Author: Adam McCoy, special to Colorado Politics
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Data collection to shed light on Denver police interactions with minorities
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Does the Denver Police Department racially profile those they come in contact with daily? Local law enforcement leaders hope a new data collection program unveiled this week can help shed some light on the nature of its interactions with minorities in Denver. Launching in northeast Denver in mid-July, the three-month pilot program will require that…
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Denver city agency wary of new transit option: dockless electric scooters
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In a car-dependent city like Denver, city officials have long striven to persuade more Denverites to ditch their vehicles and use other modes of transportation like public transit, rideshares or bicycles. So when ride-sharing company Lime rolled out its dockless electric scooters in downtown Denver late last week, the city should have naturally been ecstatic. Right?…
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After delay, Denver looks ready to launch rent subsidy program
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Denver appears poised to roll out its rent subsidy program, boasting it as a tool for Denverites struggling with the city’s surging housing prices. We told you in January about the Lower Income Voucher Equity program, or LIVE, Denver hopes will help fill empty apartments with Denverites who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford them.…
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Denver study illustrates scope of city’s opioid epidemic
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What does the opioid crisis look like in Denver – from the point of view of the people trapped in it? A new Denver study paints a picture of opioid abuse in the city through interviews with dozens of users. The Denver Needs Assessment on Opioid Use, conducted by the Denver Department of Public Health, interviewed…
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Denver launches 1st round of projects funded by $937M bond package
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Denver is ready to go with the first round of projects to be financed through the $937 million bond package approved by voters last fall. The initial $193 million set of projects – including a major remodel of the Denver Art Museum’s North Building – was OK’d by the City Council this week. They also…
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Effort to change Stapleton neighborhood group’s name fails
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A Stapleton neighborhood group is keeping its name, despite the Klan ties of its early-20th-century namesake. Last week, in a vote viewed as a litmus test of sorts for advocates of changing the entire neighborhood’s name, the community’s neighborhood group, the Stapleton United Neighbors (SUN), voted on whether to change the organization’s name to Central…
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Denver wants to extend its housing-crisis help program
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In the midst of its soaring cost of living, Denver could extend an assistance program it says has helped hundreds of Denverites experiencing a housing crisis. Denver launched the Temporary Rental and Utility Assistance Program (TRUA) last fall and says after a pilot period – Nov. 1, 2017 to early March 2018 – the program…
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Social pot in Denver: Why have so few businesses applied for licenses? (9News video)
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Why have only two Denver businesses sought licensing through the city’s Cannabis Consumption Establishments (CCE) program to become a “marijuana-friendly” shop allowing bring-your-own personal consumption? A new city task force, which met for the first time last week, will probe that question, according to Westword. As Denver announced its CCE application process, it became apparent…
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Denver watchdog agency oversight nixed in law enforcement leadership probes
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Denver’s law enforcement watchdog must steer clear of investigations into the city’s top cops, per new direction from Mayor Michael Hancock’s administration. The Office of the Independent Monitor (OIM), primarily made up of lawyers and currently run by Nicholas Mitchell, serves as the city’s civilian oversight agency for the Denver Police and Sheriff’s Departments by…
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Could land trusts help solve Denver’s affordable housing woes?
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In the face of a housing crisis – prices too high; availability too low – Denver wants to explore a creative way of boosting its affordable housing stock: land trusts. This week, the city began the process of fielding proposals for community land trust concepts it hopes would help alleviate the city’s high cost of…