Volume 37, Edition 1

Message from the President

Dear Friends and Neighbors, 

HAPPY 2019!  On behalf of the board of delegates and team at Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods (C.H.U.N.), I wish you a very happy, healthy, and prosperous year.  As I reflect on the many wonderful achievements from the past year, I am delighted to report that your registered neighborhood organization is in a great place.  Even further, I am buoyed by the opportunities that await us in the coming months.  

My fellow board colleagues and I will be presenting a recap of 2018 and our vision for the future at our annual membership meeting.  Here are the details:

• Date: Thursday, January 10
• Time: 6:30 p.m.
• Location: The Colorado Health Foundation, 1780 Pennsylvania St, Denver, CO 80203 
• Check-In begins at 6 pm; refreshments to be provided courtesy of our friends at The Goods Restaurant. 

​In addition, you will be able to hear more about our financial forecasting, anticipated programs, and celebrate our Good Neighbor Awards recipients.  Longtime friends of C.H.U.N. will recall its community grants program—small financial awards to nonprofit groups within the organization’s geographic boundaries.  Financial constraints caused C.H.U.N. to suspend the program a number of years ago.  This year, we are excited to be able to provide small financial awards—$350 per award—to invaluable nonprofit organizations in our community.  The re-introduction of these contributions underscores C.H.U.N.’s sound organizational management and recent financial turnaround.  

To paraphrase inventor and philanthropist Charles Kettering, with every passing day we usher in an opportunity to create a new place for new ideas and progress. 

All the best,
Travis 

Travis Leiker | President
Board of Delegates, Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods

PS: Check out the latest Urban Dweller! 

January 10th CHUN Annual Meeting Is a Must-Attend Event!

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods' Annual Membership Meeting is set for Thursday, January 10 at 6:30 p.m. The location is The Colorado Health Foundation, 1780 Pennsylvania St, Denver, CO 80203,  (map).  This is also our annual opportunity to recognize people and organizations that have stood out for their service, in one way or another, to our neighborhoods and overall community. The winners of CHUN's Good Neighbor Awards will be announced. This year, as a result of good financial stewardship and a grant from our friend, benefactor and former board member, Mike Plancarte, we will be able to offer monetary awards.  CHUN wants to offer its sincere thanks to Mike and his company, Premier Ventures, for the support he has given to CHUN over the last several years. We will miss his wonderful restaurants, Lala's and Govnr's Park Tavern, which closed recently. We wish Mike good fortune in his next chapter.  Thanks also go to Eric Hyatt, owner of Angelo's Taverna, who will be opening his Carboy Winery in the former Govnr's Park location. Eric has been a loyal supporter of CHUN's and kindly provided the food and drink for our annual Holiday Open House. Please help us support Eric by patronizing Angelo's and his new endeavor, the Carboy Winery.

Thank you supporters!

Colorado Gives Day was another terrific day of giving for Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods.  Not only did we kick of the holiday season with more than 175 people at our annual holiday party, but CHUN raised nearly $3500 to support our work.  Many thanks to all who attended our gathering and generously contributed.

Cop Shops Closed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Starting January 1, 2019, all six Denver Police Department district stations will be closed every day from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. If you need police services during these hours, please call or text 911 for emergencies, or 720-913-2000 for non-emergencies. You can also report certain types of crimes that are not in-progress online at www.denvergov.org/police. If you are instructed to meet with an officer at a district station during these hours, please contact the officer using their direct extension.

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Christmas Is In Our Rearview. Time to Treecycle

Recycling your holiday tree is as easy as ever thanks to Denver Recycles’ annual Treecycle program. For every tree recycled with Treecycle, Denver residents help keep organic material out of the landfill, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and create mulch that is made available to Denver residents for free at the annual Mulch Giveaway & Compost Sale in May.

Participating in Treecycle is easy, free, and truly a no-brainer. After the holidays, follow these easy steps to recycle your tree:
1.    Remove all decorations, lights, and the tree stand from your tree.
2.    Set your tree out for collection on one of your scheduled trash collection days during the two-week Treecycle collection period. Set your tree out for collection by 7:00 a.m. on your scheduled trash collection day during the week of December 31st or the week of January 7th.
3.    Reclaim free mulch made from your tree at the annual Mulch Giveaway & Compost Sale in May 2019.

