by Luke Schmaltz
The spring and summer months of 2019 were a troubling time for Denver’s LoDo district, as incidents of late-night violence rendered multiple stabbings and shootings resulting in several fatalities. Such details are troubling in any district, yet the fact that this area is home to an array of high-end restaurants, luxury hotels, high-priced boutiques and high-class clothiers makes the juxtaposing crime rate an anomaly indeed.
Several socioeconomic dynamics intersect in this grid, creating what could be called a perfect storm for senseless violence occurring on an escalating scale.
This area is home to the 16th Street Mall — a retail mecca for shopaholics, tourists and sightseers with expendable income. The fact that, on any given day, thousands of people on foot navigate the marketplace in search of keepsakes, tech necessities, high-end accessories and urban adventure is irresistible to buskers, scam artists and spare changers. The majority of the latter live on the streets, and according to nation alhomeless.org, “a high percentage of homeless people struggle with substance abuse [which] can cause homelessness, but it often arises after people lose their housing.”
A clearer understanding of the problems in the area can be gained by considering the types of people drawn to it beyond those living downtown at very high rental rates. The focus here is on homeless people, tourists, drug dealers and nightlife party people and how their overlapping motivations may be the root cause of late-night violence.
Behold The Stampede
According to Longwoods International — a data compilation firm providing statistics to Visit Denver Convention and Visitors Bureau — 31 million people visited the Mile-High City in 2018, resulting in tourism revenue of $6.5 billion. The firm also lists the 16th Street Mall first among the top shopping and entertainment destinations for visitors from New York, L.A., Chicago, Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Kansas City and Phoenix. According to a high number of negative reviews on tripadvisor.com, many visitors firmly attest to the fact that an astonishing homeless presence defines the area, complete with aggressive panhandlers, overflowing needle disposal bins and the occasional fatality from drug overdose. The old adage of “If it didn’t work, they wouldn’t do it” applies here, meaning that panhandlers needing to support their addiction can do so by panhandling tourists for money.
Summon The Dealers
Addictions thrive on the availability of the substance in question, be it crack, meth, fentanyl, heroin, prescription drugs, etc. A large concentration of people dealing with the stress of living without a residence, without family, without treatment for mental illness and any number of other terrible conditions equates to a ripe market for any enterprising drug dealer. According to part of a statement issued by the National Drug Intelligence Center, “Gangs are the primary distributors of drugs on the streets of the United States.” As there are over 110 known street gangs in Denver, the LoDo district is undoubtedly targeted by more than one organization, which gives rise to the violence inherent in territorial disputes.
Hail The Party People
As the downtown foot traffic shifts from shoppers looking for a good deal to young people looking for a good time, one can reasonably postulate that the drug commerce adjusts in tandem to a more lucrative yet discreet clientele. According to the opinions of local business owners and their employees, territorial tensions may escalate as the night marches on. Mike Villano, former owner of Chances Bar and Grill and longtime contributor to the LoDo workforce, attests that “The violence is definitely gang related. Gangsters are capitalists and weekend nights in LoDo are a concentration of their target market.” The presence of alcohol and the general eruptive nature of crowd mentality makes it easy to see why altercations between rivals are inevitable. Meanwhile, a manager at an area establishment who preferred to comment anonymously states that “ … with people blasting (discharging weapons), one can only assume that some sort of gang affiliation is involved.” The longtime LoDo worker continues with a cautionary piece of advice for bar-hoppers, “Pay attention to your surroundings and know when to vacate the area in a hurry.”
The reality of the situation is that people in LoDo are carrying guns around, pulling them out in the middle of the night, and shooting strangers. If you’re going shopping downtown you can keep the panhandlers at bay with stony veneer or a pocket full of spare change, and if you’re going out for drinks afterward, keeping the danger at bay can be very difficult.