OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Denver City Council Meeting - June 29, 2026: Zoning, Proclamation, and Sentencing Reform

City Council — Monday, June 29, 2026
BodyDenver, Colorado
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, June 29, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 4:28:29
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Hey Denver, it's time for the weekly general session of your Denver City Council.

0:08

Tonight's coverage of Denver City Council starts now, and there we go.

0:37

Then we start over.

0:38

Good afternoon, everyone.

0:39

Thank you for taking the time to join us for Denver City Council's meeting.

0:43

Today is Monday, June, June 29th, 2026.

0:48

Tonight's meeting is being interpreted into Spanish.

0:51

Sam or Jasmine, would you please introduce yourself and let our viewers know how to enable translation on their devices?

0:58

Yes, gladly.

1:00

Thank you for having us.

1:01

Hello, everyone.

1:02

My name is Sam Guzman with the CLC.

1:05

Joining you virtually through Zoom.

1:08

And along with my colleague Jasmine, who will be interpreting today's meeting into Spanish.

1:13

Please allow me a quick minute while I give instructions in Spanish on how to access interpretation.

1:54

Thank you very much, Sam.

1:57

Welcome to the Denver City Council meeting of Monday, June 29th, 2026.

2:03

Council members, please join Councilmember Cashman in the Pledge of Allegiance.

2:29

Council members, please join Council Member Cashman as they lead us in the Denver City Council land acknowledgement.

2:35

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.

3:31

Thank you.

3:32

Madam Secretary will call.

3:35

Council members Gonzalez Cutieres.

3:38

Here.

3:46

Alvides.

3:47

Here.

3:48

Flynn.

3:48

Here.

3:49

Gilmore.

3:50

Here.

3:50

Heinz?

3:51

Here.

3:52

Clashman.

3:53

Here.

3:53

Lewis.

3:54

Present.

3:55

Romero Campbell.

3:56

Here.

3:56

Torres.

3:57

Here.

3:58

Watson.

3:59

Madam President Sandoval?

4:01

Here.

4:02

Thirteen members present.

4:03

There are 13 members present.

4:05

Council has a quorum.

4:07

Approval of the minutes.

4:08

Are there correction to the minutes of June 22nd?

4:14

Seeing none, the minutes stand approved.

4:17

Council announcements.

4:18

Are there any announcements from members of Council this afternoon?

4:27

Councilmember Alvidres, why don't you start us off?

4:30

Thank you, Council President.

4:31

I wanted to take a moment to uh recognize an event I was able to attend this morning.

4:36

I was able to attend the Maxim Food Truck Expo at the Denver Coliseum where Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, Licensing and Consumer Protection, and Denver Fire were all there to help our food trucks know about how and when to get licenses and all the rules that are required for food trucks.

4:58

There was a really great event, and it was originally started by the Denver Fire Department.

5:04

I also wanted to give a special recognition to all our firefighters who are fighting the fires across Colorado right now and send my condolences and my heart with the three firefighters that were lost over the weekend.

5:18

Um thinking about all our firefighters right now.

5:21

Please do not light any fireworks this 4th of July and have that in mind.

5:26

Thank you, Council President.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety████████████████████████████████████36%
Procedural██████████████████18%
Land Use Zoning███████████11%
Economic Development████████8%
Announcements███████7%
Community Planning█████5%
Legislative Affairs████4%
Engineering And Infrastructure███3%
Workforce Development██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Denver City Council Meeting - June 29, 2026

The Denver City Council convened on Monday, June 29, 2026, at 3:30 p.m. for its regular session, with 13 members present. The meeting included a consent agenda with numerous resolutions, three public hearings on zoning and sentencing reform, and a proclamation honoring Patricia Calhoun. The council approved all consent items, introduced three bills, and passed the three major agenda items after extensive debate and amendments.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved en bloc (13-0) a series of resolutions, including:
    • 26-0708: Second Amendatory Agreement with Elevation Community Land Trust to modify scope and use ARPA funds for down payments on condominium units.
    • 26-0849: Grant agreement with Arapahoe County for $1,049,423.78 for the Denver Regional Council of Government Green Workforce Hub Initiative.
    • 26-0835 through 26-0842: Appointments to the Denver Asian American Pacific Islander Commission (4 members) and Denver Commission on Aging (4 members).
    • 26-0843: Appointment to the Career Service Board.
    • 26-0844: Appointment to the Colfax Ave Business Improvement District.
    • 26-0845: Appointment to the 14th Street General Improvement District.
    • 26-0853: Contract with WEX Health Inc. for $500,000 for ACA tracking and reporting.
    • 26-0832 and 26-0833: Amendatory agreements with Colorado Health Network for behavioral health and syringe access services ($156,749 added; $173,173.15 rolled over).
    • 26-0968: Settlement of $80,000 for a police-related claim (Buiket Teng and Suni Tjhen v. City and County of Denver).
    • 26-0613: Contract with Rodriguez Construction for $2,337,485.43 for concrete medians on Federal Boulevard.
    • 26-0755: Concession agreement with JCDecaux Airport, Inc. for 10 years at Denver International Airport.
    • 26-0829: Contract with Chato's Concrete for $1,125,000 for citywide concrete panel repair.
    • 26-0831: Contract with Flatiron Dragados Constructors for $12,138,066.51 for Morrison Road Improvement.
    • 26-0863: Intergovernmental agreement with Denver Health and Hospital Authority for $4,940,660 for HIV/AIDS services.
  • Bills for introduction (ordered published): 26-0687 (charter amendment for auditor's wage enforcement), 26-0852 (child care code updates), 26-0618 (CDOT traffic signal maintenance IGA for $6,398,722.80).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • United Airlines Flight Training Facility (26-0619): Six speakers spoke in favor, including representatives from Make-A-Wish Colorado, Girls Inc. Metro Denver, Warren Village, and United Airlines executives. They highlighted United's community partnerships, job creation (11,000 employees, 3,000 new jobs by 2026), and economic impact. No one spoke in opposition. Jesse Parris spoke neither for nor against.
  • Loretto Heights PUD Amendment (26-0654): One speaker, Jesse Parris, spoke neither for nor against.
  • Municipal Sentencing Reform (26-0328): 28 individuals signed up; 30-minute courtesy hearing. Speakers included Terrance Carroll (former Speaker of the House, in favor), Jimmy Smrz (opposed), Lindsay Webb (neutral, law professor), Cuica Montoya (in favor, Colorado Village Collaborative), David Howard (opposed), Anaya Robinson (neutral, ACLU), Marilynn Ackermann (in favor), Carey Marin (opposed, business owner), Leann Fickes (neutral, social worker), and Jen Garner (opposed). Positions reflected concerns about proportionality, public safety, and compliance with the Colorado Supreme Court's Camp decision.

