Parks, Art and Culture Committee Approves Red Rocks Backstage Expansion and $9M in Vibrant Denver Bond Funding - September 1, 2026
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Parks, Art and Culture Committee Meeting - September 1, 2026
The Parks, Art and Culture Committee of Denver City Council met on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, at 10:30 AM in the City and County Building, room 391, to consider four action items related to the Vibrant Denver Bond program and one consent item. The committee unanimously approved a $4,450,983.25 design contract for the Red Rocks Backstage Expansion and Accessibility Improvements, and three $3,000,000 funding assignment agreements for the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Denver Zoological Foundation, and Denver Museum of Nature and Science for capital improvements. A consent item to name a new park Fox Run Park was also approved.
Consent Calendar
- 26-1261: Approved the naming of the unnamed future park at approximately 47th Ave. and N. Telluride St. as Fox Run Park, as recommended by the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and the Executive Director of Parks and Recreation.
Discussion Items
- Red Rocks Backstage Expansion (26-1258): Patrick Riley (Vibrant Denver Bond Office) and Tad Bowman (Venue Director for Red Rocks and Denver Coliseum) presented a contract with Short-Elliott-Hendrickson, Incorporated for architectural and engineering design services for the Red Rocks Backstage Expansion and Accessibility Improvements. The $4,450,983.25 contract runs through December 1, 2030, and will fund design of a five-story building (with two stories below grade) to provide ADA-compliant access, a proper kitchen/dining, covered parking, production offices, and storage. Construction will be phased over multiple off-seasons to avoid disrupting concert schedules. Councilmembers expressed strong support for the project but raised concerns about the phasing timeline, exposed excavation, and budget risk. Councilwoman Alvidrez noted the off-season is about 4.5-5 months and questioned the feasibility of maintaining budget over a multi-year phased build. Councilman Sawyer asked how the unique backstage rock experience would be preserved; staff confirmed the design maintains exposed rock in dressing rooms and dining areas, and all changes will go through Denver Landmark Commission approval. Councilman Watson shared personal enthusiasm and thanked staff for the West Tracks shuttle service.
- Vibrant Denver Bond Funding Assignments (26-1255, 26-1256, 26-1257): Patrick Riley presented three $3,000,000 funding assignment agreements using Vibrant Denver Bond proceeds:
- Denver Center for the Performing Arts (26-1255): Funds will address security upgrades, box office relocation, consolidated front entry, wayfinding, exterior signage, and lobby activation at the Helen Bonfils Theatre Complex.
- Denver Zoological Foundation (26-1256): Funds will support the Guest Experience Hub, including new food and beverage options and improved guest circulation at the entry plaza near Bear Mountain, in the zoo's oldest section.
- Denver Museum of Nature and Science (26-1257): Funds will replace aging life safety systems (fire alarm and suppression) and HVAC equipment at the museum. Christel de Herrera (Denver Zoo) spoke about the zoo's 130-year history and the importance of the bond investment. A letter from George Sparks, President/CEO of DMNS, was read aloud thanking the city and explaining the need for infrastructure upgrades to serve over 1.3 million annual visitors.
Key Outcomes
- Vote: All four action items and the consent item were moved en bloc and approved without objection. No roll call vote was recorded; the chair declared unanimous approval.
- Item 26-1258 (Red Rocks design contract) approved.
- Item 26-1255 (DCPA funding) approved.
- Item 26-1256 (Denver Zoo funding) approved.
- Item 26-1257 (DMNS funding) approved.
- Item 26-1261 (Fox Run Park naming) approved.
- Next Steps: The Red Rocks design will proceed through late 2026, with foundation permits and excavation expected in the fall/winter of 2027. Construction will occur in off-seasons over approximately two and a half to three years. Staff will provide updates as the project progresses.
Meeting Transcript
We out here. Elevate Denver Go Bond. We appreciate the Denver voters. Welcome back to this monthly meeting of the Parks Arts and Culture Committee of Denver City Council. Join us in the Parks Arts and Culture Committee starting now. September 1st. I would like to welcome my colleagues if Councilman Watson wants to start with introductions. Daryl Watson, Fine District 9. Hi everyone, Sedana Gonzalez Cochetas. Councilmember at Large. Hi, Amanda Slayer, District 5. And I'm Flora Vidres. I'm stepping in for Chair Lewis at the moment. But we can go ahead and get started with our wonderful presentation, which everyone is very excited about. About the Vibrant Bond projects. Go ahead, take it away. Awesome. I'm Patrick Riley, I'm the program director for the Vibrant Denver Bond Office. I'm Tad Bowman, I'm the venue director for Red Rock Samphitheater in the Denver Coliseum for Arts and Venues. So we have four actions that we're bringing forward today. And then a funding assignment agreement for the Denver Center for Performing Arts. So jumping right into Red Rocks. Music is this uh wonderful, amazing thing, and Red Rocks gets to be this incredible venue that we have as a city where you can go and you can be absolutely alone in a sea of 9900 people and you get to experience this unique individual thing with 9900 strangers, and you get to uh be completely alone and somehow in tune with all of these other people at the same time. Uh for me personally, my first show up there was in 2014 uh for 9 inch nails and uh got shocking. Um I I got to watch Chris Cornell and his last show in Colorado uh before his passing. Um got to experience that with like all these strangers and it was like this beautiful moment. Uh you might have got to watch Stevie Wonder close with superstition, his first time playing. You might have been at the only show that Jeremy Hendricks ever played, which there's no photos or videos of. You could have been there when Miss Diana Ross came out to um coming out. It could have been there for Fish in '94, Dave Matthews in 95. You could have been there for Zach Bryan and the Snow Rock Show. Um 284. You two in 1983, sir. Uh the only time that they've ever played. Last show ever. Yes. Red Rocks. June, June 5th. Yeah. So 4400 fans and a half full venue in the cold. Uh the day that I always say Red Rocks became Red Rocks. But what's what's amazing about Red Rocks in particular is I've been to hundreds, if not thousands of shows, and uh I don't remember a lot about a lot of them, but I remember every single time I've walked through the doors of Red Rocks for a show. And my guess is my experience is no different than a lot of yours. Uh so it's a it's a fantastic venue that is this icon that we are so so grateful to have, and I'm so personally pleased to see this finally come to fruition. I don't know if you want to say anything and prepare you for. So what this project is is an expansion to the backstage area. So right now there's a parking lot there. We plan on building a five-story building there, a good chunk of it underground. We understand that the building needs to be subordinate to the stage. It has to disappear.
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