🚧 DOTI head faces off with Wash Park neighbors

🐺 CPW Director Mysteriously Resigns

9News reporters uncovered a settlement showing that Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s former director Jeff Davis, who oversaw the agency’s wolf reintroduction program, resigned to avoid being terminated in late November. Also starting this week, Davis began a new position as an advisor for Dan Gibbs, the executive director of the Department of Natural Resources, a position that previously did not exist (while the state of Colorado is in a hiring freeze). [9News]

🌯 Benny’s is Not Coming Back

One of many pandemic-related closures, the fans of Benny’s Restaurant & Cantina were holding out hope for years to get more of the famous green chile and margaritas “so strong that there was actually a limit on the number you could buy.” But a recent real estate listing from Blue West Capital has confirmed that the northeast corner of 7th Avenue and Grant Street is for lease. [Westword]

💰 City Layoffs Prove Costly

Severance payouts of unused vacation and sick leave, as well as the cost of unemployment insurance payments for laid off employees, will end up costing Denver about $5 million this year, which is nearly 5% of the $104 million the city expects the layoffs to generate starting in the new year. For the city’s part, a spokesperson said the layoffs were never meant to generate savings, and that the associated costs are one-time payments that won’t impact future budgets. [Denver Post 🔒]

🚧 Neighbors Push Back on DOTI’s New Plan for Alameda

Some Wash Park residents say they feel “personally betrayed” by Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure after plans for a “road diet” on Alameda Avenue in Wash Park were rolled back. At a tense neighborhood meeting, head of DOTI Amy Ford said the revised changes would still address pedestrian safety issues, but promised to take neighbors’ pushback into consideration before finalizing the plan. [Denver7]

Drumroll please! 🥁 The nominations are in, and we’re excited to announce the finalists for the first ever Denver-est Denver Awards Show on Dec. 18 at The Oriental Theater!

We asked YOU 🫵 to help us determine the best of the best in the Mile High from the past year so we can end 2025 with an epic celebration of the people, places, and things that make living in Denver so amazing. We were bowled over by all the heartfelt nominations and seriously struggled to narrow down the shortlists to five finalists in each of our six different categories. (Preference was given to the highest number of nominations and then the most persuasive testimonials when the raw numbers were close.)

Now it’s your turn again to decide who should get our inaugural batch of Denver-est Denver Awards 👇

The Finalists

The Most Denver-est Denverite of 2025

• Justine Sandoval
• Rayna Kingston
• Blake Davis and Caitlin Braun
• Richard Maez
• Jevon Taylor

The Best Artist of 2025

• Thomas Evans, aka Detour
• Karma Leigh
• Danielle SeeWalker
• Hannah Tran
• Amey Goerlich

The Best Neighborhood/Street of 2025

• Colfax
• Tennyson
• South Broadway
• Lowry
• Athmar Park

🎧 Tune into today’s episode of the City Cast Denver podcast to hear more about the finalists in all six award categories, how we narrowed it down, and the nominees we’re excited about!

Get Your Tickets

Grab your tickets to join the City Cast Denver team (and our sponsor Denver Health) for a night of festive frivolity, complete with local celebrity guests, not-to-be-missed photo ops, and live entertainment!

📣 And don’t forget, City Cast Denver Neighbors get access to a members-only after-party, exclusive swag, and a discount on tickets!