The Denver North Star January 15 2024 Online Edition by DenverNorthStar

Your Guide to Community, Politics, Arts and Culture in North Denver DenverNorthStar.com

Volume 5, Issue 4

| January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024

Migrant Camp Near Speer and Zuni Dismantled, Residents Head Indoors or Disperse

ALWAYS FREE!

Former Mullen Home Acts as Interim Housing for Migrant Families By London Lyle

that nearly half of them will either request a bus ticket that same day or within a few days.” By Dec. 28, bilingual housing navigators — city staff, partner organizations and volunteers — set up shop at nearby Ashland Recreation Center and began matching encampment residents with apartments and helping them fill out applications. According to Ewing, around 100 people had been accepted into leased apartments by Jan. 3, though some would have to stay in the city’s congregate shelter until leased units were ready for them. Over 300 rental applications had been submitted by Jan. 3. At 8:30 a.m. the day the camp was to be dismantled, outreach workers wearing yellow vests began going tent-to-tent, explaining that each person could bring two suitcases and two yellow bags full of belongings with them to the shelter. Buses would begin departing for shelters at 10 a.m. V Reeves, an organizer with the housing advocacy group Housekeys Action Network Denver, also spent the day at the site, helping camp residents understand their options and the process. Reeves and others wondered if the pre-dawn arrival of fencing and police had been perceived as threatening. “My hope is that we don't lose people to fear,” Reeves said early that morning. “That we don't have people who leave and have nowhere to go and then are further displaced and separated from the rest of the community, where we can't connect with them and support them.” Council President Pro Tem Amanda Sandoval (Northwest Denver District 1) and Council members Diana Romero Campbell (southeast Denver District 4) and Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez (Atlarge) joined outreach workers. Sandoval said she visited the camp every day for the last few months, looking for families living in tents outdoors who the city will house in its hotel-style shelters. She monitored city services like trash removal and portable toilets and checked to make sure pathways for fire department access were clear. “My hope today is that we get everyone indoors and off the street, no longer living in tents,” San-

n Dec. 21, 2023, a deal between the Archdiocese and the city of Denver went into effect with multiple migrant families moving into the Mullen Home (formerly run by the Little Sisters of the Poor) on 3629 W. 29th Ave. Seven migrant families are currently staying in the Mullen Home, and this number will gradually ramp up over the coming weeks as they onboard several more families. While there are 75 apartment units available for use, the final headcount is to be determined, said Stacy Baum, vice president of marketing at Catholic Charities. The deal between the Archdiocese and Denver is a land swap, with the value of city land signed over to the Archdiocese fully covering rental costs for the yearlong lease of the Mullen Home. While residents and the city are off the hook for rental expenses, the city has agreed to pay $1.5 million to cover the cost of basic upkeep, including utilities, maintenance, repairs and insurance. Although the selected migrant families staying in the Mullen home are in more secure housing situations than those on the street or in shelters, this is not a long-term housing solution. The families can stay in the Mullen home for three months while they search for permanent places to live. After receiving numerous questions from community members who wondered why there was no community meeting or a good neighbor agreement before the families moved in, Denver City Councilwoman Amanda Sandoval emphasized that the Mullen home is not acting as a shelter. “The Mullen Home is intended to be an interim housing solution for families who have timed out of the shelter and need a place to live until they find permanent housing. It’s just a different housing option for newcomers in our community,” Sandoval said. Coordinators strive to prioritize families who have been in shelters for extended lengths of time in the selection process for placement into the Mullen Home. And some families have been in shelters for quite a while. In October, Denver Human Services increased their length-of-stay policies in shelters for families with children from 30 to 37, and on Nov. 17, they paused shelter discharges for families altogether. Jon Ewing, Denver Human Services spokesperson on migrant sheltering, pointed out that there are different levels of housing insecurity migrant families might have to face. Whether a family is struggling with the harsh Colorado winters out on the streets or cannot make rent each month in an apartment consistently, each level comes with its unique set of challenges. “It’s different for every family. There are so many obstacles in their path that they have very little control over. One of those obstacles is work authorization. While people may find work, it’s often under-the-table,

See CAMP, Page 10

See MULLEN, Page 6

COMMUNITY Neighbors Raise Heck Over Proposed Raising Cane’s Drive-Thru PAGE 2

POLITICS North Denver Representatives Turn to Constituent Promises for 2024 Session PAGE 3

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

Mayor Mike Johnston walked through the encampment Jan. 3 and spoke with several migrants about their circumstances.

ARTS AND CULTURE Regis Professor Eric Fretz Breaks into Crime Fiction with ‘Groundswell’ PAGE 5

TRANSPORTATION A Record Year of Crashes: Why are Denver Streets More Dangerous than Ever? PAGE 6

HISTORY Navajo Art District PAGE 7

EDUCATION Affecting Positive Change PAGE 9 Postal Customer

By Kathryn White efore the sun rose at 27th and Zuni the morning of Jan. 3, a multi-department city operation honed during Mayor Mike Johnston’s House1000 initiative had kicked into gear. Chainlink fence segments were erected around the perimeter of the over 150-tent community along 27th between Zuni and Alcott, continuing around the corner toward 26th and down Alcott Street toward West Byron Place. Police officers stood ready, quietly talking to one another, releasing misty vapor breaths into the morning’s 23-degree air. TV cameras lined up outside the fence, as did neighbors, housing advocates and volunteers from nearby mutual aid groups. A father and his teen daughter were inside the fence helping residents in one of the tents organize their belongings. Others arrived: an operations team, a waste-removal truck, city outreach staff and staff from partner organizations. City workers zip-tied fence segments together and dropped off rolls of large yellow plastic bags near each section of tents. For those living at the camp, the morning of Jan. 3 wasn’t the rinse-and-repeat streamlined operation made efficient by the city in recent months. It was moving day. And because communication was a challenge, given language barriers and the size of the camp, some didn’t know what was happening and where they were to go. On Dec. 27, 2023, the city taped flyers in Spanish and English on each tent, notifying occupants of the “multi-agency cleanup” that would take place Jan. 3. Anything they didn’t take with them would be removed to temporary storage where it would be disposed of after 60 days. Migrants were given three options: they could apply for an apartment the city would help pay for, they could go to a congregate shelter, or they could receive a free bus ticket to anywhere in the United PRESORTED States. The latter option is STANDARD made available to all miU.S. POSTAGE grants upon arrival in Denver. City spokesperson Jon Denver, CO Ewing put it this way, “If Permit No. 2565 200 people arrive by bus in EDDM a day, there's a good chance

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/// COMMUNITY ///

Thank You for Neighbors Raise Heck Over Proposed Caring About Raising Cane’s Drive-Thru City Council Rejects Drive-Thru Rezoning for 4850 Federal Blvd. Community Media By Kathryn White

don’t want to take much space away from articles and columns about our community, but we wanted to share an update on our community fundraising. DAVID SABADOS From all of us here at The Denver North Star, thank you. 195 community members, local organizations, and small businesses donated a total of $12,869 for our end-of-year fundraising effort. Thank you! Because of your generosity we’ll also be receiving a $5,000 matching grant. Your contributions offset months of decreased advertising revenue. If you read the note in the December edition, you saw that we made the difficult decision to convert our sister publication, The G.E.S. Gazette, to an online-only publication. We heard from many of you about how important a print Denver North Star is, and our No. 1 goal in 2024 is to continue to bring you quality news articles and engaging columns about our city and community. Thank you for helping keep your community newspaper publishing. David Sabados is a resident of North Denver and the publisher of The Denver North Star and G.E.S. Gazette.

