Denver City Council Regular Meeting - February 3, 2025
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Denver City Council Regular Meeting - February 3, 2025
The Denver City Council convened on Monday, February 3, 2025, at 3:30 PM and adjourned at 6:40 PM, with all 13 members present. The meeting included council announcements, approval of minutes, receipt of a mayoral veto, consideration of numerous resolutions and ordinances related to homelessness services, airport operations, and a major public hearing on updating the city's rezoning criteria (Council Bill 24-1797). Multiple contracts with the Salvation Army and Colorado Coalition for the Homeless sparked debate about service quality and provider diversity.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes of January 27, 2025, were approved (25-0140).
- Communication 25-0069 (mayoral veto of CB 24-1791) was received and filed; no motion to override.
- The following resolutions and bills were adopted on a single block vote (13-0):
- 24-1705 (Urban Institute – STAR/Co-Responder evaluations)
- 24-1855 (Family Promise – temporary housing)
- 25-0029 (Naloxone Project – harm reduction pilot)
- 25-0047 (Volunteers of America – Sinton's Sanctuary shelter)
- 25-0049 (The Gathering Place – micro-community site)
- 25-0050 (Bayaud Enterprises – Denver Day Works)
- 25-0051 (Bayaud Enterprises – cold-weather shelter staffing)
- 25-0052 (Denver Rescue Mission – shelter services)
- 25-0059 (Sierra Detention Systems – jail/court security maintenance)
- 25-0054, 25-0055, 25-0056, 25-0057 (Denver International Airport contracts)
- 25-0045 (Vision Service Plan – employee vision benefits)
- 25-0062 (Denver Preschool Program board appointment)
- 25-0063 (arbitrator panel appointments)
- 25-0043 (Westwood Recreation Center construction)
- 25-0060 (Big Truck Rental – refuse truck rentals)
- 24-1648 (Salvation Army Lambuth Center shelter)
- 24-1649 (Salvation Army – Stone Creek shelter staffing)
- 24-1650 (Salvation Army – 4040 Quebec shelter management)
- 25-0014 (RTD EcoPass for DIA concessionaires)
- 25-0018, 25-0019, 25-0020 (HIV/AIDS services contracts)
Public Comments & Testimony
- General Public Comment (5:00 PM session): No speakers signed up; the half-hour session proceeded without testimony.
- Public Hearing on Council Bill 24-1797 (Rezoning Criteria Update): Four speakers addressed council:
- Monica Martinez (Executive Director, FAX Partnership) – spoke in favor, noting the three-year task force process and the importance of notifying renters.
- Caitlin Quander (Planning Board Chair) – spoke in favor, highlighting improved transparency and tenant notification; recommended continued council involvement in implementation.
- Joel Noble (Curtis Park resident) – spoke in favor, urging passage and noting the need for future steps like accessible online notifications and pre-recorded staff presentations.
- Jesse Parris (District 8 resident, multiple community groups) – spoke in opposition, arguing the changes would enable gentrification and lack meaningful equity metrics; expressed skepticism about council's predetermined votes.
Discussion Items
- Salvation Army Contracts (24-1648, 24-1649, 24-1650, 24-1703, 24-1775): Councilmember Lewis called out these items, questioning service quality and provider responsiveness in District 8. Midori Higa (HOST) provided performance data: Best Western shelter served 307 clients in 2024, 125 exited to permanent/stable housing; DoubleTree served 557 clients, 155 exited to stable housing. Cole Chandler (All In Mile High) committed to a task force examining shelter concentration in the Quebec corridor by end of March. Councilmembers Watson, Romero Campbell, and others raised concerns about large providers and lack of diversity. Council President Sandoval urged the Salvation Army to meet regularly with Councilmember Lewis.
- Colorado Coalition for the Homeless Contracts (25-0022, 25-0048): Councilmembers Lewis and Parady questioned the quality of services and staff morale, suggesting contracts create a
Meeting Transcript
Welcome to your Denver City Council. Please stand by. Full coverage of your Denver City Council begins now. Good afternoon, everybody. Thank you for joining us. Tonight's meeting is being interpreted into Spanish. Sam or Alejandro, would you please introduce yourself and let the viewers know how to enable translation on their devices? Yes, of course. Thank you for having us. Hello, everyone. This is Sam Guzmán with the CLC. And along with my colleague Alejandro, we will be interpreting today's meeting into Spanish. I'll give the instructions on how to access interpretation. If you join us through Zoom virtually, uh I'm sorry, I'll give the instructions in Spanish. Welcome to the Denver City Council meeting of Monday, February 3rd, 2025. Council members, please rise as you are able and join Councilmember Hines in the Pledge of Allegiance. Council members, please join Councilmember Hines as they lead us in the Denver City Council land acknowledgement. Thank you, Madam President. The Denver City Council honors and acknowledges that the land on which we reside is the traditional territory of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapahoe peoples. Thank you, Councilmember Hines. Madam Secretary, we'll call. Flynn. Here. Oh, Vitres. Here. Gilmore. Here. Gonzalez Gutierrez. Here. Heinz. Here. Cashman. Here. Lewis. Present. Parity. Here. Romero Campbell. Here. Sawyer. Here. Torres. Here. Watson. Here. Madam President. Here. Thirteen members present. There are 13 members present. Council has a quorum.
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