a long-delayed, well-over budget, and far less than promised Capitol Hill recreation center for Carla Madison.


She won the seat of Caldwell–Trimble–Davis– Wedgeworth in 2007. The white victor was something of a darkhorse against the black establishment candidate, Sharon Bailey—the latter ran a hideously bad campaign.  Despite suffering from cancer, Madison had an excellent record of attending council sessions until her untimely death just before the 2011 balloting.  In office, she never took on the administration.  At no time did Madison stand out as a bold opponent of the status quo, offering alternative programs that eventually emerged as triumphant.  No more than Davis or Scheitler did she leave behind a legacy as a model for those seeking relief from the 17th Street domination of the city. 

Part of Madison’s district included North Capitol Hill.  The only modern member of council from that neighborhood who came close to showing the possibility of a different approach from business as usual was Cathy Donohue.  She ran as a rebel in 1975.  On council, she joined with other insurgents in challenging the Bill McNichols administration, eventually besting the mayor on some crucial issues. Nor did Donohue go along with the corporate orientation of the Federico Peña administration.  Eventually, she made her peace with Webb in 1994, taking a city job to assure she had a good pension.  In retirement, she has again voiced her views, challenging city policies that have virtually given parks away to politically well-connected business interests. 

If politicos urgently believe they have to name the Capitol Hill center for one of their own, an even better choice than Madison would be Donohue’s immediate predecessor in district #10, Bob Koch.  He was the personification of the bozos who have long led many to mock council as a dead end for drunks.  An affluent oil man who was a vestige of conservative, elite Capitol Hill, he committed suicide just before the end of his term to avoid having to report to jail for a hit-and run accident and lying about it.  Or there was C. Paul Harrington, a backer of the Chamber of Commerce who represented central Capitol Hill on council from 1933 to 1959.  He lost his re-election bid during the latter year when the United States attorney’s office announced a grand jury had indicted him for income tax evasion the day before the runoff balloting. 

Madison, who was most responsible in attending endless committee meetings and dealing with the nuts-and-bolts concerns of most of her constituents, was far and away above the tradition of Harrington and Koch.  Still, she did nothing to deserve the honor of being memorialized by a city building.  On the contrary, she was essentially an echo of then Mayor John Hickenlooper with his commitment to the corporate control of the government.  Additionally, she was with the mayor in backing the broken-window theory of policing, an effort essentially making poverty a crime. 

The councilwoman was also a personification of the mayor’s claim that a “creative class” should be the heart of the city.  This was the snobbish rhetoric appealing to people who consider themselves highly enlightened.  Generally, they have all the wit of those who participate in coffeehouse poetry readings in believing they are on the cutting edge of fine literature.  Even at that, Madison was a skilled artist.  Typical of her personality was that her wedding was a joint venture in Denver and Las Vegas, the latter city being the epitome of empty illusion of faux sophisticates.  Even so, Madison was, far and away, the most colorful member of council, a body otherwise dominated by professional politicians, some of whom had never had a real job outside of the government. 

Madison’s one big initiative on council was working to privatize the parks.  In particular, collaborating with Chuck Morris of the Anschutz Entertainment Group, she called for fencing off City Park to the public so a private corporation could profit by endlessly blasting noise through the green as part of the Mile High Music Festival.  The Zoo vetoed the event, realizing the ear-splitting racket would endanger its animals.  This protection of public peace and tranquility was beyond the councilwoman.  Far from discussing her views with constituents, she refused to speak to some of the critics of the event, especially when they brought out she had made a video backing the event before the Anschutz Entertainment Group had publicly announced the venture. 

The drive to name the recreation center for Madison (led by her husband, who, with Madison, had no understanding of the concept of  conflict-of-interest) says nothing about the highly dubious real estate deal by which the city acquired the property for it at Colfax Avenue and Josephine Street from a crony of Mayor Hickenlooper.  Nor does it explain Mayor Michael Hancock’s sudden 180-degree reversal on building it.  He found the money for it when he urgently needed the vote of Capitol Hill councilwoman Jeannie Robb for his highly dubious park policies and purge of the parks and recreation advisory board.  As it is, Taxpayer Sucker Recreation Center is the most descriptive title for the facility. 

Controversial land swap of Hampden Heights North Park land to Denver Public Schools

The matter of what attorney John Case contends is the city's illegal taking of 11.5 acres of Hampden Heights North (Hentzell) Park is now in the hands of the Corardo Court of Appeals. Case has been fighting the legal battle pro bono for nearly three years.