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iming could’ve been everything for the former Village Inn site at 4850 Federal Blvd. City Council voted Jan. 8 to reject a rezoning request that would have allowed a drive-thru restaurant on the property. A city plan explicitly discouraging new drive-thrus on this stretch of Federal is up for approval Jan. 22. Paul Engler grew up in a house on the east side of Eliot Street that faced a vacant lot separating the 4800 block from the sights and sounds of Federal Boulevard. In the 1970s, a Village Inn replaced the vacant lot. But the Colorado-born chain of diners known for its pie selection fell into financial trouble in 2019. By early 2020, it had filed for bankruptcy and closed over 30 stores. Since then, the lot has been vacant again. Today, Engler lives in the house on Eliot with his wife, Joanie. The Englers, along with some neighbors and the Chaffee Park Neighborhood Association, raised heck over the prospect of a Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers drive-thru as the property’s next occupant. They feared the national chain’s late-night hours, double drive-thru lanes and an average daily volume of over 300 cars would have negatively impacted neighbors to the east and exacerbate the Federal side of the block’s existing preponderance of car traffic and fast food options. Church’s Texas Chicken, Wendy’s, Good Times and Little Caesars Pizza sit less than a block away. “We understand the property is going to get rezoned at some point for mixed commercial use,” Paul Engler said. “What we’re hoping for, even if it’s a three-story, with condos up above and businesses down below, is local businesses. Anything that would make the neighborhood better. Something that wouldn’t be unhealthy for the surrounding area.” “Our bedroom is at least at the back of the house,” Engler continued. “Smaller homes that don't have air conditioning have to leave their windows open. Two of the eight homes [along Eliot] have young families that, you know, this is going to be horrible,” he said prior to the vote. In October, a bill to rezone 4850 N. Federal Blvd. (from B-3 and P-1 to E-CC-3x) was filed

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

Homes with a view of Federal Boulevard from the 4800 block of Eliot Street. with City Council, paving the way for Raising Cane’s to use the back part of the property for two drive-thru lanes. But as the rezoning proposal moved through reviews by the Denver Planning Board and City Council’s Land Use, Transportation & Infrastructure Committee (LUTI), it became clear the double-lane drive-thru was at odds with more than just a few neighbors. The Near Northwest Area Plan is on City Council’s calendar for approval later this month. And one of the key opportunities the plan identified for the stretch of Federal between I-70 and W. 52nd Avenue was to “limit auto-oriented building forms and uses, such as drive-thrus and fueling stations along Federal, and improve the streetscape through additional landscaping and tree plantings.” Work on the plan, which encompasses Chaffee Park, Sunnyside, Highland and

THINKING ABOUT SELLING?

Jefferson Park, began in 2021. The western boundary of the four neighborhoods is Federal Boulevard from W. 52nd Avenue south to W. 19th Avenue. Community input was gathered throughout 2022, and drafts were circulated and reviewed into 2023. A 21-member steering committee met monthly to assist the city in forming and finalizing the plan. The final Near Northwest Area Plan up for approval Jan. 22 asks the city to: support wealth building and access to housing, nurture great places, grow businesses and jobs, improve multimodal options and safety, and support health and well-being. The city’s Neighborhood Planning Initiative leans on extensive community input — surveys, focus groups, steering committees of

See DRIVE-THRU, Page 10

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North Denver Representatives Turn to Constituent Promises for 2024 Session By Talia Traskos-Hart

olorado state legislators began the 2024 legislative session last week with broad goals for the year. State legislators from North Denver—Representatives Alex Valdez and Tim Hernández—have centered affordable housing and support for students among other legislative priorities. Rep. Valdez, who has represented House District 5 since 2019, said that the 2024 session may provide chances to build back from delays in lawmaking produced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Valdez said that legislators were focused on responding to and recovering from the pandemic over the past few years. “My personal goal this year is to continue to make strides in the most important areas in my district,” Valdez said. “As a team we all want things to return to some sort of normal. … We really want to close ranks around what we promised to deliver for the people of Colorado. We’ve got everything from tax reform to reforms that seek to improve public transportation.” Rep. Hernández echoed the need to pass legislation that delivers on promises to constituents in House District 4, which he has represented since last fall. “I’m from the neighborhood, I grew up here, I taught here and I still live here. I really uniquely understand our circumstances in the neighborhood, specific to things like housE ing,” Hernández said. As housing costs have risen across the city, local leaders in North Denver have contin-uously emphasized the need to expand the hnumber of available, low-cost units to reduce homelessness and home instability. Valdez tsaid that this year’s legislation aims to continue those efforts. “There are a big slate of housing bills this

session that will deal primarily with land use for the Denver Public Schools (DPS) system in highly populated areas,” Valdez said. “In in the 2024 session, a particularly resonant District 5, even though we continue to see issue for Hernández given his high school construction all over the district, we continue teaching experience. to see housing costs rise. Our package is go“Schools will be fully funded in Colorado ing to be focused on how we can, in every way, for the first time in 26 years this year followdeliver housing cheaper. The problem that has ing the legislative session. Supporting students gotten worse is that it’s too expensive to live is really important for me. … I was a kid who here, so the focus is on how to create abun- grew up in the neighborhood,” he said. “My dance within the sector.” perspective is rooted in the lived experience of Hernández highlighted the Landlord Tenant students in schools and teachers in schools.” Warranty of Habitability Hernández is also bill as a significant goal leading efforts on a bill “As a team we all want in housing legislation to create a Chicano spefor the session. The bill things to return to some cial license plate, the grew out of conversations funds from which would sort of normal. … We Hernández had with ressupport a cultural eduidents struggling with cation program for Latireally want to close inhospitable conditions no students, who make ranks around what we such as faulty elevators or up a substantial portion electrical outages. of the DPS student body. promised to deliver for “The bill is making “A lot of students don’t the people of Colorado. sure that landlords have get cultural education certain rental conditions in school right now,” We’ve got everything that are safe and hospiHernández said. “Chitable,” he said. “There from tax reform to reforms cano youth leadership are some residents in [programs] from Pueblo that seek to improve our community and our all the way up to Greeley public transportation.” district who I met with will be eligible to receive several times on it. … funding. Latino students – Representative Alex That’ll be a great bill.” have very limited opporValdez, District 5 While state Sen. Julie tunity right now for that Gonzales was unavailexperience in their eduable to be interviewed before The Denver cation, and that’s unacceptable to me.” North Star's deadline, Hernández noted that Valdez spoke to his longstanding work on she shares many of his legislative goals. another aspect of support for students and “(Gonzales) and I are going to be working families: childcare. very closely together,” he said. “I’ve tried to improve the situation every year,” Legislators such as Hernández have also he said. “For now, the question we’re answering cited a goal to continue increasing funding is why are we losing so many childcare provid-

ers. That’s a question that impacts lives every day. … This year is an opportunity to return to asking how to make Colorado more affordable.” Valdez also hopes to continue prioritizing environmental legislation this year, focusing on issues like transportation. He serves on the Energy and Environment Committee and cited his progress advancing pieces of environmental legislation such as the polystyrene foam food container and cup ban, which went into effect at the start of this year. Reflecting on his remaining time serving the fifth district, Valdez said that he hopes to use his leadership to advocate for voters’ best interests. “I’m down to my last three years in the state House—it goes very quickly. There’s an opportunity to take that institutional knowledge along with a mandate from our voters … to just improve the lives of people,” he said. “The thing I think about most is just wanting to leave a legacy that made House District 5 the best possible place for the wonderful people who live here.” Hernández likewise emphasized his goal to put constituents first, citing his youth and teaching background as a unique point of view that may lend to leadership in this year’s legislative session. “Making sure that we have somebody who is really tapped into the experience of young people is really important,” he said. “We have a unique makeup of our community, I know that because I grew up here.”

House District 4 (Hernández) includes Berkeley, Regis, West Highland, Sloan's Lake, and other western parts of northwest Denver. District 5 (Valdez) includes Chaffee Park and portions of Sunnyside and Jefferson Park.

