City Council - Regular Meeting

Good afternoon and thank you for taking time to join us for the Denver City Council meeting. Today is Monday, August 31st, 2026. Tonight's meeting is being interpreted into Spanish. Sam or Jasmine, would you please introduce yourselves and let our viewers know how to enable translation on their devices?

Thank you very much. Welcome to the Denver City Council meeting of Monday, August 31st, 2026. Councilmembers, please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Council Members, please join Council Member, Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez as they lead us in the Denver City Council Land Acknowledgement.

The Denver City Council honors and acknowledges that the land on which we reside is the traditional territory of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho peoples. We also recognize the 48 contemporary tribal nations that are historically tied to the lands that make up the state of Colorado. We honor elders past, present, and future, and those who have stewarded this land throughout generations. We also recognize that government, academic, and cultural institutions were founded upon and continue to enact exclusions and erasures of indigenous peoples. May this acknowledgement demonstrate a commitment to w

There are 11 members present. Council has a quorum. Approval of the minutes. Are there any corrections to the minutes of August 24th? Seeing none, the minutes stand approved. Council announcements. Are there any announcements from council members? Let's go ahead and get started. Council member Lewis.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. Um, so we have a beautiful proclamation on consent tonight for the celebration of agenda. This is 1 of my favorite events. It's a celebration of girls and women and to cry and to cry and diaspora this year. The celebration is next Sunday, September 6th and Monday, September 7th. So there will not be a council meeting to run this at that time. But I hope this year's event is as special as ever. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Madam President. Just wanted to remind the residents of District 5 that our community cleanup day is coming up. It's September 27th, which is a Sunday morning. So meet us at Montclair Rec Center at 8.30 a.m. You can grab breakfast and supplies and then head out to some of our district parks and some of our district bus stops, which we repaint during our community cleanup day. So come join us. You can sign up online. I have no idea what the sign up is, but you can find it on our website. social media. And then also just a reminder for District 5 residents, check your mailboxes. Our a

Thank you, Madam President. Just want to say a big thank you to my community who showed up on Friday. We had the movie in the park at Zuni Park on 52nd and Zuni. And it started out with a huge rainstorm that blew all these canopies across the park. And then all of a sudden there was a double rainbow that led to the north side because we were a pot of gold. Just joking. Everywhere was pot of gold. But it really did have a double rainbow. And just a huge shout out to my aide, Alessandra. She put her heart and soul into that. We had a resource fair. We had resource counselors. We had you name it.

Council Member Alvarez. Thank you, Council President. I wanted to share that we are continuing our book club, Reading the Constitution, this Wednesday, September 2nd, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Habitat for Humanity on Navajo and the Athmar Park neighborhood. We'll be having a discussion about amendments 10 through 14, so come down and join that conversation. I also wanted to share that District 7, along with a lot of our neighborhood organizations, is going to have an at-large candidate B forum on September 22nd at Bar 404 on South Broadway. You'll be able to hear from all the candidates running

Thanks so much. Last Friday was an event that we'd been long planning with GDPHE, and that was our food summit. So a lot of our council members and aides were present. at tables to discuss with the organizations who directly provide food distribution and staff food pantries in our districts to find out what's working well, what's preventing them from doing work to their full potential and how can the city be a better partner. It was an incredible afternoon and I've already heard back from a lot of those providers. They loved being able to sit with council members and aides and talk about this

Thank you, Council President, and to Council Member Torres and the service providers and all the folks that put together the Food Summit. What an amazing opportunity to sit, listen, and to look at really what we should be doing together in the future. So thank you so much, Council Member Torres. I know that you've led that for many years, and I'm so happy for that to come to fruition, at least as first step. I want to remind community members that Data Center Working Group, we are still taking applications. Applications opened on August 21st. We'll close this Friday, September 4th. If you have

Thank you. I just have a few announcements. Councilmember Torres, thank you for spearheading the Food Justice Summit. That was really remarkable and a great turnout and really rich conversation. Look forward to what happens next. I want to invite everyone to come to Eisenhower Park on September 19th. We're doing our South by Southeast summer concert series, and we will have the Denver Jazz Orchestra, food trucks, and also a resource fair of city agencies and nonprofits will be out there. It starts at 7, ends at—no, it doesn't start at 7. It starts at 4, ends at 7. You missed the whole thing. B

