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Record of Proceedings

Mayor and City Council Weekly Session - October 17, 2023

Mayor-Council Meeting — Tuesday, October 17, 2023
BodyDenver, Colorado
SessionMayor-Council Meeting
DateTuesday, October 17, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Welcome to this meeting of the Mayor and Denver City Council.

0:04

At this weekly session, city agencies brief the mayor and council members on various proposals and projects across the city.

0:12

This meeting of the mayor and city council members begins now.

5:00

Good morning, everybody.

5:02

Welcome to Mayor Council.

5:03

Delighted to see you all.

5:04

Happy Tuesday.

5:06

We will start with introductions, and I think I will start with Councilman Cashman.

5:11

Good morning, Mayor.

5:12

Paul Cashman, South Denver District 6.

5:16

Good morning, Mayor.

5:17

And good morning, everyone.

5:18

Diana Romero Campbell, Southeast Denver, District 4.

5:22

Good morning, everyone.

5:23

Flora Alvidres, Lucky District 7.

5:25

Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District 5.

5:28

Good morning, Serena Gonzalez Cuquiaz at large.

5:31

Good morning.

5:32

Chris Hines, Denver's perfect 10th.

5:34

Hi, folks, Sarah Parady.

5:36

I represent the city at large.

5:37

Good morning, Chantel Lewis, District 8.

5:40

Morning, Stacey Gilmore, District 11.

5:42

Kevin Flynn, Southwest Denver's District 2.

5:45

Good morning, Jamie Torres, District 3.

5:48

Good morning.

5:48

Thank you all so much for being here.

5:50

Excited to jump in.

5:52

We have a little lighter agenda this morning.

5:53

We don't have an executive session this morning.

6:00

So if there are any council members who have announcements they would like to share for events, items going on in your district.

6:07

Councilman Hines.

6:08

Thank you, Mayor.

6:10

I mentioned this in announcements last night.

6:12

I want to mention it again.

6:32

So next Monday at noon, it is at Wawada and Spear.

6:37

Everyone is welcome to come.

6:39

And the super mascot Racky will be there.

6:43

So will Bernie and Woolley.

6:45

So the mascots for all three of the teams.

6:53

And I hope you attend as well.

6:54

Thank you.

6:55

Thanks, Councilman.

6:56

It's that stretch of Wada that runs right over to Spear on the what east side of the stadium.

7:02

East side of Spear.

7:04

Yeah, it is just actually on the west side.

7:08

So just right next to the uh to the creek.

7:10

Gotcha.

7:11

Um so but yet but yes, it'll it'll be right there.

7:14

So it'll be that the way to Ball Arena.

7:16

You can see Ball Arena right there, but um, but you know, the on the west side of um of Spear at Wawata.

7:24

Uh I'm sorry, yeah.

7:25

West side of Spirit Woolwater.

7:27

Excellent.

7:28

Um, Councilman Alvidres.

7:33

Thank you.

7:33

Um we have on South Broadway the Halloween parade on Saturday that will start at 6 p.m.

7:40

You could start showing up at five to get a good spot.

7:43

It's uh newer tradition that was started by my predecessor, Councilman Clark.

7:48

So we're really excited to keep that going.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural███████████████████████████████████████████43%
Personnel Matters█████████████████████████25%
Community Engagement████████████████████20%
Homelessness███████7%
Parks and Recreation█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

Mayor and City Council Weekly Session - October 17, 2023

At this weekly meeting, Mayor Mike Johnston and the Denver City Council heard announcements from council members, received a briefing on the organization of the mayor's office team, and discussed upcoming events and the budget public hearing. The meeting included no executive session, consent calendar, or public testimony.

Announcements

  • Councilman Chris Hines announced a mascot event at Wazee and Speer on Monday, October 23 at noon, featuring mascots from Denver's three professional sports teams.
  • Councilwoman Flora Alvidres promoted the South Broadway Halloween Parade on Saturday, October 21, starting at 6 p.m. (gathering at 5 p.m.), calling it "funky, fun, and family friendly."
  • Councilman Paul Cashman (District 6) reminded that the city council will hold a public hearing on the FY2024 budget on Monday, October 23, at 7 p.m. (sign-up opens Friday, October 20, at denvergov.org/city-council). He noted it is councilwoman Sandoval's birthday.
  • Councilman Darrell Watson announced the induction of George Morrison Sr. into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame that evening at George Morrison Sr. Park, 5:00–6:30 p.m., with new interpretive signage.
  • Councilwoman Diana Romero Campbell announced a Día de los Muertos event at Shoemaker Elementary in Southeast Denver on Saturday, October 21, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., featuring dancers, face painting, and altar making.
  • Councilman Stacie Gilmore and Councilwoman Chantel Lewis discussed a community information meeting about the Stay Inn site at McGlone Academy that evening (5:30–6:30 p.m., 4500 Crown Boulevard). Gilmore requested a flyer and asked about child care; the meeting was posted 21 days prior.