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Local Writers Get Wise, Get Lucky, Get Published

By Kathryn White

anuel Ramos has been around the over the past couple years.” “I think of writing similarly to running. block a time or two when it comes I run every day, and some days are realto getting books published. He and a few other North Denverites ly great runs. And some are awful, awful, took time with us recently to share about awful,” Aragon explained. “This morning what they’ve learned getting book-length was a really cold, slow run. But it's become a constant practice over the 10 years I've been writing projects across the finish line. The longtime North Denver writer’s first running. Same with writing, trying to keep novel, “The Ballad of Rocky Ruiz,” won the that consistent practice.” Eric Fretz’s debut novel, “Groundswell,” Chicano/Latino Literary Prize in 1993. The award came with a publishing deal. Ramos came out in November. The Regis Univerhad sent the manuscript to various agents sity professor reached out to 100 agents and editors, but wasn’t having any luck. Un- and publishers. In the end Fretz was oftil he was contacted by an agent around the fered a publishing deal from Derrick Belanger, one of the first people in the industime the award came in. Eleven novels, one short story collection try he spoke with after he finished writing and a few different agents and publishers his book. Belanger, who Fretz met through a collater, Arte Público Press is issuing reprints of Ramos’ first five novels. The noir sto- league, runs Belanger Books with his brothries, set mainly in North Denver, feature er Brian. Known for its Sherlock Holmes Luis Montez, a burned-out and sometimes focus, Belanger didn’t see a place for Fretz’s barely surviving Chicano lawyer and for- work in its inventory. But months later, afmer activist. Montez reappears in Ramos’ ter Fretz was ready to give up on the idea more recent books of finding an agent too, joining felor publisher, Derrick An important factor in on-t u r n e d-pr i v a t e Belanger reached back out. The cominvestigator Gus Cornavigating the challenges of ral. Ramos is workpany had expanded ing on his latest Gus finding an agent and getting its vision and offered Corral book, after re“Groundswell” a published, Hodapp said, is leasing “Angels in the place in it. a willingness to revise, to be Angie Hodapp, Wind” in 2021. director of literary After his success “the debut author who can development for Denwith the Montez sewrite a really good book, ries, Ramos startver-based Nelson Lited looking around erary Agency, knows and then also be open to to different kinds just how hard it is for changes the agent will have a first-time writer to of publishers. “I realized,” Ra- to hit the zeitgeist right now, get published. mos said, “that what On a scale from happened with my to really position the book in one to 10, Hodapp first book might not a particular market or slice of said 11. “And I say that ever happen again, the market.” tongue in cheek. But you know, so I had the odds are seemto think strategically in the sense of it's a long-term thing. Any- ingly impossible,” said Hodapp. “They are body who's thinking about [getting pub- incredibly challenging. I don't think that's a lished] has to be willing to accept the fact reason not to try.” that it could be a long-term process. They Nelson Literary Agency represents writmight hit it off with a first novel and sell ers like Jamie Ford (“Hotel on the Corner millions of books and become famous. Or of Bitter and Sweet”) and Josh Malerman (“Bird Box”). But for agents, Hodapp said, they might not.” North Denver writers Manuel Aragon there are benefits to taking on a debut auand Eric Fretz might be about where Ramos thor. They come into the industry with fresh eyes, Hodapp said, “we get to take was in the mid 1990s. The Denver North Star first caught up them through the process for the first time, with Aragon in 2021 when he was working which can be fun.” An important factor in navigating the on “Norteñas,” a collection of short stories set in North Denver. After subsequent years challenges of finding an agent and getting of expansion, revision and work to clarify published, Hodapp said, is a willingness the role each story would play in the col- to revise, to be “the debut author who can lection, Aragon feels he now has a cohesive write a really good book, and then also be project with stories anchored in a theme open to changes the agent will have to hit and approach. He described them as specu- the zeitgeist right now, to really position lative fiction, light sci-fi time travel. Ara- the book in a particular market or slice of gon has an agent now and expects his man- the market.” uscript to be sent to potential publishers Next, agencies are looking for an author this spring. who’s actively involved in the promotion of When a project took many years to come their book. “Somebody we know can be on marketto fruition, as many do, what kept Aragon ing calls with the publishing team. Someengaged and able to keep at it? Aragon credits novelist and American one who is enthusiastic about going out to Book Award recipient Mat Johnson and a bookstores and talking to readers or going class Aragon took from Johnson in 2015. to conventions and conferences, giving inJohnson wanted students to look past the terviews,” Hodapp explained. “Somebody idea of writer’s block to focus instead on who is going to be the face of their book. keeping an artistic practice going, wheth- That’s important.” er the practice resulted in words on a page Ramos knows the drill. He learned it with his first book. or not. “I had to hustle a lot to get the book pubFor Aragon this meant reserving some sort of creative space in his life each day, licized,” Ramos said, “even though [the tucking it in most often in the evenings, publisher] was willing to spend some monwhen the rhythm of family life has quiet- ey to help me out with publicity. I arranged ed and his workday at Colorado Youth for a initial readings at the Tattered Cover, Rue Change has ended. Morgue and Murder by the Book. And I “When the short story collection would had to do things like arrange for interviews hit one of those points where I couldn't fo- locally, or even outside of the state. Most cus on it,” Aragon said, “I was still artisti- writers today are telling me that they spend cally active doing photography or film proj- a hell of a lot of time marketing and trying ects or going back to a novel I also wrote to get publicity.”

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COMMUNITY WELLNESS INSTIGATOR

How to Stop Re-Solving and Keep Evolving

poiler alert! Eighty percent of New Year’s resolutions are broken by February. We come off of the holiday season full of ERIKA TAYLOR motivation. We firmly, passionately resolve to swap eggnog for lemon water, stem Black Friday-inspired over”spending for strict budgeting, and recommit -to the gym we sign up for every January. But sthese grandiose plans dissolve to the lure of -snooze buttons and Super Bowl nachos. - Why does this happen to so many of us? - One component of the answer is that many gresolutions are responses to something in ourselves that we think is broken. Something -messed up or shameful. “Resolving” refers to -fixing a problem. And while we certainly do sspend a large chunk of time in our lives solvsing problems, we never fully finish. We are -in a continual process of growing healthier aand stronger or becoming weaker and more tfragile. Cyclically and enduringly. k If we look at this as a constant set of probdlems then we must constantly re-solve them. -It’s exhausting and sets us up to fail. Once-peryear resolutions almost always: focus on outcomes; ask too much, too fast; lack accountaability; and don’t remind us why we started. This is not a powerful way to inspire. What ,does inspire is looking at our lives and findying what is working. Taking the lessons we -have learned over the course of our lives, the -things that have been pivotal in making us sthe humans we ARE, and using them as a rframework for growth. o What works is honoring our deeply rooted drive to evolve. To evolve means to change or develop slowly, often into a better or more advanced state. Evolution is never-ending. It is sustainable. It is steeped in the natural ebb and flow of our lives and allows us to create ta wellness practice that supports us, forgives -us and can grow with us. A wellness program steeped in the power of evolution is almost certain to get the results we are after. Here’s how to design one: CLARIFY GOALS n Be specific. “I want to be healthier,” becomes, “I want to lower my blood pressure.” -Pick something measurable. If you want to hrun, know how far you can run now, pick ea distance you think would serve you and ,make that your goal. And if you hate running, pick something else. e gFOCUS ON BEHAVIORS s Once you know your goal, list the behaviors that will get you there. Again, be specific. e“I will eat three servings of vegetables daily.” Or, schedule three 20-minute walks this nweek. Start with TODAY. Focus on what you CAN do instead of what you think you need

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to stop doing. What can you do today that will move you closer to your goal? Finding your walking shoes and putting them by your bed may be a great place to start. TAKE BABY STEPS Choose one of the behaviors you’ve identified and scale it down to a micro-habit. Exercise, for example. Start with a cue that will remind you to do your behavior. Something you already do every day, like getting out of bed. Add the habit. “When I get out of bed in the morning I will do one deep squat.” You do NOT need a 30-minute workout to get the fitness habit going. Drinking more water can start with one big glass first thing in the morning. Decluttering your house might start with banishing one non-useful paper from your desk to the bin after lunch each day. FIND A CREW A friend, coworker or family member makes a wonderful accountability buddy. Evolving may seem tedious or daunting alone. Meeting goals with a friend makes it more enticing. If you know someone is expecting you to bring roasted cauliflower and chickpeas for lunch, you are not as likely to settle for a less nutritionally powerful option. Knowing someone is waiting at the park to walk with you makes it infinitely more likely you will show up at the park. DEFINE YOUR ‘WHY’ Ask yourself, “Why did I choose these goals?” To look better? Do more? To own a bigger house? There is no wrong answer. The key is, keep questioning to the root. Want to lose weight to feel better? Ask why that is important. What do you miss when you are not well? These answers will get you to your deeper “why.” Find it, write it down and put it somewhere you will see it every day. This is your beacon. Resolutions may be a fun part of your tradition. And if they don’t send you into a shame spiral come February, hurray! But if you are more like the 80%, choose one simple behavior, practice it daily, keep it small, share it with your crew, remind yourself why you chose it and let’s EVOLVE through the new year and beyond. Wishing you wellness in 2024 and always, Erika Erika Taylor is a community wellness instigator at Taylored Fitness, the original online wellness mentoring system. Taylored Fitness believes that everyone can discover small changes in order to make themselves and their communities more vibrant, and that it is only possible to do our best work in the world if we make a daily commitment to our health. Visit facebook.com/erika.taylor.303 or email erika@tayloredfitness.com.