Program Reminders:

• Only natural, real trees are collected by Treecycle crews. No artificial or flocked trees.
• Place trees out at your trash set-out location by 7 a.m. on your scheduled trash collection day.
• Trees must be placed at least two feet away from collection carts, structures, and other obstacles. Do not place trees inside bags or collection carts.
• In observance of the New Year’s Day holiday on 1/1/19, all Tuesday through Friday Solid Waste Management collections are delayed by one day during the week of 12/31.
• Trees may also be dropped off at one of two Treecycle drop-off sites, open through January 31.
• Treecycle is for Denver residents only.

   Last year, Denver residents recycled more than 20,000 trees. Participate in this year’s Treecycle program and help Denver recycle even more! For more information about Treecycle, the annual Mulch Giveaway and Compost Sale or other Denver Recycles programs, visit DenverGov.org/DenverRecycles call 311 (720-913-1311).

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Help Denver Meet 2020 Recycling and Composting Goals

The City says One Pound, One Household, One Day will make its goal of increasing recycling and composting by 2020. Just a pound per household each day.   In 2018, Denver households generated about 230,000 tons of waste, but only recycled and composted about 57,000 tons of this material. To achieve our 2020 goal of reaching a 34% recycling and composting rate, Denver residents will need to recycle and compost 22,000 more tons per year, which is approximately one more pound, per household, per day! In other words, we can do this!

That extra pound is easy to achieve. Look at the chart to see what you could add to your recycle or compost bin that would add  the necessary pound.

Compost more! Nearly 50% of the material in Denver’s trash can be composted. 

• Sign up for Denver composts. The Denver Composts program is perfect for keeping food waste, yard debris and non-recyclable paper out of your trash (and out of the landfill). Compost collection service is provided by the City for $9.75 per month (billed quarterly), and the green cart is emptied weekly.
• Learn more about all your composting options, including backyard composting and vermicomposting, at DenverGov.org/Compost.

Recycle more! Nearly 25% of the material in Denver’s trash can be recycled

• Brush up on the list of materials accepted in the Denver Recycles’ program at DenverGov.org/DenverRecycles, and practice your sorting skills with the Denver Recycles Waste Sorting Game.  
• Increase your recycling capacity by upsizing to a larger purple recycle cart. Many residents have 65-gallon purple carts that can be exchanged for larger, 95-gallon purple carts. If a large purple cart isn’t enough, your home can also request a second recycle cart. 

Reduce the size of your black trash cart. Your black trash cart comes in three sizes (35-, 65- and 95-gallon). Downsizing to a smaller cart will save space around your home and encourage stronger recycling and composting habits.  For information about general waste reduction, the Denver Recycles program, and all services offered by Denver Solid Waste Management, visit www.DenverGov.org/DenverRecycles, or call 311 (720-913-1311).

Put Those Paper Cups in Your Recycle Bin
Denver is now one of the first cities in the country to add paper cups to its recycling program, thanks to a partnership with the Foodservice Packaging Institute and Alpine Waste & Recycling. As a result, all Denver households with a purple cart can now include coffee and soda paper cups on their recycling list!    Paper cups were once thought to be non-recyclable due to their plastic coating, which insulates and prevents leaks, however, a growing number of mills are now able to recycle paper cups. When recycled, paper cups are a source of high-quality paper.

Denver-based Alpine Waste & Recycling, which processes almost 40,000 tons of recyclables for the City each year, will also help Denver Public Works process paper cups through a pulp mill in De Pere, Wisconsin. Sustana is one of over a dozen mills in the U.S. and Canada that have committed to recycling paper cups.  By expanding its recycling program to include paper cups the city will help further its goal of increasing its recycling rate to 34 percent, the national average, as outlined in Mayor Michael B. Hancock’s 2020 Sustainability Goals.
  
​In the coming months, Denver residents can expect to receive a postcard in the mail, educating them about how to recycle paper cups correctly. Before placing a paper cup in a purple cart, it must be clean and empty. All sleeves, lids, straws and stirrers will also need to be removed.  Recycling only the paper cup is very important to the process.
  To learn more and to see a list of all items accepted for recycling in Denver, please visit denvergov.org/DenverRecycles.

