After reports of increased crime in Commons Park, the Denver City Council and Denver Department of Parks and Recreation are funneling money into this popular neighborhood northwest of starting with $150,000 for lighting improvements to “address critical safety needs in Commons Park.”…
Correction: A previous version of this post referred to Crossroads GPS as a super PAC, when Crossroads GPS is in fact a nonprofit group that is a sister organization to American Crossroads, a Republican super PAC. They didn’t waste any time. Just hours after the latest unemployment statistics came out…
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of reports about biking and bike safety in Denver and beyond. There are a lot more cyclists on the road in Denver — and apparently a lot more police officers looking to give them tickets. As the interest in biking grows…
More good news in the efforts to contain the Waldo Canyon fire near Colorado Springs: Investigators think they have found the origin of the devastating fire that’s blazed for nearly two weeks. And at 95 percent containment, the situation seems to be nearing some kind of conclusion — just days…
There’s always 2026? In a disappointing development for folks who have been pushing Denver to make a bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics, news broke this week that the United States Olympics Committee is not going to pursue 2022, which means Denver is out of the running for that year…
John Buechner, former mayor of Boulder and former head of the University of Colorado, thinks he has some solutions to the challenges of local government — mainly that elected officials don’t actually get that much done and citizens don’t really care. He outlines his prescription for low-level politicians in his…
At least seventeen folks in Denver chose to ignore the ban on private fireworks yesterday, earning them citations or arrests, according to the Denver Police Department. And most of them were adults…
The Fourth of July brought some good news for Colorado Springs, where the Waldo Canyon fire has been blazing for more than ten days: The firefighters have now reached 90 percent containment of the fire, and expect to have it completely contained by tomorrow…
Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of reports about biking and bike safety in Denver and beyond. If you’re a cycling fan, the good news is that a lot more folks are biking in Denver and the city is spending significantly more money to build paths for…
Here’s the problem: In Denver, 56 percent of public school fourth graders are not proficient in reading — a measurement that experts say is closely linked to dropout rates, graduation rates and possibly even incarceration. It’s an alarming trend that is much worse for minority and low-income students. And it’s…
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of reports about biking and bike safety in Denver and beyond. Denver has dramatically increased its spending on bike lanes and other bike-related projects over the last six years, and for good reason. The advocacy group BikeDenver reports a major increase…
Bringing the 2022 Winter Olympics to Denver has the potential to bring people together in a way that nothing else can, Governor John Hickenlooper said today, expressing serious interest in a possible bid. The governor chatted with Westword this morning about what the Olympics could mean for Colorado after he…
If you’re a woman, you would be totally friggin’ insane to vote for Mitt Romney. That was the theme of most speeches at the official launch of Obama-campaign-sponsored Women Vote 2012 Summit Tour, which took place in Wheat Ridge yesterday afternoon with celebrity support from actress Eva Longoria…
News broke yesterday that Abound Solar, a Colorado-based solar panel maker that has struggled for months — notably with a major round of layoffs in February — has officially filed for bankruptcy…
The Obama campaign is hoping to make news in Colorado for something other than today’s presidential visit to the Waldo Canyon fire zone in the Springs. The fight for swing state votes will hit Wheat Ridge Sunday, when Obama staffers will join former Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria for the…
Should Denver make a bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics? Yesterday, a panel of local experts and planners tasked with exploring the possibility yesterday gave state and city officials an overwhelming “yes” recommendation. And fortunately, a majority of folks across the state don’t know about 1976. Do you? If not,…
Big news today for Barack Obama and, you know, tens of millions of Americans across the country: The Supreme Court of the United States has finally issued its ruling on the Affordable Care Act, essentially deciding to keep most of it intact. And advocates in Colorado are cheering the news,…
This was not how Bike To Work Day was supposed to go. Sitting in on part of a Denver City Council retreat yesterday, Westword learned that ex-councilman Doug Linkhart, who ran for mayor last year, was hit by a pickup truck while cycling to a Bike To Work Day event…
Since Denver cop Celena Hollis was shot and killed over the weekend, there has been a lot of speculation concerning the possible gang-affiliation of the suspect — but according to Mayor Michael Hancock, reporters are asking the wrong questions. In this case, the gang question, Hancock told Westword today, is…
The unbearably hot weather is not all bad. This was the recurring joke of a press conference under the blazing sun just off toll road E-470, where officials announced the launch of a twenty-year solar energy project that, by some measures, is the largest of its kind in the country…
Editor’s note: This election cycle, Westword is exploring the public records of television stations for information on how candidates are spending money on ads in Denver. Joe Coors, your average local candidate for Congress who is not a beer, appears to be trying to secure support from an unusual voting…
They clog up waterways. They end up in landfills, where they take thousands of years to break down. And they kill turtles and dolphins. Plastic bags of the sort used in grocery stores are a top enemy for environmentalists, and Westword has learned that some Denver officials are considering policies…