Here are two reports from courtroom observers, plus the actual courtroom video. The video doesn't actually start until 24 minutes into the "broadcast." Use the slider to advance the time. A reporter for the daily publication attended the oral argument hearing Tuesday (9/1), but nothing had been printed by Thursday afternoon.
Report #1
A citizens' group on Tuesday brought a long-term solution before the Colorado Court of Appeals for a controversial land swap of Hampden Heights North Park land to Denver Public Schools. The group has argued the deal originated by the city of Denver without a vote of the people, in violation of the city charter.
"The elephant in the room is that the school district built the school with this case pending," said John Case, pro bono attorney for the nonprofit Friends of Denver Parks. "This case may set a precedent for the city to do this over and over again."
The school opened for the first time last week. Part of the group's argument is that it was being built in the Cherry Creek floodplain.
Case asked the three-judge panel to reverse the decision and remand the case to the lower court. If the court agrees, once the useful life of the school ends, in 20 or 30 years, the land would revert back to open space. Denver Public Schools would in effect lease the property until that point.
City of Denver attorney David Broadwell said the group never proved that the land was operated as a park before 1955, the year designated in a 1996 law. It was operated as a park in the 1960s and later. He made a distinction between designated parks and non designated parks.
Case said the intent to use the land as park to connect parkland in Denver to the west dated back to 1936.
The court will announce its decision later.
Following the hearing, group spokesperson Renee Lewis feared that city park land would be in jeopardy should the group lose the case. Sixty percent of the park land in the city has been considered non-designated by the city of Denver.
Report #2
John Case did a great job. He was articulate and forceful. He had the first say, and started with Section 2.4.5 of the city charter. If it was used as a park prior to 12-31-55, a park was a "common law" park even if it was never "designated" as a park. Then there's the question of the meaning of "designate", with an ordinary meaning of "denote" or "show". The word is apparently not defined in the charter. Of course, this is important because park land can't be sold without a vote of the people.
Then there's a fascinating issue of "designate" versus "dedicate". A street or alley can be "dedicated" by council resolution and doesn't require an ordinance. Hentzell Park was not dedicated by ordinance, but was included in parks maps, and an expert witness testified that it was used as a park.
David Broadwell for the city argued that it's only a park if it's so identified in the deed, in the plat, or by ordinance and that mere use as a park is not enough. Judge Rothenberg asked him about the parks commission's annual reports in which the city repeatedly listed it as a park. He responded that there was no evidence of pre-1955 use as a park.
Then Broadwell dived into the 2010 zoning ordinances, the 1983 OSA zoning for the park , the ripple effect if no OSA land could be sold, and finally his big point: THE SCHOOL HAS ALREADY BEEN BUILT AND IN FACT IS IN SESSION!
Case had the last word. He responded that in the McIntyre case, park land had been illegally sold. There, the parties worked out a settlement involving a long-term lease. Case also refuted the lack of pre-1955 park use, citing a December '55 deed connecting the "park" to a highway.
That was a lot of talking in a half hour.

LET'S FOLLOW THIS CLOSELY - REPORT YOUR INFO IN THE COMMENTS

This message is presented for public information.  No endorsement is intended or implied.  Some may find the second attachment on noise quite informative.  Contact Denver Water directly for additional information.

VIA DAVE FELICE; From: Wittern, Matt <Matt.Wittern@denverwater.org>    

 

As part of Denver Water’s commitment to working closely with the communities we serve, I’m writing you to let you know about some work that will take place in your area in September that may impact your neighborhood.

 

We are currently conducting a study of underground aquifers to determine whether they may be suitable for use in storing water for future use. This study requires us to drill exploratory wells at several sites across the metro area. One of these sites – located at 40 ^th and Colorado –  is near your neighborhood (see map in attached flyer).

 

We have conducted an acoustical study and predict that when our noise mitigation strategies in place, the nighttime noise traveling off-site will be below the 50 decibel residential limit set by Denver’s Noise Ordinance. To give context, I’m also attaching a document that compares decibel levels to commonly known noise generation sources.

 

I do not think our work will cause any inconvenience to your neighborhood, but wanted to reach out and introduce myself in case you are interested in more information, would like to discuss our noise mitigation strategies in more depth, etc.

 

Sincerely,

 

     

Matt Wittern, APR | Public Affairs

Denver Water | t: 303.628.6304
http://www.denverwater.org

YORK ST APARTMENT PROJECT BEGINS

The proposed construction of 180 apartment units at 17th and York has begun with the demolition of the existing buildings. This assemblage has been in the making for the last 20 years and may serve to ease the current apartment shortage

Former filling station at 17th and York

See "before" photos here.

Opportunity to learn more about how to make Denver a more walkable city and connect with like-minded individuals