All the News About Denver’s Best Residential Community Since 1961 • Volume 57, Issue No. 2 • February 2018
PAGE 4
Women’s March Denver 2018
INSIDE THIS ISSUE Colorado Legislature Steps On The Gas
PAGE 5
The Best Line Of Defense Against Blistering Heat
PAGE 10
Images From the Marade: Honoring MLK, Jr.
PAGE 12 PAGE 14 Crowds estimated at 50,000 up to 150,000 crammed Civic Center Park downtown on Jan. 20 for an encore to last year’s Women’s March on Denver. As they did last year, people of all ages, races and genders gathered in solidarity, capping what has been a tumultuous ride since Donald Trump was elected president in 2016. Handmade signs conveyed a myriad of messages and emotions, from repugnance and loathing to hope and optimism that women will win in 2018. Check out pages 8 and 9 for more images from the day. Photo by Reid Neureiter
Summer In Mind: 2018 Guide To Kids Camps
Warm Up With A Good Book In February
UPCOMING GPHC MEETINGS Thursday, February 1 and Thursday, March 1, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at 2823 Fairfax St. All are welcome to attend.
TALK OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD COMPILED BY CARA DEGETTE, EDITOR, GPHN
The following is a synopsis of what was discussed during the Jan. 4 Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. monthly meeting. See “Upcoming GPHC Meetings” above for information about community meetings in February and March.
Fairfax Pocket Park Update Left: East High junior guard Kwame Marble dribbles up-court against a Lakewood defender.; Right: GW shooting guard and small forward Devon Jones dribbles the ball up-court against Regis Jesuit.
HOOPS RIVALRY
Season Promises Renewed Sparks Between Patriots and Angels Story and photos by Reid Neureiter Special to the GPHN
The boys basketball teams of East and George Washington high schools have a long and historic rivalry. Denver East has nine Colorado state basketball titles, the latest coming in 2014 when the Angels were led by two-time Colorado Mr. Basketball, Dominque Collier. Collier is currently in his senior year playing point guard for the University of Colorado Buffalos in Boulder. George Washington, for its part, owns five Colorado state boys championship titles. And GW was the home to Colorado’s greatest schoolboy baller, Chauncey Billups. Billups, known as the “King of Park Hill,” was a three-time Colorado Mr. Basketball
who went on to star for the University of Colorado, where he was an All-American. Billups then played 17 seasons in the NBA, including for the Boston Celtics, the Denver Nuggets and the Detroit Pistons. With the Pistons, Billups won an NBA Championship and he was named NBA Finals MVP. It was Billups who, way back in 1994, led the George Washington Patriots to their last Colorado state title. Last season, both East and George Washington had highly ranked teams headed into the 2017 state playoffs. George Washington beat East in a thrilling 99 to 96 regular season finale at Manual High’s Thunderdome, claiming the Denver Public Schools city title for the second year in a row. George Washington ended the season continued on page 11
Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. board member Kevin Wiegand provided an update on progress related to a pocket park for the former Xcel Energy substation land on the west side of Fairfax between 28th and 29th avenues. The City Parks & Recreation department obtained the land from Xcel and originally planned a park at the site. However, the developer of the block-long residential and commercial project across the street has proposed a land swap with the city. City officials, including city Councilman Chris Herndon and Parks Director Scott Gilmore, have worked privately with the developer on the proposal to build the park inside the development project. In exchange, the developer would take ownership of the Xcel property for a future development. Herndon and Gilmore have said they support the land-swap idea (see the November issue of GPHN, at greaterparkhill.org for additional details on the plan). However, nearby residents and members of the GPHC board have held a series of public meetings and developed a plan to privately fund and build the park in its original location at the site of the former Xcel substation. In his presentation, Wiegand said he and other volunteers fliered homes within a ¼-mile radius of the park location seeking input on the plan. He described the park as being safe and welcoming to all neighbors.
The group has held three community meetings in recent months, drawing between 30-50 people. People have voiced a desire for several amenities, he said, including picnic areas, children’s play areas, a flower garden, a shade structure, green space, food trucks, a mural and other public art, and a water feature. “One of the goals is inclusion,” Wiegand said. “We want the park to be welcoming to everyone.” The brick wall that currently surrounds the property would be largely removed for safety, save for the wall against the alley to mitigate noise from the properties to the west of the proposed park. Wiegand said he and other organizers plan to reach out to Councilman Herndon and the city’s parks and recreation department with hopes of moving forward with a meeting. (Note: the city is planning a separate meeting on this issue on Thursday, Feb. 22, at Stedman Elementary School from 5:30-7:30 p.m. See page 6 for additional details.)
Radon Testing Update
Patricia Iwasaki of the group Taking Neighborhood Health to Heart provided an update on the environmental justice campaign on radon testing that was launched last year. Neighborhoods include Park Hill, Stapleton, Montclair, and East Aurora. Radon is an odorless and tasteless gas that is found in 1 of 9 homes in Colorado and can cause lung cancer. Iwasaki urged people to have their homes tested for radon, which is free and takes about 30 minutes. If radon is above acceptable levels, there is funding for mitigation systems for those who qualify via Denver Urban Renewal Authority. If you are interested in having your home tested, contact david.pfotenhauer@colorado.edu. continued on page 2