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Regis Professor Eric Fretz Breaks into Crime Fiction with ‘Groundswell’ By Kathryn White

hree chapters into “Groundswell” by North Denver debut novelist E.J. Fretz, a reader could take pencil to paper and draw an accurate map of places they may never have seen: Ōhope Beach and the nearby town of Whakatāne on New Zealand’s North Island. They might feel the warm wind on their skin and salty coastal air filling their lungs as they embellish their map with features of the landscape like crimson-bloomed pōhutukawa trees, kawakawa plants and the finer lines needed to depict the spiky leaves of tall totara trees. In those same chapters, readers will have met protagonist and private investigator Julian Braxton, his wife, Parvati, and Julian’s surfing buddies Toby, Nico and Ezra. Braxton has left a career as a lawyer in Los Angeles for a fresh start in Ōhope Beach, where Parvati would work at a local hospital and Braxton would become a P.I., learn to surf and, as readers will learn, escape the fallout from his last case in the U.S. Friendships between Julian, Toby, Nico and Ezra take center stage in this novel, as does Fretz’s weavings-in of local politics, Māori history, culture and contemporary issues and the region’s connections to global issues. Fretz, West Highland resident and Regis University professor, sets the scene for his debut novel in the coastal area of New Zealand where he and his family lived in 2017 and 2018. He invites readers into the surf culture

he had himself come to know, detailing everything from the actual experience of surfing— get ready for a new vocabulary—to snapshots of iconic New Zealand surfers, surfer history, surfboard types and the mechanics of prepping and repairing boards. And while the book is a satisfying immersion into the places and subcultures where the mystery unfolds, it is as much an exploration into undercurrents operating in a place where one death after another is being passed off to unlikely causes by local authorities. Braxton won’t have it. He’s curious from the outset. Then, when one of his own friends is found dead on a trail leading from Ōhope to adjacent Ōtarawairere Beach, Braxton kicks into gear. Trying to find answers to his friend’s mysterious death, Braxton finds himself at an intersection between the high stakes interests of international drug cartels, corporate greed and Māori land rights. “Groundswell” is a well-crafted first novel written from the vantage point of an author who, like Braxton, was a newcomer to Ōhope, who fell in love with his surroundings and the people he came to know. Fretz’s tale imparts an openness and curiosity about his temporary home in New Zealand, and reveals— through the way he approaches Braxton’s grief over the loss of friends—the emotional weight that comes when you’ve left a place you have fallen in love with.

HERE FOR YOU EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. Whether you are in the planning stage of your dream pursuit or you’re looking to safeguard all that you’ve accomplished, I will meet you wherever you are in your journey.

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The Denver North Star

January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024 | Page 5

/ / / T R A N S P O R TAT I O N / / /

A Record Year of Crashes: Why are Denver Streets More W Dangerous than Ever?

enver just ended another record year for traffic crashes. As of Dec. 31, Denver recorded 422 serious ALLEN COWGILL bodily injury crashes in 2023. That’s more than any year since 2013, when the city’s Vision Zero data begins. Alongside serious injury crashes, the city reported 83 fatal crashes, which could surpass the 2021 record of 84 once year-end data is updated. By comparison, there were 292 serious injury crashes and 47 fatal crashes in 2013. While Denver’s 20% population growth since that time might be one factor behind the increase, it doesn’t explain it all. Serious injury crashes have increased nearly 45% over the same period. Pedestrians made up a disproportionate share of those fatally killed by drivers in 2023. Recent surveys estimate about 5% of Denverites are walking commuters, yet pedestrians made up nearly one-third of all people killed in crashes last year. Another factor might be the decrease of Denver Police traffic enforcement. Between 2018 and 2022, there has been a significant decline in the number of speeding tickets given out. In 2018 there were 44,905 speeding tickets issued, according to Denver County Court. In 2022, that number dropped to 15,268 speeding citations. As of mid-December, the 2023 numbers were similar at 15,661 speeding tickets. Jill Locantore, executive director of the Denver Streets Partnership, a nonprofit coalition advocating for people-friendly streets, asserted that this is a predictable outcome from public policy over the last few decades,

and that everything from vehicle design to the way streets are made has contributed to a rise in injury crashes. Locantore also noted that in the last few years there has been a big change in travel patterns due to more flexible work models like remote and hybrid jobs. “Traffic is distributed more evenly throughout the day,” Locantore said, “and our street system was designed to accommodate rush-hour traffic. And so a lot of our arterial streets are way overbuilt for other times of the day. And now that traffic is more evenly distributed throughout the day, and not so much congested in those rush-hour times, it just makes it that much easier for people to speed and drive recklessly when they have these huge streets that are overbuilt for the volume of traffic.” Locantore added that new-vehicle design is another contributor to crash severity. Many new vehicles, including some EVs, are larger and heavier than their older counterparts and have tremendous acceleration. “It’s just not surprising at all that people are driving faster and faster and are less attentive to the safety of people outside of their vehicles,” she said. “We are all feeling that and experiencing that on our streets.” Locantore didn’t feel there is good evidence that police officer-initiated traffic enforcement impacts safety. She noted that the sporadic nature of enforcement and lack of consistency means that driver behavior doesn’t change on the aggregate. She called increasing officer-initiated enforcement a “knee-jerk reaction” given the design of our streets invites drivers to speed. “We know [increasing officer-initiated enforcement] is going to have the biggest impact on people of color and low-income com-

munities, and exacerbate injustices there,” she said. She said there is good evidence for more automated enforcement, or the use of speed and red-light cameras, to improve driver behavior and long-term impacts on safety, since these are in use at all hours of the day every day of the year.

“There is no reason that in the next year the city couldn’t stand up an automated speed-enforcement program focused on the high-injury network, again with equity in mind,” said Locantore. “So there is lots of communication and advanced warning, and they start by just issuing warning tickets before they start issuing real tickets that charge money.” “There is no reason that in the next year the city couldn’t stand up an automated speed-enforcement program focused on the high-injury network, again with equity in mind,” said Locantore. “So there is lots of communication and advanced warning, and they start by just issuing warning tickets before they start issuing real tickets that charge money.” In 2014, New York City launched a speed camera program around schools during weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. to increase

Mullen

Continued from Page 1

SINCE 1970

day labor kind of work. Everyone wants to work. Everyone wants to put a roof over their head. They want exactly the same things as everyone else in the state. They’re just not authorized to work because of the federal

safety. In 2022, the city expanded that program as it found that speeding happens the most on nights and weekends. The expanded hours of the speed cameras resulted in a 30% decrease in speeding and a 25% decrease ins traffic fatalities along the corridors wherei cameras were installed. New York City alsoa saw a 20% decline in pedestrian deaths city-e wide in the first seven months of 2023. Locantore said that Denver can focus onp changing the design of streets in the longerc term to prevent speeding. She said she was very pleased that CDOT is adding bus rap-W id transit to streets like East Colfax Avenue,o Federal Boulevard and Colorado Boulevardm as that will help change the design of thoseb streets for the safer. In addition, she mentioned that Denver can do a much better jobo of adding speed tables, or speed bumps, andr diverters to residential streets to increasec safety in neighborhoods. v “If they can start putting them more con-e sistently throughout neighborhoods, that’sB how you start getting the behavior change …A and that makes it impossible to go 50 mphn down these streets,” said Locantore. Locantore said that DOTI could be more efficient at building out traffic-calming measures if it had an internal team dedicated to neighborhood traffic calming, instead of relying on external contractors. Similar to how Denver has a dedicated city team that fills potholes. “The city does a great job of planning and design work,” she said, “but actually building stuff, that is where the bottlenecks often happen.”

Allen Cowgill is the City Council District 1 appointee to the DOTI Advisory Board, where he serves as the board secretary. b w families to transition into secure housing. And while the hope is it will provide some relief in the short term, supply isn’t keeping up with demand, said Ewing. “As for the Mullen home, they were able to put it together and give it to us because we had the resources and the funding to do this thing,” Ewing said. “But we do not have the resources to care for more than 200 peo-

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process. So it’s extraordinarily challenging,” he remarked. While migrant families stay in bridge housing like the Mullen Home, they have the help of nonprofits and community members with finding work, schools for their children and free meals. One of those nonprofits is Catholic Charities, the charitable arm of the Archdiocese of Denver. Their staff is responsible for providing the program navigation for Mullen Home. Two meals a day are served to adult residents, while children receive three meals a day, but “if a hungry adult shows up at lunchtime and needs something to eat, we will not turn anyone away,” said Baum. After a few months, the goal is for these

ple arriving per day for another year. Denver doesn’t, and to be completely honest, I don’t know if any city in America does.”

