🌱 How to compost in Denver

🌱 Composting Just Got Way Easier in Denver

Denver’s Solid Waste Division now accepts food-soiled paper in your green compost cart, in addition to food scraps and yard debris. [City and County of Denver]

• Show-and-tell: Mayor Mike Johnston shared this demonstration on Instagram to highlight the everyday items that are now compostable, including pizza boxes! [Denver Mayor’s Office]
• What goes in?: Uncoated paper plates, coffee filters, paper tea bags, sugar and flour bags, napkins, paper towels, wooden items (chopsticks, toothpicks, skewers, popsicles sticks), paper egg cartons, and food-soiled newspaper and paper bags are now allowed. [City and County of Denver]
• What stays out?: Anything that isn’t food scraps, food-soiled paper, or yard debris. Watch out for other types of paper, like tissue paper, brightly colored paper, shredded paper, takeout containers, cardboard boxes, waxed cardboard, parchment paper, cupcake wrappers, or air fryer basket liners. And don’t be gross – your pet waste shouldn’t go in your compost bin either. [City and County of Denver]
• Denver’s compost service is free: Well, kind of free. It’s included with your existing Solid Waste fees at no extra cost. If you don’t have a cart yet, you can request one online. [City and County of Denver]

⚽ Denver Summit FC Breaks Ground on 12,500-Seat Stadium

It’s been a long road for Denver’s NWSL franchise to land a permanent home field. Now the permits are all set, the blueprints are finalized, the $70 million city subsidy approved, and the shovels are officially in the dirt as of yesterday’s groundbreaking at Santa Fe Yards. Fans can expect construction to hopefully wrap up at the end of 2028. “We’re going to fight like hell to make that happen,” Summit FC Owner Rob Cohen said. [Denver Post 🔒]

⛽ Free EV Charging Program Ends in Westminster

The City of Westminster announced a new pricing structure for city-owned EV chargers, ending what used to be a free service. As of October 1st, it now costs $1.50 per session along with $0.35 per kWh and a $2 per hour idle fee. [City of Westminster]

• Adams County also began implementing fees for their EV charging program earlier this year, but the costs are still less than half of what their Westminster neighbors are paying. [Adams County Government]EV drivers can still find free city-owned charging stations in Denver, Boulder, and Broomfield.

🤖 311 Callers Could Soon be Talking to AI Voice Bot

When a caller dials 311 to get information or request services from the city, they might speak with an AI bot first if Denver City Council approves the extra funding request. Denver’s Technology Services department is hopeful about the project because of positive satisfaction rates with the city website’s AI chatbot, Sunny. Their director of resident experience said, “It’s going to be really conversational. It’s not creepy like when these things first came out.” But is it really less creepy when your voice bot sounds like a real person? Let us know what you think. [9News]