Discussion Items

  • United Airlines Flight Training Facility (26-0619): Proposed rezoning of 114 acres at 17671-17675 East 64th Avenue from former Chapter 59 districts to PUD-G 40 to allow a flight training campus. Staff report by Liz Weigle emphasized job creation, economic impact, and consistency with the Far Northeast Area Plan. Council members discussed traffic, public transit, housing needs, and sustainability (e.g., sustainable aviation fuel, net-zero construction). The applicant noted the site is the only United flight training center globally, with 2,500 employees and 31,000 annual visitors. No opposition. Passed 13-0.
  • Loretto Heights PUD Amendment (26-0654): Rezoning of 58 acres (14,000 sq ft boundary adjustment) to allow a parking garage for theater and library uses. Staff report by Fran Penafiel. Councilmember Flynn noted the change facilitates preservation of historic buildings. No amendments debated. Passed 13-0 after a technical amendment to correct PUD plan dates.
  • Municipal Sentencing Reform (26-0328): This bill updated municipal criminal penalties to comply with the Camp v. Westminster Supreme Court decision, reducing penalties for municipal-only offenses (e.g., public urination, dog excrement) to a maximum of 10 days in jail and $300 fine. It also created a working group to review further reforms. Two amendments were adopted: Amendment 8 (Councilmember Lewis) added the Denver District Attorney's Office and Colorado Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel to the working group and required mutual agreement on additional members. Amendment 9 (Councilmember Gonzales-Gutierrez) fixed drafting errors. Debate centered on whether the bill went beyond Camp, with opponents (Councilmembers Watson, Flynn, Hinds, Sawyer) arguing for a narrower scope and a working group first. Supporters (Councilmembers Parady, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Lewis, Sandoval, Kashmann, Torres, Alvidrez, Gilmore, Romero Campbell) emphasized fairness, proportionality, and the fact that 96% of sentences are already 10 days or fewer. The bill passed 9-4.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Agenda: All 17 resolutions and 1 bill on final consideration approved en bloc (13-0).
  • United Airlines Flight Training Facility (26-0619): Rezoning approved (13-0).
  • Loretto Heights PUD Amendment (26-0654): Rezoning approved as amended (13-0 for amendment, 13-0 for final passage).
  • Municipal Sentencing Reform (26-0328): Bill passed as amended (9-4). Ayes: Alvidrez, Gilmore, Gonzales-Gutierrez, Kashmann, Lewis, Parady, Romero Campbell, Torres, Sandoval. Nays: Flynn, Hinds, Sawyer, Watson.
  • Proclamation 26-0972: Honoring Patricia Calhoun for 49 years as editor of Westword, adopted 12-0 (Lewis absent).
  • Next Meeting: No meeting on July 6, 2026, due to Independence Day.

Meeting Transcript

Hey Denver, it's time for the weekly general session of your Denver City Council. Tonight's coverage of Denver City Council starts now, and there we go. Then we start over. Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for taking the time to join us for Denver City Council's meeting. Today is Monday, June, June 29th, 2026. Tonight's meeting is being interpreted into Spanish. Sam or Jasmine, would you please introduce yourself and let our viewers know how to enable translation on their devices? Yes, gladly. Thank you for having us. Hello, everyone. My name is Sam Guzman with the CLC. Joining you virtually through Zoom. And along with my colleague Jasmine, who will be interpreting today's meeting into Spanish. Please allow me a quick minute while I give instructions in Spanish on how to access interpretation. Thank you very much, Sam. Welcome to the Denver City Council meeting of Monday, June 29th, 2026. Council members, please join Councilmember Cashman in the Pledge of Allegiance. Council members, please join Council Member Cashman 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 Arapahoe peoples. Thank you. Madam Secretary will call. Council members Gonzalez Cutieres. Here. Alvides. Here. Flynn. Here. Gilmore. Here. Heinz? Here. Clashman. Here. Lewis. Present. Romero Campbell. Here. Torres. Here. Watson. Madam President Sandoval? Here. Thirteen members present. There are 13 members present. Council has a quorum. Approval of the minutes. Are there correction to the minutes of June 22nd? Seeing none, the minutes stand approved. Council announcements.

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