Looking to help? Community members can drop off warm winter clothing at Samaritan House, 2301 Lawrence St., seven days a week. Monetary donations can be sent to Catholic Charities of Denver (ccdenver.org), the Newcomers Fund at Rose Community Foundation (rcfdenver.org), ViVe Wellness (vivewellness.org) and Organización Papagayo (organizacionpapagayo.org).

The Denver North Star

/// HISTORY ///

When the Center of Denver’s Art Scene was the Navajo Art District

ack in 1985, when Geoff and Rebecca Hunt moved to Denver, they wanted to explore the city’s cultural offerings. At that time REBECCA A. HUNT many private galleries showed and sold the work of mainstream artists. But a different model was developing that allowed new artists to work collaboratively, exhibit and sell together. On Broadway, where the Westword newspaper now has its offices, up-and-coming locals showed their work. Navajo Street, between West 36th and West 37th, became an incubator for groups of avant-garde artists who created new communal spaces that allowed them to push the boundaries of artistic expression in all media. On virtually any Friday night there were openings on Navajo. At 3659 Navajo were Pirate and Next. Edge anchored the southeast corner at 3658 Navajo. It had been the SeCheverell and Moore Drug Store, then a dry cleaner’s shop. Down the block from Edge was the Bug Theatre, a silversmith school and Zip 37. All of these buildings had housed local businesses before the artists moved in.

PHOTO COURTESY OF REBECCA HUNT

Patsy’s Italian Restaurant.

The 36th to 37th block of Navajo had once been the core of an immigrant district that was primarily Italian, but had included other

ethnic groups as well. At 3659 Navajo had been Russian-Jewish immigrant Kadish Levin’s Dry Goods store. A sign painted on the south wall said “dry goods, shoes and hardware.” Reed Weimer moved to 3659 Navajo in the summer of 1982. His new wife, Chandler Romeo, joined him the next year. They were so taken with the possibilities of the street that they bought the building. Their ownership was the catalyst for bringing in the artists who created the district. One of the first was Phil Bender. In 1980, Bender organized Pirate as a cooperative gallery, with its first home at Market and 16th in Lower Downtown. They then moved to 15th and Central, and finally they came to Reed and Chandler’s building. A second co-op, Next, soon moved in. Pirate shared space with another gallery called Core. After it closed on Navajo, Core moved to North Larimer, then to Santa Fe. It now shares space with Edge, Next, Kanon and Flourish Galleria at the 40West Arts Hub in Lakewood. Down the street from the galleries was Patsy’s, a restaurant that dated from the beginnings of the Italian neighborhood. Started by Mike and Maggie Aiello, it was a pool hall, a bar and, during Prohibition, a soft drink shop. George Aiello changed the name to Patsy’s after he became the latest in his family to run it. It served as a center of the community for 95 years. Across the street, the Ideal Theatre opened in 1912 at 3654 Navajo. It also was called the Avalon and then, in the 1940s, the Navajo Theatre. In the 1950s it was the World Playhouse, a Helen Bonfils project. They produced “The Telephone,” a play by Gian Carlo Menotti. Neighborhood kids called it the Bug because it was full of little creepy crawlies. When Reed and Chandler bought the building in 1992, they renovated it and opened it in 1994, reviving the Bug name. By 1998 it had a resident theatre company and was a rental events space. It has become an arts and theatre

Pirate, 1983, 3659 Navajo St.

PHOTO COURTESY OF REED WEIMER

Edge and the Bug Theatre.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BUG THEATRE

hub for North Denver. The last gallery on the east side of the street was Zip 37. Reed and Chandler bought it from the Ciancio family and it housed the latest generation of new artists. For many years it was the place to purchase the works of unknown artists, often at affordable prices. After gentrification began and rents and taxes skyrocketed, the galleries began to relocate. Lakewood welcomed many of them to an area just north of Colfax in the vicinity of Casa Bonita. Now called the 40West Arts

Hub, it is where you go on a Friday night if you want to see innovative art projects. Patsy’s closed in 2016, removing another iconic business from the now mostly vanished Italian and arts district.

Dr. Rebecca A. Hunt has been a resident of North Denver since 1993. She worked in museums and then taught museum studies and Colorado, Denver, women’s and immigration history at the University of Colorado Denver until she retired in 2020.

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The Denver North Star

January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024 | Page 7

/// BOOK REVIEW ///

/// GUEST COLUMN ///

Check It Out: 2023 Real Estate Recap, and A Look Ahead ‘With Love, From for Real Estate in 2024 By Jenny Apel Cold World’

rab a cup of hot cocoa and curl up with a copy of “With Love, From Cold World” by Alicia Thompson to add some steam to the cold winter nights. Lauren Fox is a butWENDY THOMAS toned-up bookkeeper who likes things orderly and predictable. Asa Williamson is a practical-joking, minimum-wage-earning, tattooed and blue-haired jack-of-all-trades. The only thing they have in common is that they both work at Cold World, a wintry tourist attraction in the muggy climes of Central Florida. Despite having the only snow for hundreds of miles, Cold World is struggling. Time has taken a toll on the once-shiny amusement center, and its owner challenges Lauren, Asa and her son/Vice President Daniel to come up with an idea to get Cold World back in the black. Lauren wants to team up with dashing Daniel, on whom she’s had a crush for years. Daniel is attached to his phone and his privileged position in the company, but is willing to toy with Lauren’s affections if it means he doesn’t have to do any actual work. Asa wouldn’t mind working with Lauren, but knows she finds him annoying. He doesn’t

See BOOK REVIEW, Page 9

s a result of the Federal Reserve’s attempts to curb inflation in a post-pandemic era, high average mortgage rates in 2023 took a big toll on real estate sales nationwide. Northwest Denver was no exception, although home values have remained steady. • There were only 1,508 new listings brought to market in NW Denver in 2023, down from 1,708 in 2022, representing the lowest number in at least the last 10 years. • Low inventory kept average sales prices relatively stable with the average closed price for all types of residential property in NW Denver falling only slightly year-over-year by 1.7% to $889,570. Although down from last year, this number still represents the second-highest average sales price in NW Denver history. • Closings in NW Denver hit the lowest level in at least the last 10 years with a mere 1,074 transactions, down 27.2% from 2022, representing less than $1 billion in closed volume, which is 28.5% down from last year, a number not witnessed here since 2016. • Listings in NW Denver contracted in 2023 in an average of 28 days, up sharply from 16 days in 2022, but still the third-lowest average in at least the last 10 years. • NW Denver sellers in 2023 received an average of 98.5% of their original ask price, tying 2019 for the lowest average in at least

the last 10 years. Sellers did receive on average 100% of their final ask price, down only .1% from 2022. • NW Denver ended 2023 with 2.4 months of available inventory, meaning that if no new inventory came to market, based upon the current rate of closings, the market would be sold out in nearly two-and-a-half months, or about 72 days. Three to four months of inventory is considered a “balanced market” these days, and so the market is still leaning somewhat toward the seller. Compare this to two months of inventory (60 days’ worth) at the end of 2022. 2024 OUTLOOK In a report dated Dec. 13, 2023, Lawrence Yun, chief economist with the National Association of Realtors (NAR), predicted that nationwide, rates will fall, incomes will rise and home prices will reach an all-time high in 2024. Yun forecasted that the U.S. GDP will grow by 1.5%, avoiding a recession, with net new job additions slowing to 1.7 million in 2024, compared to 2.7 million in 2023 and 4.8 million in 2022. Yun also noted that he expects the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to average 6.3% after eclipsing 8% in late 2023, and that the Fed will cut short-term rates four times – calming inflationary conditions – in response to slower economic activity.