Thank you, Council President. Proclamation 26-1269, celebrating the 75th anniversary of Denver Fire Station 23. whereas the Denver Fire Department has proudly served the city and county of Denver since 1866, demonstrating exceptional courage, professionalism, and dedication while protecting lives, safeguarding property, and strengthening the resilience of our communities. And, whereas, Denver Fire Station 23 was established on September 1, 1951 at 850 South Federal following the annexation of the town of Westwood into the City and County of Denver, carrying forward a long-standing commitment t

And whereas the firefighters of Station Whereas the firefighters of Station 23 have consistently embodied the mission of the Denver Fire Department through their dedication to service, courage in the face of adversity, and professionalism under the most demanding circumstances. And whereas the 75th Anniversary Open House United Residents former firefighters, community leaders, and families in celebrating the rich history of Station 23, honoring those who have faithfully served and acknowledging the firehouse's enduring impact on the neighborhoods it has protected for generations. And whereas t

Thank you. Councilmember Alvarez, your motion to adopt.

I move that Proclamation 26-1269 be adopted.

It has been moved and seconded. Comments by members of Council. Councilmember Alvarez, we'll start with you.

Thank you so much, Council President. Thank you all for all of our firefighters that are here today. It was an honor to attend and witness the 75th anniversary celebration and get to meet so many firefighters that have served in different generational capacities and to see the integrity that you all show up with every day. You can see it in every corner of the firehouse. I think that you all, even the symbol of the flamingo, trying to count all the flamingos in the station is a fun activity. But seeing you all hang out outside on federal on the weekends and connect with community is what reall

Happy 75th birthday. What an incredible milestone and just really honored to be asked to co-sponsor this proclamation. Thank you, Ty, for working with us to get us to this point as well. And, you know, for the first, my first term We had Station 20 in District 3, and that was it. We've added District 6, but Station 23 is such a core part of who responds to calls in need in Westwood. Marlee, Barnum, Barnum West, and I just thank you all for the role that you play there. And it can't be easy with a fire station on Federal Boulevard. It's got to be really tough getting where you need to go and se

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. 11 ayes. 11 ayes. Proclamation 26-1269 has been adopted. We have five minutes for the proclamation acceptance. Council members, who would you like to invite up to accept the proclamation?

I would start. One thing I want to acknowledge is that Anita Banuelos, the co-president of Athmar Park, is the person who asked for this proclamation, so thank you to her. And then I would like to invite both captains up as well as Chief Fulton to accept the proclamation.

So we're going to take a minute in between that will allow you to go out and take a picture. And then I believe we have some people in the overflow room. So we're going to do some moving and shifting around to allow those people to enter the chambers. So please hold. Okay, it looks like we got people in and out. I think we're going to go ahead and continue. Oh, are we waiting for two more to come back? Are they going to help read? Torres is going to help read. Okay. Council members, council members, sponsors, please read Proclamation 26-1272.

Proclamation 26-1272, recognizing International Overdose Grief Day. Whereas Overdose Grief Day, formerly known as Overdose Awareness Day, is recognized around the world as an occasion to acknowledge those who have experienced an overdose, as well as loved ones who have been affected and... Whereas, each year, a record number of deaths are being reported, driven predominantly by the use of fentanyl, methamphetamine, in combination with other drugs, and an unregulated drug supply. And...

Whereas, thousands of people continue to die every year in the United States of preventable overdoses, with 2025 bringing an increase in drug-related deaths of 563 to our Denver friends. And...

