👀 Mayor draws backlash on bike lanes, harm reduction

We’re back with more recommendations from City Cast Denver Neighbors about their fave local people, spots, and organizations in the Mile High, so they can become your favorites too 💕

📣 Janet C. is shouting out Project Angel Heart for delivering medically tailored meals to neighbors with severe illnesses no matter their age or income.

📣 Kathy K. says Gemini on Pearl Street in Boulder is always a good time with its delicious tapas and craft cocktails.

📣 Ben R. enjoys Baker Market, a locally owned market and deli dishing up the “best breakfast sandwiches and burritos!”

Become a City Cast Denver Neighbor today to share your own shoutout in this newsletter and on the podcast 🎤

🏗️ CDOT Quietly Demolished Old Buildings

Over the weekend, the Colorado Department of Transportation demolished five buildings of historical significance on the Burnham Yard site. The land, which is at the center of rumors about a new Broncos stadium, is being prepped for sale. While CDOT was not legally obligated to notify the community, Historic Denver CEO John Deffenbaugh called the decision “deeply immoral.” [Westword]

👀 City Layoffs Are Near

The mayor informed city staff Tuesday that affected employees will be notified starting on Aug. 18. He did not say how many workers will have to go, but the city’s budget deficit stands at $250 million. Severance packages will be distributed based on tenure. [Denverite]

⛰️ What’s Your ‘Toxic Colorado Trait’?

It’s confession time. What’s that guilty pleasure or obnoxious habit you can’t quit even though, as a proud Coloradan, you know you should? We’re admitting to some of our own, sharing our favorite reader and listener submissions, and waiting for you to share yours! [City Cast Denver 🎧]

🏛️ City Council Adds Final Tweaks to Bond Package

Denver City Council finalized revisions to Mayor Johnston’s Vibrant Denver bond package on Monday, which included adding $15 million for an American Indian Cultural Embassy and reallocating $18 million from affordable housing projects to traffic safety measures. Now totaling $950 million, council is scheduled to vote next week on whether to put the package on the ballot in November. [Denverite]

Our interview with Mayor Mike Johnston on the City Cast Denver podcast earlier this week has inspired ongoing community debate and some hot takes! Here are a few of our faves ⬇️

On Bike Lanes

In response to a question about why DOTI has been removing bike infrastructure, the mayor explained that they’ve been replacing old bollards with new technology inspired by infrastructure he saw in Mexico City that he says is both safer and more “aesthetically pleasing.” The updated barriers don’t all have a tall vertical post, and look mostly like low, flat blocks made of rubberized steel. But local bike advocate Allen C. argues:

“The manufacturer of those bollards, Zicla, specifically calls out that those posts [the mayor] removed … are a key and important part of the installation. ‘A vertical delineation was crucial because, due to the size of most of the vehicles traveling on these streets, a standard horizontal delineation would be outside the driver’s field of vision in the vast majority of the cases.’ I know its bike-planning-nerd jargon, but it’s effectively saying the small blocks that the mayor loves don't work without the vertical poles he removed.”

Oh, and about those 38 miles worth of new bike lanes under construction that the mayor mentioned: DOTI sent us a map and a slideshow laying out its current projects and priorities through 2026, including a 5.5 miles of new bike lanes on Kearney Street.

On Harm Reduction

In response to the mayor’s claim that the city has “been supporting” the Harm Reduction Action Center in finding a new location, including providing the organization with a “significant grant,” Lisa Raville with the HRAC says:

“The truth is that [the mayor] has significantly undermined our efforts over the last year. First, he vetoed our ordinance in January, which would have created more opportunities to support people who use drugs, especially in this overdose crisis. Second, he devastated our efforts to obtain a permanent location, which would have cured our greatest existential threat.”

Though there was a grant, Raville says:

“The Mayor's office slow-walked the process for so long that we ended up not only losing the location, but we also lost thousands of dollars in cancellation fees.”

We’ve reached out to the mayor’s office for more clarity on this situation and will let you know when we hear back.

On the Bond

Despite speculation that the city is focusing on repairs in the Burnham Yard area because it might be the site for a brand new Broncos stadium, the mayor told us that the 6th and 8th avenue bridges are being prioritized in the bond package because of safety concerns — not everyone’s buying it though. The top-upvoted comment in the relevant thread on the r/CityCastDenver subreddit is from user Pizza-Otherwise, who says:

“[The mayor] talks about how 6th will need federal dollars, but also needs ~60 million now from just Denverites, no thanks. So many projects got bounced from the bond because they weren't shovel ready and didn't have designs ready to go (at least according to the executive committee). I'm not aware of any designs for 8th, is it a complete or partial viaduct removal? And why is it taking precedence over so many other projects. It doesn't seem to match how the bond was pitched from the beginning. It was a chance to submit all of these small projects throughout the city, but is now dominated by a few expensive regional projects.”