In a Nov. 29 article, Realtor.com’s 2024 National Housing Forecast predicted that Denver median home prices will drop an average of 5.1% in 2024 and that home prices nationally will drop by 1.7%. It’s interesting that their forecast is in stark contrast to the National Association of Realtors’ forecast. Which is right? Know that for home prices to drop by 5.1% or even 1.7% in Denver would necessitate a flood of new inventory to hit the market, coupled with a completely apathetic buyer pool, to consistently have the required three to four months of available inventory on hand for such a deflation. Denver has not witnessed inventory levels above three months consistently at any time over the last 10 years, and conditions would have to change drastically for it to happen now. Given my own personal level of activity that started the day after Christmas, I know that lower rates are already having a profound impact, and I’m siding with Yun and the NAR on this subject. It’s going to be a great year for Denver real estate! Data provided by Metrolist. Jenny Apel is the senior broker associate and group leader at Nostalgic Homes Group / Compass. She can be reached at jenny@nostalgichomes.com.

/// COMMUNITY ///

THE GRAY ZONE: STORIES CONNECTED TO NORTH DENVER’S OLDER ADULTS

Advocacy Groups Seek Increased Funding to Serve Older Adults

dvocates for older adults are back at the Colorado Capitol this month, working with lawmakers to navigate budget constraints and KATHRYN WHITE address the critical needs of a growing number of Coloradans. Following a tumultuous 2023, when a record eight lawmakers stepped down prior to their terms ending, both lawmakers and champions from advocacy organizations will need to bring as much level-headedness as they can muster to this new round of work. Westword’s Dec. 13 article “Colorado Legislators Decry ‘Toxic’ Workplace as Resignation Numbers Reach New Highs” described a state Legislature where the term “toxic” became common and where remarks were made accusing Black legislators of “playing the race card" and transgender people of “lying to themselves.” The year wrapped up with a November special session that found legislators yelling at and over one another in heated exchanges about the Israel-Hamas war. Alongside the turmoil, advocates for older adults have held steady, participating in year-round collaborations and strengthening relationships to lean on around priority issues. They hit the ground running when the Colorado General Assembly convened Jan. 10. Public policy experts we spoke with from AARP, Colorado Center for Aging (CCA) and the Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado all agree that the state’s 16 Area Councils on Aging (AAAs) should receive the increased funding they will seek. AAAs provide community-based services to help older Coloradans remain in their homes and in their communities, offering basic information and referral services to case management, transportation, home-delivered meals, senior centers and legal help. AAAs have not seen a base funding increase since 2019, so will ask for $5 mil-

lion more in state general fund support, ERs, and portability of the senior property in response to a demand for services from tax exemption. Karen Moldovan, associate state direcColorado's older adults that has grown significantly in recent years. They’d also tor of advocacy with AARP Colorado, said like to see annual funding tied to some- that AARP paid special attention to the thing allowing it to increase with inflation special session in the fall and will continover time. ue to monitor the work of the property tax Rich Mauro, director of legislative af- commission, “particularly with a lens to fairs for the Denver Regional Council of strategies to assist aging Coloradans who Governments and comay have challenges chair of CCA’s advowith spikes in proper“We’re interested in the cacy committee, said ty tax rates.” that, in addition to Moldovan said that work around accessory state funding for sewhile Proposition HH dwelling units (ADUs),” nior services, affordcontained elements able housing is likely some voters didn’t Moldovan said. “They're to dominate CCA’s atapprove of, there is not going to solve all of tention in 2024. general support from After the failure of our housing needs in the AARP members for Gov. Jared Polis’ omthe portability of the state of Colorado, but nibus land use/affordsenior property tax they are something we able housing bill, SB homestead exemption. 23-213, Mauro said, Previous legislative think can be important for “There has been a lot of attempts at portability discussion among the families, especially families would have allowed a governor, legislators, qualifying older adult that have caregiving local governments to continue to claim responsibilities that relate the exemption without and other stakeholders about what to do next. meeting the 10-year to aging Coloradans.” Thankfully, those disownership and occucussions started earlipancy requirement, so er, have occurred more often and have been long as they had continuously owned resmore inclusive than last session. Also, we idential real property since qualifying for expect several bills, instead of one big one.” the exemption. Moldovan, like Mauro and CCA, will “The main interest for aging advocacy groups, last year and again this year,” Mau- follow bills aimed at tackling Colorado’s ro continued, “is to make sure any relevant affordable housing crisis. legislation is ‘age friendly.’ That means we “We’re interested in the work around will be advocating for an expanded defini- accessory dwelling units (ADUs),” Moldotion of accessibility, stronger requirements van said. “They're not going to solve all of for the use of universal design in new home our housing needs in the state of Coloraconstruction and existing home modifica- do, but they are something we think can be tions, and making sure the housing needs important for families, especially families of older adults are considered.” that have caregiving responsibilities that Mauro also expects to follow bills on the relate to aging Coloradans.” expansion of access to food and nutrition Moldovan has seen promising drafts services, dementia training for nursing where “we might be able to see financhome administrators, advanced directives, ing opportunities, to help folks construct how to handle violence against healthcare ADUs or to help local governments meet workers in hospitals and freestanding some of the criteria needed for ADUs. The

Page 8 January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024

approach I've seen is to incentivize local governments to ensure ADUs are both affordable and accessible.” Coral Cosway, public policy director at Alzheimer's Association of Colorado, said they’ll pursue legislation requiring nursing home administrators to have a minimal amount of dementia training and will also support a bill that requires state-regulated insurance plans to cover biomarker testing, such as blood testing and genetic profiling, which are important for the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's and related dementias. There are two bills to protect healthcare workers from violence expected to reach lawmakers this session. One would require certain healthcare facilities to take a specific list of actions to protect employees from workplace violence. The other would create new crimes for certain threatening and interfering behaviors. Cosway said that her organization, and several others, oppose the latter bill in its current form. “For patients and visitors of these facilities who are not in control of their behavior 100% of the time,” Cosway said, “like those living with dementia, these new crimes and enhanced penalties could mean more of them will be swept up in the criminal justice system.” Lawmakers have 120 days to conduct this year’s business. They’ll adjourn May 8. To get involved with the above organizations, visit www.alz.org/co, action.aarp. org/sign and coloradocenterforaging.org. To search, by keyword or lawmaker, bills under consideration, visit leg.colorado. gov/bills.

Kathryn White has lived in North Denver since the early 1990s and launched The Gray Zone in 2020. She became editor of The Denver North Star in October 2023. She’s taught fitness classes at Highland Senior Recreation Center, volunteered with the Alzheimer’s Association and has worked at a retirement community in the neighborhood.

The Denver North Star

/ / / E D U C AT I O N / / /

LETTERS FROM MISS JILL

Affecting Positive Change

“W

ho is that pretty blond woman sitting at the small kitchen desk, telephone positioned under her chin and JILL CARSTENS phonebook cradled in her arms like a newborn? That was my mother in the early 1970s exercising her call to civic duty. Tethered to the kitchen phone for hours, she wore out her dialing finger as she informed citizens about various community reforms and ballot issues. “My brother and I spent reluctant summer days walking door to door with her, clipboard in hand, seeking to register people to vote. The smell of coffee and crayons forever reminds me of the Sunday school room in a church where once a month Mom met with the Lakewood Chapter of the League of Women Voters. “Later in life I would unearth a yellowed brochure from 1972, put together by the organization Plan JeffCo. My mother was an active member. Their efforts saved great swaths of our foothills from development by creating JeffCo Open Space.” The preceding paragraphs are excerpted from my recently published memoir, in which I attempted to honor many icons of my past, including my mother and her selfless endeavors. From her, I learned some of the avenues where we as citizens can affect positive changes in our local communities. These days I am constantly frustrated by the apathetic complaints I hear from peers when they say things like, “Well, there’s nothing you can do about it.” In my view, there is always something we can do about it. And change will certainly never come if we do nothing; better yet, let’s include our children in ways that we can be proactive in our communities. Humans are social beings that have evolved to exist within communities where we can thrive. The quality of a community is often dictated by the degree of engagement and happiness individuals can draw from interacting. A recent example of a local, grassroots community effort comes from longtime North Denver resident and business owner Niya Gingerich. She ran the popular Local 46 bar at Tennyson and West 46th Avenue for about a decade. Being a renter of that building, Local 46 didn't survive the purchase and subsequent demolition of the historic, prohibition-era structure. But Gingerich empowered her future by purchasing another old and beloved business, Edgewater Inn. In purchasing this 75-year-old icon of a business she has also preserved some of the historic character of our