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Help Make Denveright! Attend a Review Session

In January 2019, city planners will release updated drafts of Comprehensive Plan 2040, Blueprint Denver and Game Plan for a Healthy City at denvergov.org/denveright and in local libraries. We'll include a reader guide so you can easily find what’s changed.   There's still time to talk with city planners and share your opinion about these plans. Join us at one of four drop-in sessions:

• Ross-University Hills Branch Library, 4310 E. Amherst Ave., January 10, 5-7 p.m.
• Decker Branch Library, 1501 S. Logan St., January 15, 5-7 p.m.
• Scheitler Recreation Center, 5031 W 46th Ave, January 24, 5-7 p.m.
• Park Hill Branch Library, 4705 Montview Blvd., February 5, 5:30-7:15 p.m. 

See a detailed schedule of these and other feedback opportunities at denvergov.org/denveright.

CHUN Committee Meetings

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Zoning, Transportation and Licensing Committee Meeting
Dec. 5, 2018, 7:00 p.m., 1201 Williams St., 19th Floor.

• Property owner, Jimmy Balafas, a principal with the Kentro Group, which owns the former 7-11 Store located at 1291 Pearl Street and the former car wash located on the northeast corner of Colfax Avenue and Williams Street reported plans to rehabilitate his Pearl Street building as a restaurant.  He discussed landscaping, a patio and bicycle parking. This will be a neighborhood oriented retail space.  The Williams Street property was planned for a medical use but the deal has collapsed.  He is searching for a new use and tenant.  Both properties have sat vacant for some time, and could be ripe for re-development.
• Saint Joseph Hospital's Business Development Director presented plans for a four story medical office building and adjacent parking building at 18th Avenue and Ogden Street. The property lies along Park Avenue West, a historically designated corridor. The medical building will have a green roof and solar panels. Residents attending this meeting had concerns with the parking garage being so ‘offensive’ to Park Avenue West and its importance as a gateway corridor to Cheesman Park. Residents encouraged Saint Joseph’s to put good design into this building and consider using landscape vegetation in the design, like Denver Botanic Gardens parking structures. Residents also asked Saint Joseph to consider creating a destination for Denver’s aging populations to obtain comprehensive health services, as a next phase of its services development. Its current plans will service expectant mothers.  The construction will begin Spring 2019 and be completed in 2020.
• Brian Toerber presented his plans for the redevelopment of the former Rock Bar/Executive Inn at East Colfax and Milwaukee. This property has been vacant for many years. The City’s Planning Dept. and City Council members met with him and encouraged him to  make this location a catalyst property, to encourage further improvements along East Colfax Avenue. His plans call for rehabilitating this existing building into a boutique hotel (three star) with a nice 120 table restaurant. Plans call for live music in the bar on weekends. Mr. Toerber will market to the nearby theatres. He will plan to clean up the existing swimming pool and make it available to the surrounding neighborhoods. Parking is already available, without increasing, on this property.  Opening is planned for the Summer of 2020. Entertainment Districts are in operation at the Stanley Market in Aurora, as allowed by State Statutes. Denver City Council is developing its own conditions to permit such districts in the city of Denver. Such a temporary permit would allow a patron to carry an alcoholic beverage between alcohol-serving establishments.

The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for Feb. 5 at 7:00 p.m., 1201 Williams St., 19th floor. Agenda TBA.

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods' Historic Preservation Committee
There was no meeting in December. The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 28 at 7:00 p.m. at the Castle Marne,  1572 Race Street. Agenda TBA.

