Two years after the Denver City Council cleared the way for a controversial land swap, children filed last month into a new elementary school built on former city-owned open space near Cherry Creek Reservoir.
But the Joe Shoemaker School’s opening hasn’t ended a legal fight by still-simmering Denver parks advocates over what they saw as an illegal giveaway of valuable park land, a charge disputed by city officials.
Denver Parks & Recreation and the Downtown Denver Partnership are collaborating to create an innovative Master Plan for Downtown Denver’s outdoor spaces. The 20-year plan will focus on investment in Downtown’s parks and public spaces to enhance the quality of life, and create a sustainable, vibrant downtown that is economically healthy and growing.
We are fighting because if we win, ultimately we can return the land to the ownership of the citizens of Denver. After the school has outlived its useful life in 20-40 years, DPS and the City can restore the 11 acres to natural area park land as part of Paul A. Hentzell Park for the use of future generations.
Dr. Paul Connett, Professor Emeritus in Environmental Chemistry at St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY. Dr. Connett addresses the health and safety concerns of waste to energy incineration as well as the benefits of ZeroWaste. This topic is timely in view of Denver Zoo’s plans to build and operate a solid waste incinerator at the Denver Zoo, in City Park.
Denver Parks & Recreation, in partnership with the North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative, is seeking input and ideas to help create an iconic, inspirational design for River North (RiNo) Park. RiNo Park is located at the intersection of 35th and Delgany streets, along the Platte River. Envisioned to be a center for culture and recreation, the park will highlight local arts, sustainability, and enhance the ecology of the river corridor.
May Fenton distributed flyers stating DPR Recycling program is tripling in size. recyleIt is now in eleven Denver parks. She said this will result in savings for DPR, which can be passed along to add recycling to more parks, provide more staff and monitoring. She described various types of recycling containers DPR is selecting, working with Public Works. PARC asked for further cost analysis figures, and will revisit this topic. PARC mentioned that natural areas and trails might be better served aesthetically with the present “barrel” containers rather than large purple bins.
no park or portion of any park belonging to the City as of December 31, 1955, shall be sold or leased at any time, and no land acquired by the City after December 31, 1955, that is designated a park by ordinance shall be sold or leased at any time, provided, however, that property in parks may be leased for park purposes to concessionaires, to charitable or nonprofit organizations, or to governmental jurisdictions.