Every year, we find more reasons to love the Denver Public Library, which not only offers vast collections of books, films and albums you can borrow, but also serves as common ground in a rapidly changing city, a place where people can feel at home despite the redevelopment all around them. And this year, the DPL has made the best better yet, by getting rid of overdue-book fines, a backhanded fundraising scheme that's terrified borrowers of all backgrounds since the very dawn of the public-library model. Yes, if you lose a book you'll be charged...but in the meantime, you're free to read, watch and listen to everything you want, without fear of being dinged if you return it a few days late.
denverlibrary.org/fine-free
Readers' Choice: Denver Free Fun
RiNo already has a reputation for being the coolest neighborhood in Denver, so it would make sense that a new 40,000-square-foot climbing gym would quickly become the hippest spot in the 'hood. But it's earned that rep with more than just indoor climbers: While Movement RiNo, which opened in 2018, offers an impressive array of 250 boulder problems, the facility is also conjoined with Improper City, a cafe, food-truck park and beer garden all in one. Unlike gyms that focus exclusively on climbing, Movement's new RiNo location is a whole scene in and of itself. This is where you'll find the beautiful people, from the fit climbers strutting their stuff to the well-dressed watchers sipping kombucha.
Old Denver is fast disappearing, as massive apartment buildings pop up on former parking lots and retail complexes wipe out mom-and-pop stores. So raise a glass to Bastien's, a family-run business that dates back four generations and eight decades. Bastien's moved into its current incarnation in 1958; the architecture is classic mid-century modern, from the Googie roofline to the neon sign that greets passersby on Colfax. Inside, the restaurant doesn't seem much newer; even the menu is a blast from the past, with the sugar steak the house specialty. Wash it down with a stiff drink, and toast the days gone by.
Readers' Choice: Buckhorn Exchange
How fast is Denver changing? Head to Sheridan Boulevard at sunrise and look east across Sloan's Lake, where you'll first see the sun peeking through the downtown high-rises, then its rays glinting off a dozen cranes all in the process of transforming the city's skyline, particularly to the south along West Colfax Avenue. The scene is so startling, you might find yourself needing a drink. Fortunately, the Lakeview Lounge at 2375 Sheridan opens at 7 a.m.
Your flight came in a few hours late, your bag arrived even later, and you've finally reached your car at the Pike's Peak lot...only to find that it has a flat tire. What to do? Call 303-342-4645; that airport line is manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will dispatch someone to not only change your tire, but give your battery a jump if you need it. Forget where you parked? That number's got your number, too. The services are free, but you'll still need to pay the $8 daily fee to get out of the lot.
Back in 1964, the Herrera family turned an old Safeway into a Mexican restaurant and nightclub; although the party ended long ago and the kitchen now serves just weekday lunch and Friday dinner, the green chile is as sense-searing as ever, studded with pork and packing a spicy punch. Get it smothering a Mexican hamburger or a crispy-skinned egg roll-style relleno: This menu is Den-Mex all the way. While the neighborhood outside La Fiesta is rapidly gentrifying, a meal in this cavernous, linoleum-floored dining room quickly takes you back to Old Denver.
Every other Thursday night from around May to October, spectators have the chance to see some of the fastest cyclists in America at the Boulder Valley Velodrome's weekly race series. The velodrome, which opened in 2015, is designed specifically for speed; the 250-meter outdoor track has steep, banked turns, and cyclists use brakeless, fixed-gear bicycles with aerodynamic frames, allowing them to reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. Participants range from Olympians to local amateur racers, and the spectating is free. Feel like giving the track a go? Memberships (ranging from $185 to $500) and day passes ($30) are offered to cyclists of all levels.