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Migrants Overwhelming Mile High City And Mayor
Mayor Cuts Service, Hours At Parks & Recreation, DMV, Plans More; The Mayor, City Are Prioritizing Migrants Over Them
by Glen Richardson
Slighting Streets: Denver’s East Sixth Ave. Parkway — listed on the National Register of Historic Places — and the city’s 15 other parkways will no longer be cared for by Parks & Recreation.
Given the callous title of “coldhearted” after refusing to ban homeless camp sweeps in cold temperatures, merciless Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is winning a new title, “cutthroat.”
With 40,000 migrants — almost 5% of the city’s entire population — having arrived here from Venezuela and other places in the world in the last 12 months, Johnston has announced enormous cuts to city services, hours due to the burden of migrants, and its stress on city resources. Furthermore, he warns. “This is the first phase of cuts and the city aims for reductions across many departments.”
DMV Decelerates: DMV is no longer processing vehicle registration renewals in person, only online. Only new registrations are currently being processed in person.
Homeless Growth
The migrant burden, of course, is on top of the more than 4,000 homeless people either sleeping on city streets or in shelters. Denver now ranks as having the nation’s fifth-largest homeless population.
Moreover, Denver ranks third nationally in the increase of homelessness in a single year. Sadder still, the Mile High City ranks second in the country with the largest upsurge — at 116% — in the number of homeless families with children.
Adding it up: The homeless population grew 32% in the 12-month period at the end of 2023. At least 311 homeless people died in Denver last year, more than any other year.
Fading Flower Beds
Drab Denver Deed: Mayor’s decision not to plant the city’s annual flower beds — roughly 545 citywide — is about to turn the Mile High City drab, including at Wash Park.
Due to the city’s surging migrant burden, Johnston is initially reducing hours and services at Denver Parks & Recreation and
Denver Motor Ve
Destitute In Denver: Denver’s homeless population, or people without housing, grew 32% in the 12-month period at the end of 2023.
hicles (DMV). He emphasizes, moreover, that the initial reductions are just the first phase of cuts and that the city’s intentions are to make equal slashes “across many departments.”
Cuts in services, hours at Parks & Recreation are already underway. For many if not most citizens and visitors to Denver, the most appalling is the decision not to plant the city’s annual flower beds. The Mile High City normally plants roughly 545 beds each year. The distressing decision will eliminate all of them unless the plots are planted by volunteers.
For generations the city’s flower beds have been a way of cultivating community. Among those that will be missed the most: The two at Wash Park — one a replica of George Washington’s Mount Vernon Garden. Likewise, the decision crushes the colorful gardens at City Park; plus, the perennial flower beds on 7th Ave. Parkway. The verdict will also abolish Alamo Placita Park’s formal garden that has always beautified the drive along Speer Blvd. near Downing St.
City Workers Impact
Reduction in days and hours at Parks & Recreation are already underway, but do not involve layoffs of current employees. However, hourly workers can expect fewer hours, and on-call and seasonal workers will be most impacted.
Regional Centers that were open seven days a week will only be open for six days a week. Those open six days a week, will stay open for the same number of days, but the hours of operation will be reduced. Summer Recreation Programming in Denver will be reduced by 25% across the program.
As for the seasonal workers, the mayor admits that some seasonal workers have been with the city for 20 years. Declaring he’s not hiding the fact that the decision will matter to a lot of city employees that are on the frontlines, “It’s a plan for shared sacrifice,” he says. Adding, “This is what good people do in hard situations.”
Downturns At DMV
The DMV has also started making changes to services and hours. They are no longer taking vehicle registrations in person. Everything has been moved to online.
In addition to no longer processing vehicle registration renewals in person, DMV is taking them online, through the mail, or at kiosks. New registrations, however, are still being processed in person.
Sites have started rotating weekly DMV closures. Only DMV’s central spot at Tremont is staying open permanently. The city’s satellite spots are rotating, closing one week at a time.
Destitute In Denver: Denver’s homeless population, or people without housing, grew 32% in the 12-month period at the end of 2023.
Savings Vs. Spending
According to the mayor, the cuts to Parks & Recreation and DMV will save roughly $5 million. Denver has also already “paused” new applications submitted by businesses and families for public events, special occasions, and tournaments.
Since December 2022, Denver has spent $42 million supporting migrants. The state of Colorado recently awarded the city $3.5 million in reimbursements, and the Department of Homeland Security has approved up to another $9 million for the city
Countless citizens continue to criticize the city, suggesting the Mile High City and the mayor are prioritizing migrants over them.
School Influx Soars
It’s not only the city of Denver that has been affected by rising migrant counts, so has Denver Public Schools (DPS).
More than 6,000 new migrants have enrolled in DPS schools since this summer. Currently the district is enrolling about 100 new students a week and the number isn’t slackening off.
DPS officials say at least 25 schools have 50 or more new students.