Whereas overdose continues to be the leading cause of death of Denver's unhoused friends. And whereas over the last 55 years plus, years of the racist and classist war on drugs, drug overdose deaths have increased significantly in many parts of the world, including Denver, Colorado, and continue to worsen and...

whereas Overdose Grief Day denounces the criminalization and incarceration of people who use drugs, and whereas Overdose Grief Day hopes to publicly challenge the stigma associated with drug use and overdose, and whereas this day spreads the message that tragedy of overdose death is preventable and empowers people to work together to prevent overdose as a community by prioritizing harm reduction initiatives

such as naloxone, fentanyl testing strips, syringe pipe access programs, and drug checking, and, whereas, Overdose Grief Day provides an opportunity for people to publicly mourn for loved ones, some for the very first time, without the feelings of guilt or shame. Now, therefore, be it proclaimed by the Denver City Council, Section 1, that the Denver City Council proclaim August 31st as Denver Overdose Grief Day. Section 2, that the clerk and recorder of the City and County of Denver shall affix the seal of the City and County of Denver to this proclamation and that a copy be transmitted to Lis

Thank you. Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez, your motion to adopt.

I move that Proclamation 26-1272 be adopted.

It has been moved and seconded. Comments by members of Council. Council Member, Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez.

Thank you, Madam President. I do want to thank the community partners and advocates who took the lead on this proclamation. And more than that, I want to recognize the unwavering love and dedication that you all have shown to folks who do use drugs in our community. In the face of overwhelming stigma and misunderstanding, you all show up time and time again to educate and guide us into an honest view of the drug addiction crisis. I want to also recognize there were some other council members who joined us on this proclamation that aren't in the chambers with us right now. Councilman Cashman, C

I wanted to highlight a few of the known principles that this day focuses on as we consider what actions our city can and must undertake. First, overdose can and must be prevented. We have known solutions to prevent overdose, but we lack the political will to put them into action. One such example that this body has shown broad support of in the past is the use of overdose prevention centers. OPCs are a solution that will truly reduce public drug use, reduce public overdose deaths, and increase public safety. These are proven strategies. These are issues that we hear about consistently from ou

Thank you, Council President, and thank you, Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez. I really want to acknowledge the families and the loved ones who are left behind when someone overdoses. It's not the first time, and that's a normal part of recovery that we don't talk about a lot, that nobody goes to rehab, gets clean, and then is clean forever. Maybe I would say a very, very small percentage. The majority of folks, because we're human and we're fallible and life and stress hits us, is that... Relapse happens, but we don't talk about how much a fatal overdose is more percentage-wise going to hap

Thank you, Madam President. I want to talk about two things. First, some numbers. Not every council member is okay with numbers at the dais, but I'm going to give it a try. And second, about reputation. numbers. The 563 Denverites we lost last year weren't lost evenly. March and May each saw 63 drug-related deaths, the highest monthly totals the city has ever recorded. That's two people a day for two months straight. And Denver is moving against the national trend. Overdose deaths fell across the country in 2025, but in Colorado they rose. Preliminary data shows more than 1,813 statewide, up f

Thank you. And thank you, Council Members, for bringing this forward today. Madam Secretary, roll call.

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Eleven ayes. Proclamation 26-1272 has been adopted. We have five minutes for the proclamation acceptance. Councilmembers, who would you like to invite up to accept this proclamation?

Thank you, Council President. I'd like to invite up Lisa Rayville from the Harm Reduction Action Center.

Councilmember Torres, please read Proclamation 26-1193.

Thank you, Madam President. Proclamation 26-1193, a proclamation regarding proposed changes to federal historic preservation regulations. Whereas for nearly 60 years, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act has required federal agencies to identify historic places, weigh the effects of their projects, and consult with state and local governments, tribes, and the public before moving forward, not to stop projects, but to give those who know a place best a voice in what happens to it. And whereas, the City and County of Denver is a certified local government under this framework, w

Thank you, Councilmember Torres. Your motion to adopt.

I move that Proclamation 26-1193 be adopted.

It has been moved and seconded. Comments by members of council. Council member Torres.

Thank you so much. I appreciate my colleagues' support in this proclamation and just want to thank my constituent who brought it to my attention, Historic Denver. I want to thank John Deffenbaugh and Jay. Thank you so much for your partnership in this, Jay Olmsted, and your partnership in preparing this proclamation and our landmark Thank you all so much for flagging this, being involved, and trying to influence where we can. I want to just share a couple quotes I mentioned this during committee and I'll repeat it here. The Colorado Sun did a great profile of this proposal, these changes, what

Thank you, Madam President. Thank you. Council Member Sandoval.

Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman Torres, for bringing this forward. I got comments from several of my constituents asking me to support this proclamation, and one of them sent me an article, and within the article, It says section 106 is the real core of the National Historic Preservation Act because it protects sites and buildings whether they have official historic designation or not. It also at its best mandates, let me repeat that, mandates public engagement. That's what we're here for. We're supposed to be part of the public engagement. That's the essence of 106. said preservationist Mi

Thank you, and thank you, Councilmembers, for bringing this forward.

Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Ten ayes. Ten ayes. Proclamation 26-1273 has been adopted. We have five minutes for the proclamation acceptance. Councilmember Torres, would you like, who would you like to bring up to accept this proclamation?

Thank you so much. I'd love for our friends at Historic Denver to come on up to the podium, John and Jay.

Council Pro Tem Gonzales Gutierrez, we need a motion to suspend the rules of Council to allow for the introduction of a late filing.

I move that the rules of procedure be suspended to allow for the introduction of Council Resolution 261273. It has been moved and seconded.

Comments from members of council. I will comment first. The reason for the direct file is that the contract for the amendment that allows the Harm Reduction Action Center to use the current ARPA funds in the contract for operational expenses instead of a building purchase. The funds were originally earmarked for building purchase, but the Harm Reduction Action Center has been delayed because of challenges in finding a building that meets all the necessary requirements. With the deadline for spending, ARPA funding approaching quickly, we want to ensure that the Harm Reduction Action Center has

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Nine ayes. Nine ayes. Council Resolution 26-1273 may be introduced. Madam Secretary, please read the bills for introduction.

Thank you. Councilmembers, this is your last opportunity to call out an item. Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez, would you make the motions for us this evening?

Now, I will do a recap. Under resolutions, Council Resolution 26-1268 has been called out for comments by Councilmember Lewis. Council Resolution 26-1176 has been called out for a postponement pursuant to Rule 3.6 by Councilmember Gilmour. Council Resolution 261069 has been called out for a vote by Councilmember Gilmour and Council Resolution 261180, 1181 and 1182 have been called out for comments by Councilmember Gilmour. Council Bill 26-1190 has been called out for postponement by a date certain by Council Pro Tem Gonzales Gutierrez. Under Bill's first final consideration, no items have been

Thank you. So after consistent feedback from my constituents, I see it as my responsibility to ensure that the public is aware of every tax dollar being approved as an expenditure and payment of funds for a settlement with the City and County of Denver. My office is tracking every dollar by department and has a running total. And with the approval of 26-1268 tonight, the City will approve settlements in the amount of 125,000 to settle cases brought against the Denver police department. The approval of these items tonight brings the 2026 total for taxpayer dollars and city settlements to 411700

Thank you. Madam Secretary, please put the next item on our screen. Council Resolution 261180, a resolution approving a proposed First Amendment between the City and County of Denver and AECOM, Technical Services, Inc., for professional services to support 7th Runway Program Management operations at Denver International Airport. Council Resolution 261181, a resolution approving a proposed First Amendment between the City and County of Denver and HNTB Corporation for professional services to support seventh runway environmental analysis and documentation operations at Denver International Airpo

Thank you, Council President. For my constituents, I wanted to bring this forward. I had mentioned at a meeting with... neighbors that the growth of the airport is something that I'm hearing a lot from folks about. And the additional runways that, especially the 7th runway, people are very concerned about the possible location of that and how that's going to affect the Green Valley Ranch neighborhood specifically, but also hearing from Our neighboring constituencies in Adams County and Arapahoe County as well with the growth of the airport and that seventh runway. And so wanted to call that ou

Thank you. Madam Secretary, please put the next item on our screens. Council Resolution 261069, a resolution approving a proposed secondary second amendatory agreement between the City and County of Denver and Gilmore Construction Corporation for on-call general civil SBE construction services. Council Pro Tem Gonzales Gutierrez, would you please put Council Resolution 261069 on the floor for adoption? I move that Council Resolution 261069 be adopted. It has been moved and seconded. Questions and comments by members of Council on Council Resolution 261069. Council Member Gilmour. Thank you, Co

Excuse me. Thank you, Council President. I'm going to be abstaining on this tonight. This is my brother-in-law's company, and per the ethics code in the City and County of Denver, I will be abstaining. Thank you.

