All the News About Denver’s Best Residential Community Since 1960 • Volume 61, Issue No. 8 • August 2022
Double Vision Development Project Or Regional Park? Denver Voters Will Decide The Future Of The Park Hill Golf Course Property By Cara DeGette GPHN Editor
Eight months ago Denver voters overwhelmingly embraced adding protections to the city-owned conservation easement on the Park Hill Golf Course land. Despite that vote, city officials have continued working, alongside the developer, to promote development on the 155-acre property. Last month, Westside Investment Partners, formally submitted its plan for development — even though the cityowned conservation easement stands in the way. Westside’s design map shows plans for residential apartment buildings, commercial space and a “main street.” The developer also announced that 75 acres of the property (plus an existing 25-acre retention pond) would be parks and open space. (See page 4 for the developer’s rendering.) In its press release and accompanying materials, Westside made no mention of the conservation easement. The group Save Open Space Denver (SOS Denver), which supports transforming the former golf course into a regional park, released its own vision of possibilities for the property (see map at right).
Fifth grade art project crack falls flat On July 19, the news took an unexpected twist. Kyle Clark, the host of Next on 9News, reported that Westside Investment Partners responded by mocking the open space plan. Specifically, an unnamed spokesperson likened it to “5th graders showing up to present their art project to the classroom when the competition is over.” When asked for additional context, Clark told Greater Park Hill News the station had contacted the developer through “traditional channels” for an update. Before making the 5th grader comment, Westside’s spokesperson had
asked not to be identified by name. “It’s highly unusual for us to quote someone anonymously on Next, but it was such a striking thing for someone in a position of power to say about members of the public that we decided to report the quote,” Clark said. Westside’s crack unleashed a multitude of criticism on social media, aimed at the developer. “Imagine being bold enough to say something that [jerkish], but cowardly enough to not put your name on it,” wrote one viewer. “Westside is awfully damned entitled to profit at taxpayers’ expense,” wrote another. “They have nothing unless [Denver voters] vote for their plan — and why would we when we paid to preserve the space as open space? Funny too — their narrative about ‘winning’ [the ‘competition’] is belied by their losses at the voting booth.” Another: “That’s a funny way to try to win Park Hill voters, Westside bros.” And another: “[This is] incredibly insulting to the residents of this neighborhood who actually want to preserve the character of the area. We need a mayor and city council who will listen to residents and not developers.”
Imagining a great park
SOS Denver organizers said they were ties for a regional park. disappointed, but not particularly surprised, by the developer’s rudeness. They and 2-1 to reject mixed use development (Initiative 302).” also clarified that the SOS map was created by a respected “It is important to note that this rendering is meant to landscape architect, Edward Shalkey. The group’s new cam- present only an idea of what the land could be, not to dictate paign urges Denverites to “Imagine A Great Park.” what it should be,” says SOS Denver spokeswoman Colette SOS Denver also highlighted last November’s election re- Carey. “That is for the citizens of Denver to decide.” sults. “Denver residents voted 2-1 to keep the conservation See Timeline of Events on page 4 easement (Initiative 301) on the Park Hill Golf Course land
Park Hill Character
GPHN Editor
PAGE 11
continued on page 4
PAGE 10
Dorothy Davidson, in the 1970s.
Save The Planet; Garden Walk Thanks; Take The RTD For Free
Imagine Being A Great City. We Can Make It Happen When Denver Temps Climb To Triple Digits, Head For The Hills
PAGE 8
Dorothy Davidson moved to the United States in 1934 from Transylvania when she was four years old. She grew up in Buffalo,
New York, where her father, a rabbi, was the chaplain at Attica State Prison. There, he was reprimanded for doing too much for the prisoners, specifically smuggling pencils and paper to them so that they could petition the courts. Her son Daniel points out his mom got her social justice chops at a young age. The family eventually made their way West, to Colorado, and for Davidson, Park Hill. From 1964 to 1974, she was the executive director of the ACLU of Colorado — leading the civil liberties organization through a turbulent decade that included the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, and the rise of grass roots social movements championing the rights of women, of gays and lesbians, students, farmworkers, Chicanos, and Native Americans. Davidson died in her Park Hill home on Cherry Street on April 26. She was 92. Anecdotes shared by her children and old friends, and through old newspaper clippings, highlight the rich mosaic of her life. When she took the ACLU job, Davidson was newly di-
Inside This Issue
PAGE 5
Former ACLU Leader Was Dedicated To Making The World Better, Fairer, More Equitable
vorced, with six young children. “When she bought our first house in Park Hill she had to have a male co-signer to get her first mortgage,” says her daughter Julia Cirbo. “She always loved the neighborhood, the richness of diversity, and the vigor of community and political involvement.” In 1975 Davidson became the first (and only) director of the ACLU’s Mountain States Regional Office, lassoing civil liberties injustices in 11 western states. She held that position for 20 more years, until her retirement in 1995. As the national ACLU’s newspaper once described it, Davidson was a “circuit rider bringing the Constitution to the frontier.” She was among a small group who met with civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. when he came to Park Hill in 1964 and spoke at Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church. “Her courage and convictions took her many places and allowed her to meet many interesting people,” says Cirbo, among them Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the actors Ed Asner and Martin Sheen. Author and Native American rights activist Vine Deloria used to come by the house, noted Davidson’s son Daniel. She struck up a regular correspondence with the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson and even got a mention in one of his books. In 1968, Davidson and another daughter, who was 14 at the time, were arrested in what was described as part of a “hippie dragnet.” Local police had begun to use arrests for loitering and jaywalking as excuses to search people they labeled hippies. After her acquittal, Davidson sued for the return of her arrest records, and the case went to the Colorado Supreme Court. The ruling in Davidson v Dill set the Colorado precedent for expunging arrest records of persons found not guilty of the crimes for which they were charged. In another episode, in 1974, Davidson participated in a covert action plan to infil-
PAGE 2
Dorothy Davidson: On The Front Line For Liberty By Cara DeGette
The SOS Denver rendering highlights the possibili-
A Ziggurat B Shortgrass Prairie w/Footpaths C Traditional Playground D Tennis/Basketball/Pickleball Courts E Dog-off-Leash Area F Winter Sliding Bowl G Existing Detention Basin H Fishing Pond I Community Garden Plots J Orchard K Maintenance Area L Multi-purpose Sports Fields M Parking N Formal Xeric Gardens O Obelisk P 303 Artway Mall Q Running Track R Field House S Skate Park T Water Park U Adventure Playground V Bowling Green W Pedestrian and Bike Trails X Community House
GPHC Executive Director Lana Cordes Bids A Fond Farewell
Surf’s Up On Montview
Upcoming GPHC Meetings Community meetings are conducted on the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m., except for July and December. The next meetings are August 4 and September 1 at 6:30 p.m. at 2823 Fairfax St. Can’t make it in person? Join via Zoom at greaterparkhill.org/ join-us/ community-meetings/