News Affecting CHUN's Neighborhoods

• Carboy Winery to Open in Former Govnr’s Park Tavern – BusinessDen
  
• CHA Building in Cap Hill Sells for $9 million – BusinessDen
• Snarfburger Expected to Open in Capitol Hill in Feb. – BusinessDen
• Esquire Theatre Closed Indefinitely after Water Damage – Denver Post
• Tough Mudder to Open Gym along East Colfax – BusinessDen
• RedPeak Drops $17.5M on Apartment Buildings in Congress Park & Cap Hill – BusinessDen
• Sale of Cap Hill Apartment Building Launches Court Battle – BusinessDen
• Denver Auditor Questioning whether OED Is Doing its Job on Affordable Housing – Denverite
• Govnr’s Park Palm Tree Finds a New Home on Craigslist – 9News

Upcoming Public Meetings

• Last month notice was given regarding a hearing before Denver Excise and Licenses regarding a proposed NEW Beer and Wine Liquor License for 3825 E. Colfax Avenue, to be known as "Bishops."  THE DEPARTMENT OF EXCISE AND LICENSING ADVISES THAT THAT APPLICATION HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN.   Additional information can be obtained from Denver Excise and Licenses.  Contact Bruce Turner at that agency at [email protected] (720-865-2748).
  
• A hearing before Denver Excise and Licenses regarding a proposed NEW Beer and Wine License for 250 Fillmore Street, Unit #225.  The hearing is to be held on January 7th at 1:30 PM in the offices of Denver Excise and Licenses, 201 W. Colfax Avenue, Dept. 206 (Wellington Webb Building).  Additional information can be obtained from Denver Excise and Licenses.  Contact Bruce Turner at that agency at [email protected] (720-865-2748).
  
• ZPIN notice regarding the property at 1541 Race Street.  Zoning permit application to install a 6 foot fence.  Comments are due by close of business on January 7th.  Contact Associated City Planner Steve Elkins at [email protected] or 720-913-3476 for more information.  Please reference address and project # 2018-Zone-0001365.
  
• ZPIN notice regarding the property at 545 Adams Street.  Application to install an 8 foot fence behind the primary street in order to enclose existing air conditioning units for noise abatement purposes.  Comments are due by close of business on January 9th.  Contact Associated City Planner RJ Glorso at [email protected] or 720-913-2797 for more information.  Please reference address and project # 2018-Zone-0007991.
  
• ZPIN notice regarding the property at 201 Jackson Street.  Zoning permit application to operate a nonresidential use in an existing business structure in a residential zone.  Proposed nonresidential uses are for a realtor and medical offices. Comments are due by close of business on January 11th.  Contact Associated City Planner Jennifer Cervera  at [email protected] or 720-913-2810 for more information.  Please reference address and project # 2018-Zone-0007359.
  
• ZPIN notice regarding the property at 423 E. 2nd Avenue.  Zoning permit application to site one (1) at-grade air conditioning unit within the required set-back off of the alley.  Comments are due by close of business on January 14th.  Contact Associated City Planner RJ Glorso at [email protected] or 720-913-2797 for more information.  Please reference address and project # 2018-Zone-0007587.
  
• Denver Excise and Licenses is asking for comments regarding a proposed Transfer of Ownership for a Beer and Wine Liquor License for 1043 Broadway.  Comments must be submitted no later than January 9th regarding issues related to the "character, record and reputation" of the new owner.  Comments are to be made to [email protected], or to the offices of Denver Excise and Licenses, 201 W. Colfax Avenue, Dept. 206 (Wellington Webb Building).  Additional information can be obtained from Denver Excise and Licenses.  Contact Sharon Kinvig at that agency at [email protected] (720-865-2748).
  
• A hearing before Denver Excise and Licenses regarding a proposed NEW 3.2% Beer Off-Premises License for 1770 Broadway, to be known as "Choice Market."  The hearing is to be held on January 30th at 9 AM in the offices of Denver Excise and Licenses, 201 W. Colfax Avenue, Dept. 206 (Wellington Webb Building).  Additional information can be obtained from Denver Excise and Licenses. Contact Sharon Kinvig at that agency at [email protected] (720-865-2748). 
  
• Public Hearing before the Board of Adjustment regarding the property at 3101 E. 7th Avenue   -  appeal of a denial to erect a rear addition containing a second story deck located 4 feet into the rear 35% of the zone lot, which is otherwise prohibited.  Hearing to be held on January 22nd at 9:30 AM  at the Wellington Webb Office Building, 201 W. Colfax Avenue, 2nd Floor Tower Hearing Room, 2.H.14.  Contact Denver Board of Adjustment regarding Case No. 213-18 for more information (720-913-3052).