Thank you. Madam Secretary, roll call on Council Resolution 26-1069. Council Members Lewis?

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Ten ayes. Ten ayes. Council Resolution 261069 has been adopted. Madam Secretary, please put the next item on our screens. Council Resolution 261176, a resolution approving a proposed amendatory agreement between the City and County of Denver and Mark Young Construction LLC to complete construction of the new office facility maintenance building and yard for the new DPR Northwest Facility at Cuernavaca Park in Council District 1. Councilmember Gilmour, what would you like to do with Council Resolution 26-1176?

Thank you, Madam President. I would like to postpone this for one week pursuant to Rule 3.6.

Okay. No motion is required. Council Resolution 26-1176 has been postponed to the next regular council meeting. Madam Secretary, please put the next item on our screens. Council Bill 26-1190, a bill for an ordinance amending the classification and pay plan for employees in the career service and for certain employees not in the career service. Council Pro Tem Gonzales Gutierrez, would you please put Council Bill 26-1190 on the floor for publication.

I move that Council Bill 26-1190 be ordered published.

It has been moved and seconded. Is there another motion on the floor? There is another motion on the floor, Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez. What would you like to do with Council Bill 26-1190?

So I move that Council Bill 26-1190 be postponed to a date certain of Monday, September 14th, the next regular council meeting.

It has been moved and seconded. Questions and comments on the postponement of Council Bill 26-1190? Yes, Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez.

Thank you, Madam President. I just wanted to, you know, I sent an email to my colleagues explaining the request for postponement. My office met with some of the employees that would be impacted by this change. And we also have a meeting set up with OHR as well so that we can continue to make sure that we're, you know, threading the needle as tight as possible here. and understanding the concerns on all ends. And so we just need a little bit of time to be able to round that out. So I ask for your support for this postponement. Thank you.

Thank you. Madam Secretary, roll call on the postponement of Council Bill 26-1190.

Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. 11 ayes. 11 ayes. Council Bill 26-1190 has been postponed. This concludes all the items to be called out. All bills for introduction are ordered published. Council members, remember that this is a consent or block vote, and you will need to vote aye. Otherwise, this is your last chance to call out an item for a separate vote. Council Pro Tem Gonzalez Gutierrez, would you please put the resolutions and proclamations for adoption and the bills on final consideration for final passage on the floor?

I move that the resolutions and proclamations be adopted and bills on final consideration be placed upon final consideration and do pass in a block for the following items. Series of 26, 1271, 1273, 1189. 1184 1171 1191 1194 1268 1183 0830 1057 1058 1059 1060 1061 1062 1067 1068 1070 1071 1072 1073 1074 1173 1177 1178 1179 1180 1181 1182 1168 1161 1162 1228 1147 1163 1175.

It has been moved and seconded. Madam Secretary, roll call.

Madam President Romero-Campbell? Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Eleven ayes. Eleven ayes. The resolutions and proclamations have been adopted, and the bills have been placed upon final consideration and do pass. If there are no objections from the members of Council, we will recess until 5.30 p.m. before convening the regular meeting. City Council will provide a half-hour general public comment session to hear from the public on city matters, except for any matter that is scheduled for a legal required public hearing. The general public comment session will be

Proclamation 26-1270, recognizing Childhood Cancer Month. Whereas childhood cancer is the number one disease-related killer of children and teenagers in the United States, a diagnosis of cancer at any age is disruptive to the lives of patients and their families. Worldwide, childhood cancer is on the rise. with an average of 17,293 children and teens between birth and 19 years of age diagnosed with cancer in America each year. And one in every 264 American children develops cancer before the age of 20. And whereas there have been key breakthroughs in cases of childhood acute lymphoblastic leuk

Thank you, Councilmember Flynn. Your motion to adopt.

I move that Proclamation 26-1270 be adopted.