rapidly changing North Denver area. During her tenure at Local 46, Gingerich was active in her community, hosting school fundraisers and sponsoring events for local causes. Now at Edgewater Inn, she felt a call to serve after witnessing so many migrant families camped out in North Denver recently. She ran a fundraiser at the Inn, where each pizza sold was matched as a pizza donation to feed migrant families. At last check, they had made and distributed 700 pizzas. A mom herself, Gingerich felt pangs of empathy in observing these families and wanting their children to be safe and supported. She called on the North Denver group the Highland Mommies to meet up at the corner of West 27th Avenue and Alcott Street to help pass out food and donated clothing. She has been showing up there every Wednesday. I share the stories of these two women because they used their own time and resources to affect change. It’s really not that hard. When we feel helpless about a difficult situation, thinking of accessible ways we as individuals can help can be tremendously effective. The positivity of these actions can spread widely, provoking others to do the same. The effects are a win-win. Participating in local, proactive efforts supports the community as a whole and, in turn, makes us better, happier and more socially aware individuals. According to a HelpGuide.org February 2023 article, when we seek to take action to solve problems in our neighborhoods, we can make friends, discover new passions and learn new skills, resulting in feeling more connected to where we live. We all have ways we can contribute, whether it be formally through organizations like the League of Women Voters, or simply through your own business, friends and neighborhood resources. Here’s a suggestion, sit down with your kids and pick a cause together. It could be as simple as organizing a neighborhood trash pick-up or collecting canned goods. Older kids could participate in your Registered Neighborhood Organization (RNO) to help make bigger decisions about municipal actions in the area. Maybe a goal for this New Year can be less complaining about “the way things are” and more doing something about it. Jill Carstens taught for 30 years and now enjoys writing for this publication. You can view more of her writing on Instagram @lettersfrommissjill. Email her with comments or story ideas at jill@denvernorthstar.com.

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mean anything by it, he just likes messing with Lauren because her uptight reactions make his days more interesting. Fate intervenes one night when Lauren returns to Cold World after-hours to retrieve some budget forecasts for Daniel and Asa is there working on his grand plan to rejuvenate the park. They are forced to spend the night together after Lauren accidentally closes a door that locks them inside. It’s messy and complicated and charming in its predictability. The love triangle is only part of the story, however. Lauren has a heart-wrenching past, losing her mother to an overdose at a young age and growing up in foster care. Asa has been cast out of his highly religious family for being bisexual. Both are grappling with their pasts and the walls they have put up because of them. The author doesn’t shy away from the tough topics, but also doesn’t get bogged down in them. The characters’ challenges are realistically portrayed and emotionally drawn and balanced with healthy doses of humor and romance. A fun read for a chilly day, check out “With Love, From Cold World” at a Denver Public Library branch near you. Looking for a way to expand your reading life? Sign up for Denver Public Library’s Winter of Reading. Par-

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ticipants ages 18 and up complete library-related challenges to earn library swag. Stop by any Denver Public Library branch to pick up a brochure. Winter of Reading runs now through the end of February. Wendy Thomas is a librarian at the Smiley Branch Library. When not reading or recommending books, you can find her hiking with her dogs.

January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024 | Page 9

Drive-Thru

Camp

residents — to create plans guiding the city’s approach to services and resources (e.g., zoning, parks, recreation centers, transportation, business and economic development). Finalized area plans are added to the city’s Comprehensive Plan 2040. In addition to the Near Northwest Area Plan, Denver and CDOT are planning Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) for Federal, a type of bus service that has been compared to rail because it is more reliable, convenient and faster than traditional bus service. According to CDOT, “BRT increases the number of people that can travel on a road while using fewer vehicles, ultimately easing congestion and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.” At a Dec. 4 public hearing on the rezoning proposal, City Council heard from the Englers and others, and learned that the parties had just begun mediation on a Good Neighbor Agreement (GNA). Council, wanting to give the parties more time to negotiate, postponed a final decision to Jan. 8. GNA negotiations included topics like fencing, noise management, hours of operation, number of drive-thru lanes, trash removal, security and more. As of Jan. 8, agreements had been reached on some points, but an impasse remained on the number of drive-thru lanes and hours of operation. Raising Cane’s wanted to stay open until 1 a.m. on weekends and midnight on weekdays. Neighbors, some of whom live 60 feet from the proposed drive-thru, asked the restaurant to close at midnight on weekends and 10 p.m. during the week. Since other drive-thrus in the area have one lane, neighbors thought that should be fine for Raising Cane’s. In the end, neighbors offered to compromise with an 11 p.m. weekday closing time if Raising Cane’s would drop the second drive-thru lane. Raising Cane’s didn’t budge. Jan. 8, after a long evening dominated by another topic – whether to pause encampment “sweeps” when temperatures fall below 32 degrees – City Council kept its discussion of the rezoning short.

doval said. “And that we get them into wraparound services, focused on housing navigation. And continue to get any families who are living outdoors back indoors.” Mayor Mike Johnston arrived at 10 a.m. He walked along W. 27th from Alcott down to Zuni, speaking with people and listening to their concerns about what quickly became apparent as a top priority: work. Johnston spoke to the press about the challenges the city faces with 150-250 new arrivals each day. Johnston is asking for Colorado’s governor and congressional delegation to partner with him in a focus on new federal work authorization measures for recent arrivals, state and federal financial support and a coordinated entry system like what has been used for other refugee groups. Johnston said of North Denver, “Neighbors [here] have come forth at every single stage with food, with clothing, with support, with help to housing. People have set up nonprofits on their own to provide housing and support. We are deeply grateful for their generosity and for their spirit and their support.” “We welcome [community members] to continue that support in our new locations,” Johnston went on. “The most urgency is for housing navigation. We need Spanish speakers who can help people fill out housing applications. We also need pro bono lawyers who can help people on either work authorization applications or on court dates. And so our most important need is for us to continue to channel the generosity of those people who are engaged.” By 5 p.m. on Jan. 3, the last bus had departed and a handful of people milled about, going in and out of the former Quality Inn being used for family housing. On Jan. 4, diggers and trash trucks took away anything that remained on the streets and sidewalks, including many tents. On Jan. 5, city workers power-washed the areas where the encampment had been. And while 277 people, according to Ewing, moved indoors from the camp Jan. 4, the next day 226 more people arrived by bus to Denver from Texas. “Every day, dozens if not hundreds of people are going to end up on the streets again,” said Reeves, “because they continue to have a time allotment in the hotel. People are continuing to arrive to Denver, migrants arriving for the first time to Denver, so you might be able to support the people right now camped outside, but next week there's going to be another some 100 or multiple hundreds of people. I don't see this as being a sustainable plan.” Visit www.denvergov.org/migrantsupport to learn about ways to support new arrivals to Denver.

Continued from Page 2

Council President Pro Tem Amanda Sandoval, who represents the area, said she received mixed input on the rezoning. The updates Raising Cane’s intended to make along Federal were a plus, and some constituents were tired of the rundown Village Inn building. Others, like the Englers, hoping for something better. Council President Pro Tem Amanda Sandoval, who represents the area, said she received mixed input on the rezoning. The updates Raising Cane’s intended to make along Federal were a plus, and some constituents were tired of the rundown Village Inn building. Others, like the Englers, hoping for something better. “This one has been challenging for me,” Sandoval said. “I’m just going to have to follow my heart as we all vote.” To pass, the rezoning required a majority vote of seven council members. It received six and failed. In favor were Council Members Kevin Flynn, Stacie Gilmore, Paul Kashmann, Diana Romero Campbell, Jamie Torres and Darrell Watson. Opposed were Flor Alvidrez, Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, Shontel Lewis, Sarah Parady, Sandoval and Amanda Sawyer. Council Member Chris Hinds, who had stepped into the hallway to visit with a proclamation honoree, missed the vote. It is customary for a council sponsor to leave chambers briefly in order to deliver a signed proclamation to its recipient.

Continued from Page 1

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

It was a chilly 23 degrees when the sun rose Jan. 3 at the encampment of largely refugees and migrants that had grown to over 300 people. People lived in tents along W. 27th and along nearby streets surrounding the former Quality Inn, where recently arrived migrant families are being housed by the city.

C N

c t

C O m D n i i s t w

W PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

Residents of the dismantled encampment boarded buses headed to a city’s temporary congregate shelter.

‘ J t

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

Empty streets and sidewalks where the encampment had been (Jan. 4).

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

Many residents of the camp work odd jobs nearby or have found customers for skills like carpentry, barbering, cooking and more. But formal work authorization is delayed for most.

