Welcome to fall!
Maybe you attend the Great American Beer Fest, or maybe you’re a fan of Hocus Pocus which is in concert at Boettcher Concert Hall, or better yet, maybe you love to don your most gruesome zombie outfit for the Zombie crawl. If the latter, you will be disappointed to hear that Zombie Fest 2022 has been cancelled due to the 16th Street Mall Construction. No matter, there are still many things to do in downtown Denver this fall. Enjoy!
Now for some news:
Thanks again to Chief Pazen for his presentation “State of the Streets.” We bid farewell to Chief Pazen and thank him for his 28 years of service in the Denver Police Department. The incoming Chief of Police, Ron Thomas, also attended the presentation. Chief Thomas presented some of his ideas for reducing crime in Denver and for recruiting additional police officers that we desperately need. UpDoNA looks forward to working with Chief Thomas.
Recently, Denver City Council awarded the Downtown Denver Partnership a $2.4m contract to oversee an economic recovery program for the 16th Street Mall and downtown area. The money will be spent in five main areas: retail, entertainment, resources for entrepreneurs (pop-up program), promoting business and safety. Of the $2.4m, $500,000 is devoted to safety which is under the control of Ryan Ertman, Director, Safety and Security, for Downtown Denver Partnership. Members of the Safety & Quality of Life Committee have been working with Spire condominium management, the Denver Police Department, and Downtown Denver Partnership regarding security issues involving Spire’s dock area. Spire’s increased security measures have been included in a Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (“CPTED”) report which now affords Spire the opportunity to have the costs of the added security measures paid out of the $500,000 fund. If any UpDoNA members living in other residential buildings would like information on how their building can be included in a CPTED report, please contact us at updona.org.
UpDoNA was contacted by UC Denver faculty asking that our members participate in two studies that are being conducted on behalf of the City of Denver. The two studies cover safety and community engagement. The Safety Study must be completed by the end of October while the Community Engagement Study ends at the end of December. As soon as UpDoNA receives the link to the studies, it will be posted on our website and in future newsletters. Please plan to participate in the studies and be an involved member of the Upper Downtown community.
We are excited to announce that the UpDoNA Cares Committee has arranged for a volunteer opportunity at The Delores Project in October. Please look for Helen Hedrick’s article to learn how you can provide meals for the residents at The Delores Project.
Finally, plans are underway for another Social/Membership event in October. Please watch your email for an EventBrite invitation!
Have a wonderful October!