City’s Public Golf Courses Are At A Perilous Crossroads
Audit Finds City’s Public Courses Still Aren’t Up To Par; Parks & Recreation Cutbacks Increase Chances For Closures
by Glen Richardson
Wellshire Golf Clinic: Jack Nicklaus held a golf clinic on Wellshire’s driving range in 1977 in connection with Golf Digest Magazine.
Challenging Course: Kennedy Golf Course offers terrific views and challenging play at every skill level. Fairways and greens are difficult yet friendly.
Donald Ross Design: Wellshire Golf Course is the only public course West of the Mississippi that is a Donald Ross design.
Denver’s public golf courses’ distinctive locations — particularly the Wellshire Golf Course on S. Colorado Blvd. and the Kennedy Golf Course on E. Hampden Ave. — have made the Mile High City an all-seasons, outdoor-lover’s playground, and golf one of the city’s best ways to enjoy the outdoors.
In recent years, however, Denver Parks & Recreation — that runs the local courses — has become the number one enemy of the Valley’s local players, always a putt short of doing their job. Denver Auditor Timothy M. O’Brien, CPA, who has tried to caddie the staff managing local courses, again reports Denver’s public courses aren’t up to par.
Declining to improve customer experience for golfers, instead simply manipulating amenities and services to an ever-declining revenue stream, is threating to spiral local courses out of solvency.
Ignoring Action Plan
This year O’Brien’s approach shot has never been stronger: “I remain concerned about the future of city golf courses,” Auditor O’Brien declares.
To provide a better customer experience for golfers, Denver Golf — what O’Brien terms the Park & Rec group managing public courses — “should improve customer service, maximize revenue, update strategy documentation, improve its capital planning and financial monitoring.”
O’Brien says he is disappointed Denver Golf has chosen to disagree with strategy and action plan recommendations that would increase transparency, hold the Denver Golf enterprise more accountable to the city and public, and improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness, O’Brien explains.
Problems Persist
The auditor does say some Denver golf courses are looking better since the last time auditors assessed them, but the city still lacks a long-term plan to fix problems proactively and effectively. That’s according to a follow-up report released by Auditor O’Brien, showing partial improvement to golf course aesthetics and safety, but limited big-picture improvement due to managers’ disagreements with audit recommendations.
“Some of the rusty nails are gone, but the bigger problem remains,” Auditor O’Brien says. “I hope new leadership in the parks department will reconsider the value of making a plan for maintaining the city’s public golf courses for the benefit of all players.”
Our 2021 audit found safety and aesthetic issues at several city golf courses, such as exposed rusty nails and graffiti. We also found issues with the credit card system. We recommended managers take a big-picture look at addressing issues over time, rather than an ad-hoc response to maintenance and planning. “Unfortunately, they disagreed with all of our recommendations for a strategic plan. They called goals and timelines an unnecessary hinderance,” he relates.
Cool Complex: Kennedy Golf Course in Southeast Denver offers something for everyone, from a round of golf, to a range practice, or a game of putt-putt.
Only Applied Three
“Making a strategic plan and setting goals is management 101,” Auditor O’Brien notes. “It is both helpful and necessary if you want to use resources effectively and avoid leaving graffiti and safety hazards to sit for years at a time.”
Denver Golf managers fully implemented just three of our recommendations, partially implemented one, and did not implement five more. They disagreed with four others and took no action — those were related to strategic planning and documentation related to priorities and goals.
Notable improvements included several repairs at the Kennedy Golf Course: the clubhouse has been repainted and its molding fixed; dangerous storm shelters have been removed; the restaurant’s walls have been patched; old tables and rusting railings have been replaced; the damaged branch of a cottonwood tree on Hole 6 has been removed; cart paths have been repaved; and starter desks have been replaced. However, other issues Golf could have worked on include repairs at the Wellshire golf courses, which are still incomplete after three years. At Wellshire, we noted the bar and restroom near Hole 5 was not painted and now shows signs of possible structural damage.
Long Term Planning
Wellshire Attraction: In recent years many say Wellshire’s Event Center has become a bigger attraction than golf.
“Strategic long-term planning could help address lengthy turnaround for important maintenance projects,” Auditor O’Brien believes. Denver Golf’s lack of a strategic plan and documented organizational priorities and goals may prevent it from proactively shaping the future of its operations and addressing challenges before they arise. “With a big-picture plan, managers could create timelines and schedules for course maintenance and avoid three-year waits for repairs.”
Golf managers did make some notable updates to their technology, improving golfer experience for bookings and check-in. By implementing some of our recommendations, Denver Golf made its member check-in and cashiering process quicker and easier for its customers. Denver Golf successfully eliminated duplicate accounts in the golfer loyalty database. It also integrated credit cards into its point-of-sale system and is now working with a new vendor.
Due to factors outside of its control, Golf still is not charging nonrefundable prebooking fees, possibly missing out on revenue when golfers do not show up for their tee times. But once issues with data protection for credit card transactions over the phone are resolved, we expect Golf to implement this recommended improvement.