Page 10 January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024

PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE

A city crew power-washed streets and sidewalks where the encampment had been (Jan. 5).

The Denver North Star

/// NEWS SHORTS ///

/ / / R E C R E AT I O N / / /

Denver's Treecycle Program Exploring Jefferson Counties Lair O’ The Bear Park By The Denver North Star Staff

enver’s annual Treecycle program began Jan. 2 and runs until the end of the month. Denver residents can recycle their Christmas trees at designated drop sites. To participate, ensure all decorations, lights and tree stands are removed before dropping off the tree at a collection site near you. Weekday drop sites are open Jan. 2-31 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the following locations: • Cherry Creek Transfer Station – 7301 E. Jewell Ave. (enter on E. Jewell Ave.) • Havana Nursery – 10450 Smith Rd. (enter on Smith Road) • Central Platte Campus – 1271 W. Bayaud

Ave. (next to the Denver Animal Shelter) North Denver Saturday drop sites are open Jan. 20 and 27 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at: • Sloan’s Lake Northwest Parking Lot – W. Byron Pl. and Yates St. • Bruce Randolph – E. 40th Ave. and Steele St. Trees received at Treecycle drop sites will be turned into mulch made available to Denver residents for free at the annual Mulch Giveaway in the spring. Residents who don’t wish to recycle their trees can set them out for collection on their large item pickup day. Trees left out for large item pickup will not be turned into mulch.

By Andrea Haydon, Neighborhood Gazette

Complying with Denver’s New Minimum Wage By The Denver North Star Staff

enver’s minimum wage increased to $18.29 on Jan. 1. Employers in the food and beverage industry can claim up to $3.02 per hour in tip credits, so the 2024 tipped wage is now $15.27 per hour. Denver Auditor Timothy M. O'Brien, CPA, wants to ensure that employers comply. O’Brien’s office said that the most common mistakes employers make are: not paying Denver's minimum wage if their business is near the border of the city or county; claiming a tip credit for workers who are not qualified for the food and beverage tip credit; and setting wage rates based on the location of their office instead of the location where the work was performed in Denver. “Often, underpaying workers is an honest

mistake,” O’Brien’s office said. “If you think you might have underpaid your workers, let us know and we will work with you to make it right. Remember: Every worker and every income level is protected from wage theft under Denver law. By enforcing and educating equally citywide, we are ensuring well-intentioned employers are not undercut by competition not paying their workers.” Visit www.denvergov.org/auditor if you believe you have been the target of wage theft or if you are a business looking for tools like an interactive wage map to see if Denver's wage laws apply to your work, a tips tracker for the food and beverage industry, and an employer brochure listing your documentation and legal requirements.

Snow? Make it GO By The Denver North Star Staff

ith winter upon us, it’s a good time for a refresher on city rules for snow and ice removal, as well as other ways to be a good neighbor and keep sidewalks safe for everyone who uses them. Denver requires that property owners clear snow and ice from their sidewalks, including adjacent ADA ramps and bus stops, by the day after a snowfall. Businesses need to clear their sidewalks immediately once snow has stopped falling. Residents with concerns about snow and ice left on sidewalks more than 24 hours after a snow event may call Denver 311 and

provide the address of the unshoveled sidewalk. A city inspector will visit the property and, if snow or ice are still present, leave a timestamped notice. After receiving a notice, businesses have four hours and residences have 24 hours before an inspector’s re-check and a potential $150 fine. Denver’s Snow Angels program matches neighborhood volunteers with residents who are physically unable to shovel and financially unable to pay for a service. To sign up for or volunteer with Snow Angels, call 720-913-SNOW (7669) or email snowangels@denvergov.org.

‘Kesher: The West Side Jewish Connection’ Coming to Holiday Theater Jan. 31 By The Denver North Star Staff

ity Council President Jamie Torres and President Pro Tem Amanda Sandoval join Historic Denver and the Denver Office of Storytelling in bringing “Kesher: The West Side Jewish Connection,” a film history of Denver's West Side Jewish community, to MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater. The free community event, which will include a reception, film screening and discussion, takes place Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 6 p.m. at MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater (2644 W. 32nd Ave.). According to the Denver Office of Story-

Bench on Lair O' the Bear trail.

PHOTO BY ANDREA HAYDON

air o’ the Bear Park is a beautiful mountain retreat for those looking for a serene day out amidst the beauty of the Rockies. The park is 30 minutes from Wheat Ridge, 4 miles west of Morrison, near Idledale. The park comprises 394 acres with 8.2 miles of easy-to-moderate hiking, biking and equestrian trails. Bear Creek, meandering gracefully under a canopy of cottonwood and box elder trees, is a highlight of Lair O' the Bear Park and provides a habitat rich in wildlife. This is a popular haven for outdoor enthusiasts and families looking for a leisurely stroll and a picnic alongside the creek. For birders, this diverse habitat attracts various birds, including Lesser Goldfinch, American Dippers, Lazuli Bunting, Spotted Towhee and Steller's jay. Anglers can enjoy casting lines in the tranquil waters of the creek, known for its brown and rainbow trout populations — varied water conditions in Bear Creek, from gentle flows to deeper pockets, create ideal habitats for these fish, making it an ideal location for novice and experienced fishermen. The park's well-maintained trails provide varied experiences, from serene creek-side walks to more elevated landscape views. The park features several trails suitable for different levels of hikers. Bruin Bluff Trail offers a loop through the central part of the park with diverse scenery, including creek views and dense pine areas. Creekside Trail is an easy, hiker-only trail along Bear Creek, offering tranquil views and access to several picnic areas and fishing spots. Rutabaga Trail boasts a 3.2-mile bike-only trail that opened last Spring. For those looking for a more challenging adventure, Bear Creek Trail is a

stunning 12.6-mile trail that passes through Corwina, O’Fallon and Pence Parks. A mile west along the Bear Creek trail is Dunafon Castle, which adds a fairytale element to the area and will delight younger visitors. The castle's construction began in 1929 by a water engineer named Marcus Wright and was completed in 1941. It is a stunning 17-acre property with private trout ponds, arches, turrets, tunnels and bridges. Today, the castle is primarily used for weddings and private events, but its historical presence and unique architecture make it a point of interest. Lair o’ the Bear was once the homestead of Swedish settlers John and Mathilda Johnson. In the early 1900s, the Johnsons farmed fertile land in the canyon, raised livestock, and sold their prized produce in Denver and Evergreen. The Johnson’s children, Finis and Francis, grew up on the property and named the farm “the mountain nook.” Remnants of the Johnson’s farm can be found at the park, including lilac bushes, cherry trees, and part of the fireplace. In 1987, Jefferson County Open Space made a significant move by purchasing the property, thus transforming it from a privately owned farm to a public park. This acquisition shifted the land's purpose from agricultural use to recreational and conservation purposes. With its easy accessibility and diverse offerings, Lair O' the Bear Park is an enchanting escape into nature, perfect for a day trip to explore Colorado's great outdoors. After a morning of exploring, enjoy breakfast or lunch at the Blackbird Cafe in Kittredge, a unique cafe along the banks of Bear Creek that offers window seating overlooking the creek, allowing diners to enjoy the views of the surrounding wildlife.

telling, “Through evocative personal anecdotes, compelling historical accounts and archival images, this 45-minute documentary recounts in the voices of residents the story of the Jewish community along West Colfax and celebrates the contributions of its residents. Above all, ‘Kesher,’ or connection, pays tribute to the unbreakable bonds that continue to connect community in the face of change.” Admission is free, however, a ticket is required. Visit https://www.eventbrite.com/d/ co--denver/kesher/.

Free Spanish Classes By The Denver North Star Staff

panish Learning Network has received grant funding to offer free Spanish classes through the end of the school year—and possibly beyond—to Denver Public Schools parents, guardians, grandparents, volunteers and district staff members. Class-

The Denver North Star

es begin in January. To sign up, fill out the Google form available in the online version of this story at DenverNorthStar.com or visit www.spanishlearningnetwork.com. You will be guided into the level and class schedule that’s right for you.

Bridge to Dunafon Castle

PHOTO BY ANDREA HAYDON

January 15, 2024-February 14, 2024 | Page 11

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Compass is a licensed real estate broker and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, condition, sale, or withdrawal without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footages are approximate. This is not intended to solicit property already listed. Nothing herein shall be construed as legal, accounting or other professional advice outside the realm of real estate brokerage.