The two mayoral candidates facing off in Denver’s upcoming municipal election have agreed to pursue changing the way the city awards contracts by considering factors that strengthen the local economy, not just on the lowest qualified bid, a group backing the change said this week.

Mike Johnston and Kelly Brough each signed a pledge to put in place what’s known as “best value contracting” in their first 100 days in office if they are elected in the June 6 runoff.

One Main Street, a progressive, Colorado-based coalition of labor unions, first responders and entrepreneurs, said its proposals are designed to encourage small business growth in Denver.

“We are excited to see both Denver mayoral candidates commit to One Main Street Colorado’s economic agenda that strengthens our local economy and creates upward mobility for people of all income levels,” said Andrew Short, the nonprofit’s executive director, in a statement.

“This policy agenda can make Denver a national model on how to build us back towards a stronger middle class and become the small business capitol of the country.”

In addition to enacting a different approach to contracting, the pledge signed by the candidates includes a commitment to upgrade the city’s aging infrastructure and “streamlining” the zoning process to encourage more homebuilding.

Short said the contracting process it supports is already yielding dividends in Adams County, which adopted a version in 2018.

“By prioritizing local suppliers and contractors in the procurement process, we can grow our local economy and boost job creation and economic growth for all Denverites by utilizing our local workforce,” he said. “That means we are hiring workers that spend their paychecks in our communities, not out-of-state.”

While the group weighed in on city council races this spring, it isn’t making an endorsement for mayor.

Johnston and Brough each told Colorado Politics that they take the pledge seriously.

“In contrast to the often-employed ‘lowest responsible bidder’ method, best value contracting allows the government to look at factors beyond price in selection of contractors, including staffing, training, safety history, apprenticeship opportunities, and benefits,” Johnston said.

“This is critical to ensuring the City of Denver leads with its values, and all workers on city projects are treated with dignity and respect in the workplace.”

Said Brough: “Denver needs to be a city where working families can afford to live. I take this pledge seriously and I do support investing in our own workers, upgrading our infrastructure, empowering women and minority owned businesses, and building more affordable housing.

“These goals are ambitious, and we can only achieve it by working together. At the Chamber, I worked to expand small business opportunities and I will bring that experience to the table as mayor.”