🪩 Is there a secret party in your office building?

City Council’s Got a Bone to Pick With Denver’s Parks & Rec

Denver City Council members grilled Parks & Rec Director Jolon Clark at a committee meeting last week over what some have viewed as controversial decisions he’s made during his two-year tenure in the position — specifically why multiple beloved community organizations have been kicked out of their homes in city-owned facilities. [Westword]

• Who got the boot: The department unexpectedly ended its leasing agreements with the food assistance nonprofit Birdseed Collective, an LGBTQ+ swim team, the Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado, and the local man who operated the Wash Park’s bike and boat rental program for 20 years. Each of the organizations had spent years in their respective city-owned homes, and all report receiving little advance notice of the change. [CBS, 9News, Westword, Denverite]
• Things got spicy: Councilwoman Stacie Gilmore, whose husband Scott Gilmore was let go from the Parks & Rec department during city layoffs last fall, accused Clark of “colonizing land throughout this city by giving it away and not keeping it for the people.” [Westword]
• His response: For his part, Clark says he’s just doing his job. “Our mission is not to generate revenue for for-profit companies [or] to go outside of the city when we have the capacity to do that within the city,” he told members of the city council committee. But he also conceded communication could have been better, and promised to improve. [Westword; Denverite]

🦁 Wild Animal Sanctuary Goes Head-to-Head With Neighbors

When Pat Craig first founded the Keenesburg Wild Animal Sanctuary, sprawling wheat fields were all that could be seen for hundreds of acres. But today, Weld County ranks as the fastest growing county in the state — and new plans for an eight-home subdivision next door have resulted in neighbor disputes, online threats, and even a lawsuit. [5280 Magazine]

• Setting the scene: “Thousands of [birds], snatch the leftover food and drop it on adjoining properties, resulting in sporadic rains of chicken carcasses and tomatoes as well as barn roofs coated with seagull excrement,” writes 5280 reporter Alan Prendergast, describing the aftermath of mealtime when your next door neighbor is a wildlife refuge.

👀 Tina Peters Attorneys Feeling Confident

In a follow-up to lingering speculation that Gov. Jared Polis is planning to grant clemency to convicted election-tamperer Tina Peters, an attorney for the former Mesa County clerk said they expect the commutation will come any day now. The governor has made multiple recent insinuations that he is open to the idea. [ABC News]

🚭 Vape Shops Struggle Amid New Tobacco Ban

After Denver voters overwhelmingly decided to uphold the city’s ban on flavored tobacco last fall, the ordinance went into effect at the start of this year. Now just a few months in, local vape shop owners say business is tanking. [9News]

• Hear for yourself: Ahead of the vote last November, we spoke with two local vape shop owners to learn why they feared the ban would be such a big blow to them. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

🕺 Remembering RockBar

We recently shared the news that the old All Inn Motel on Colfax is set to reopen, fully renovated, this month as the boutique All Inn Hotel. The space is often fondly remembered in its Rockbar era, known for its late-night parties in the mid-2000s. Today, we’re sharing some of your wildest Rockbar memories. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

🪩 An Unexpected Idea for Denver’s Empty Office Space

The amount of downtown office space sitting vacant and deserted since the pandemic is likely somewhere between 40-60%. Some of that is slated to be turned into housing. But one local developer sees the potential for more — which is why he recently transformed the 30th floor of one empty high-rise he owns into a one-night pop-up party for local artists and musicians. [Denverite]