Message From the PresidentGreetings Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Members and Friends, It is the first Monday of the month, and that means Urban Dweller--Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods' monthly e-newsletter--is now available online. Here is the latest from YOUR registered neighborhood organization and community advocate. THAT WAS A GREAT CELEBRATION: To all who supported the Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods 50th Anniversary Celebration, I want to express my profound appreciation. Your generosity, as well as the tremendous support from the many corners of Denver, made this event even more successful and special. Here are few highlights from the festivities:
IT TAKES A TEAM: A shout-out goes to Molly Williams and Zander Oklar for their leadership and guidance throughout the event planning process. They, along with other planning committee members Karen Pelligren, Margie Valdez, Nichole Racelis, Shirley Howson, Peggy Randall, Vickie Berkley, Mark Cossin, Amy Alleman, Boris Jonica, Dmitrii Zavarotny, Gwen Ehrlich, and Sarah Wells, demonstrated the essence of C.H.U.N.'s renewed vision and collaborative culture. Community engagement and nonprofit board governance is not easy. However, the C.H.U.N. board makes the work meaningful and fun. A NEW WAY FORWARD: Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods has much to celebrate beyond its 50th Anniversary. As many of you know, just two and a half years ago the organization grappled with systemic operational, financial, and cultural struggles. Today, the organization is no longer in debt, membership has increased by 300 percent, and community engagement are at all-time highs. The organization has refined its operations and enhanced its internal culture, too. As I mentioned during my remarks at the C.H.U.N. 50th Anniversary, "Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods is back." We also announced three new community initiatives:
October promises to be quite the busy month. On October 8, the History Matters Committee will address a number of upcoming discussions related to historic preservation. C.H.U.N. is co-sponsoring a community meeting to discuss the latest pertaining to the Warren Church/St. Francis Center on October 15th. On October 31, the surrounding neighborhood is invited to the Tears-McFarlane House to participate in our Halloween Open House. Stay tuned for more details about these events and other ways you can get involved. In the The American Notebooks, Hawthorne writes, "there is no season when such pleasant and sunny spots may be lighted on, and produce so pleasant an effect on the feelings, as now in October.” We wish all of our friends and neighbors a pleasant October. Travis Leiker President | Board of Delegates Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods, Inc. CHUN 50th Anniversary Event A Great Success!Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods (CHUN), one of Denver’s largest and longest-running registered neighborhood organizations (RNO), hosted its 50th anniversary celebration at the Denver Botanic Gardens on September 18, 2019. In 1969 a group of concerned citizens rallied to prevent the proposed conversion of East 11th and 12th avenues into one-way streets. Since then, CHUN has played a central role in addressing the most vexing issues facing the Mile-High City. CHUN staff, board members. city leaders, friends, and neighbors came together for a lively evening featuring a wine tasting, light hors d'oeuvres from local restaurants, and a silent auction showcasing goods and services from local businesses throughout greater Capitol Hill. THANK YOU to all who attended, donated, and supported us! Photo Credit(s): David Spiciarich, Pixel Pro Images Member of the Month
Upcoming EventsPlease Join us for a Community Meeting Learn more about the planned rehabilitation of Warren United Methodist Church into low-income housing by the St. Francis Center. Individual sleeping units will be available for people who are experiencing homelessness, are working or ready to work and would benefit from vocational services and case management. There will be communal bathrooms, laundry, kitchen and living spaces. This will be a facilitated conversation with an opportunity for the St. Francis Center team to share information about where the project is to date and to answer questions. There will also be an opportunity to discuss the process for working toward a Good Neighbor Agreement. Where: Warren United Methodist Church: 1630 E. 14th Ave. (enter on Gilpin St.) When: Tuesday, October 15, 2019 from 7:00-8:30p.m. This event is co-hosted by the St. Francis Center, Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods and Neighbors for Greater Capitol Hill and will be facilitated by a professional facilitator provided by the City & County of Denver. We hope you can join us. Download the event flyer. Inaugural Trick-or-Treat Night and Open House at the Tears McFarlane Mansion.Join Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods and the CHUN Parents Group in lively activities for all ages. There will be treats for both kids 🍭 and grownups 🍷! If you live or work in the CHUN boundaries, come and check us out! Stay up to date on this event at our Facebook Event page. More details to follow. The Zombie Crawl is Back Spookier Than Ever
Other events in Capitol Hill & around Denver
CHUN Meetings, Forums & Committees Upcoming CHUN Committee Meetings
October 2! Conversation with Council members Candi CdeBaca & Chris HindsYou are invited to a conversation with your newly-elected council representatives, Candi CdeBaca (District 9) and Chris Hinds (District 10). The event will be held at Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center, Colorado Room North, 1719 E. 19th Ave. (Please use the Surgery Entrance.) Learn more on the official Facebook event page. A big thank you to the food and beverage donors, the neighborhood organizations sponsoring the event, and of course Councilwoman CdeBaca and Councilman Hinds!!
Top Neighborhood News Stories Denver Park Trust launched to support city’s park system
Tasty Colfax Vision Zero Pop-Up Traffic Calming DemonstrationOn July 23, Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods, the Bluebird District, and WalkDenver co-hosted a temporary Vision Zero traffic calming demonstration event during the 11th Annual Tasty Colfax event. The Tasty Colfax is an annual restaurant and pub crawl through the eclectic business, entertainment, and arts districts on E Colfax Ave between York and Colorado Blvd. The extended block party fuses urban energy with small town community, and includes live music and fine art. The Colfax & Madison intersection is home to an increasing number of popular restaurants, bars, and other neighborhood destinations and has seen a corresponding increase in pedestrian traffic in recent years. Anyone familiar with trying to navigate Colfax outside of a car knows how difficult and at times dangerous it can be. A lack of safe places to cross mean many people have to cross Colfax where there is no protection for anyone on foot or bike or go too far out of their way to reach a safer crossing point. With a Bus Rapid Transit project being planned for Colfax that would include adding more safe crossing locations, the pop-up traffic calming demonstration was a great opportunity to re-imagine Colfax as a more people-friendly street in the future. Share your thoughts with the Denver Annual Commuter Survey
Colleagues reject councilwoman’s pitch to require super-majority approval of hostile landmark requests
In other words, if all 13 council members were present for a vote, Black proposed requiring that 10 of them support the designation, instead of the seven currently required. Read the full article at businessden.com Related articles: Council passes rules updates on criteria, collaboration New, improved landmark ordinance takes effect Nov. 1 ! After more than a year of work, the package of proposed updates to the rules that govern Denver's Landmark Preservation Program were unanimously approved by the Denver City Council at its meeting Monday, September 30. The changes will take effect starting November 1, 2019.
Two of the changes involve an update to landmark designation criteria to include culture and an update to the demolition review process.
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Construction & Development
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