🇺🇸 Is Mayor Johnston ready to face Congress?

🏀 Denver Makes Official WNBA Bid

An ownership group led by two local businesspeople is vying to bring the 16th franchise of the professional women’s basketball league to Denver. The competition is stiff, with 12 other cities submitting bids upwards of $250 million. The WNBA is expected to announce a winner by the end of March. [Denver Business Journal 🔒]

• Some insightful context: Rob Cohen and a group of investors unsuccessfully tried to bring an WNBA team to Denver in 2023 — Cohen is now the governor and co-owner of Denver’s newly awarded NWSL women’s soccer franchise. [ESPN]

🛴 Scooter War Wages Strong As Ever

E-scooter ridership among Denverites continues to soar — as does the number of scooter-related trips to the emergency room. Councilmember Chris Hinds is at the forefront of the debate yet again with a slew of new policy proposals to tighten up scooter rules, including speed control technology, dock zone requirements, sobriety enforcement, and more. [Axios Denver]

• Flashback: We heard directly from Councilman Hinds when he was spearheading similar efforts back in 2022. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

🇺🇸 Feds Pull SBA Office from Denver

In alignment with new priorities set by President Trump, the U.S. Small Business Administration plans to remove all its regional offices from immigrant-friendly cities — including Denver, which is home to the SBA office overseeing Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, and North and South Dakota. [Denver Post 🔒]

We love when we spot something cool/weird/wacky around Denver. Like this wheatpaste 👇

City Cast Denver podcast producer Paul Karolyi saw this piece of art while strolling along Larimer Street. Grocery prices are through the roof these days — raise your hand if you can relate 🙋🏻‍♀️ See more of local artist noGuff’s work on Instagram!

Have you seen something quirky or curious around town recently? We’d love to see it, too.