It has been moved and seconded. Comments by members of Council. Council Member Flynn.

Thank you, Madam President. I'm in my final year up here, and this is the final year that I will look out and see Rita Contreras. And I will always remember, even after I'm gone, I will remember Nathaniel here 10 years ago or 11 years ago, I think it was, 11 years ago. I will always remember seeing him at that microphone and the courage and the forthright and, frankly, great delivery that he gave. And I could not believe that he passed away so soon afterward. I'll remember that long after I'm gone from here. This is my last year also being up here to say the name up here of my brother, Dennis

Condolences to the families. 11 years is 11 years too long. Just want to say a shout out to my neighbor and my constituent. I have a doctor who is a doctor of oncology for childhood cancer. and I got to hang out with him last Tuesday and he's always a ray of sunshine and he actually helped my son's best friend who had childhood cancer and we didn't know it until just recently we were talking to my son and we were talking about his friend Vincent and we were talking to Dr. John and Dr. John said that's my patient and my son only knows Dr. John as our neighbor Dr. John and he didn't know that he

Thank you. Thank you, Councilman Flynn, for bringing this forward and always being such a champion and bringing this topic to the forefront. I would just also like to acknowledge the Palmer family Leotis and Veronica and Avi having lost Trey two years ago and it was very quick and a life that we lost too soon.

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Nine ayes. Nine ayes. Proclamation 26-1270 has been adopted. We have five minutes for the proclamation acceptance. Councilmember Flynn, who would you like to invite up to accept the proclamation?

Thank you, Madam President. I'd like to invite up Rita Contreras and Joan Slaughter. Thank you for being here.

Thank you. Madam President, I might point out that I neglected to say this in my remarks, that the city and county building will be lighted in gold tonight for the first, well, today's August 31st, and the second week of September. Gold is the color for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. So it will be lit in gold tonight and then the week of the 14th.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Councilmember Sandoval, please read Proclamation 26-1200.

Proclamation 1200, whereas recognizing August 24th to 28th, 2026 as Smart Week, whereas firearm injuries are the leading cause of death of children and teens in the United States. and whereas the Best Be Smart campaign was launched in 2015 to promote responsible gun ownership in order to reduce child gun deaths, and whereas SMART stands for Secure All Firearms in Homes and Vehicles, model responsible behavior around firearms, ask about the presence of unsecured firearms in other homes, recognize the role of firearms in suicide, and tell others about these actions. And whereas the Be Smart fram

Thank you, Councilmember Sandoval. Your motion to adopt? I move that Proclamation 1200 be adopted. It has been moved and seconded. Comments by members of Council? Councilmember Sandoval?

Thank you. Thank you all for bringing this to my attention. I was talking to someone probably about a month ago, a constituent of mine, and he's one of 13 children, which you don't hear about anymore. And he was telling me about his brother and how one day when he had just gotten a new job and his brother, who was 15, had helped him moved out of his apartment. And his brother and his brother's friends went home for lunch. And they found his brother's gun. And they were playing with it. And they thought they unloaded all the ammunition from the gun. And he was joking around with his friends bef

Thank you, Councilmember Sandoval, for bringing this forward. I think I just want to say it's like I have to say his name, Dalton Robinson. And it's been a little over a year. He was my great nephew. And he was a great nephew, too. So thank you for bringing this forward. Madam Secretary, roll call.

Aye. Madam Secretary, close the voting and announce the results. Nine ayes. Proclamation 26-1200 has been adopted. We have five minutes for the proclamation acceptance. Councilmember Sandoval, who would you like to invite up to accept the proclamation?

Thank you so much. I'd like to invite Sheila Wheeler and Krista Overly.

On Monday, September 28, 2026, Council will hold a required public hearing on Council Bill 26-1185, changing the zoning classification for 3418 West 14th Avenue and 1371 North Julian Street in West Colfax. Any protests against Council Bill 26-1185 must be filed with the Council offices no later than noon Monday, September 21, 2026. There being no further business before this body, this meeting is adjourned. In observance of Labor Day, next Monday, September 7th, city offices are closed and there will be no council meeting. The next meeting will be on September 14th.