Discussion Items

Mayor's Office Team Overview Mayor Johnston presented a detailed overview of the current structure of the mayor's office, including roles and responsibilities of senior staff. Key points:

  • Chief Operating Officer Janelle Ford oversees all city agencies with deputies Gretchen Hollara and Molly Urbino; a third deputy COO is yet to be hired.
  • Chief of Staff Jen (last name not given) manages scheduling (Evan U), advance and follow-up (Chase), and policy (Matt Ball).
  • Communications team led by Alex Rentoria, including Jose Salas, Aaron Powell (new digital), and Jordan (press).
  • Projects Office (Shannon Gifford, Jen Wellbourne, Josh Lapley) handles large projects (National Western, Mile High, River Mile, Ballerina).
  • Legislative Affairs: Dominic (deputy) and Angela (lead), Tim Hoffman, Adam Paul (regional affairs, former Lakewood mayor), Adam Berg (state/federal policy).
  • Boards and Commissions: Esther Lee Leach.
  • Outreach Team: Tron, Peter Lubembella, Alex Gutierrez, Andres Carrera.
  • Homelessness team (term-limited through January 17, 2024): Cole, Joshua, Millie, Perla, and Andy Phelps (replaced Matt Wilm, encampment resolution).
  • Agency heads requiring council confirmation: CFO Nicole Doheny (started Oct 16), City Attorney Carrie Tipper, CASRA Liz Babcock, DHS Anne Marie Baraga, OSCI Ben Sanders, CIO Suman Nalapati, DEN Phil Washington, interim HOST Sue Powers. Mayor noted additional appointees to be announced within the next 10–12 days.
  • Councilman Flynn asked about the term limit of the homelessness team (confirmed: January 17, 2024).
  • Council President Pro Tempore (likely Sarah Parady) asked about interim Parks and Recreation Director Lori Matthews; mayor confirmed she started two weeks ago.
  • Council President (likely Jamie Torres) asked which departments roll up under the deputy COOs; mayor said they will provide details when the third deputy is hired.
  • Councilman Hines suggested aligning the mayor's office structure with council committee structures.

Key Outcomes

  • Mayor will distribute contact information for all mayor's office staff to council members.
  • Additional agency head appointments (including council confirmations) are expected within the next two weeks.
  • The budget public hearing is scheduled for Monday, October 23, 2023.
  • The Stay Inn community meeting will proceed as noticed; council staff will follow up with flyers.
  • No formal votes or resolutions were taken.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome to this meeting of the Mayor and Denver City Council. At this weekly session, city agencies brief the mayor and council members on various proposals and projects across the city. This meeting of the mayor and city council members begins now. Good morning, everybody. Welcome to Mayor Council. Delighted to see you all. Happy Tuesday. We will start with introductions, and I think I will start with Councilman Cashman. Good morning, Mayor. Paul Cashman, South Denver District 6. Good morning, Mayor. And good morning, everyone. Diana Romero Campbell, Southeast Denver, District 4. Good morning, everyone. Flora Alvidres, Lucky District 7. Good morning, Amanda Sawyer, District 5. Good morning, Serena Gonzalez Cuquiaz at large. Good morning. Chris Hines, Denver's perfect 10th. Hi, folks, Sarah Parady. I represent the city at large. Good morning, Chantel Lewis, District 8. Morning, Stacey Gilmore, District 11. Kevin Flynn, Southwest Denver's District 2. Good morning, Jamie Torres, District 3. Good morning. Thank you all so much for being here. Excited to jump in. We have a little lighter agenda this morning. We don't have an executive session this morning. So if there are any council members who have announcements they would like to share for events, items going on in your district. Councilman Hines. Thank you, Mayor. I mentioned this in announcements last night. I want to mention it again. So next Monday at noon, it is at Wawada and Spear. Everyone is welcome to come. And the super mascot Racky will be there. So will Bernie and Woolley. So the mascots for all three of the teams. And I hope you attend as well. Thank you. Thanks, Councilman. It's that stretch of Wada that runs right over to Spear on the what east side of the stadium. East side of Spear. Yeah, it is just actually on the west side. So just right next to the uh to the creek. Gotcha. Um so but yet but yes, it'll it'll be right there. So it'll be that the way to Ball Arena.

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