On March 16, 2019, Two Parts hosted the 6th Annual
Collaboration Beer Fest at the Hyatt Regency in Denver. This creative beer
festival featured 100+ beer projects with over 200 participating breweries. How
does a beer project happen? Two or more breweries come together to brew
something special with one or both being a member of the Colorado Brewers
Guild. The result? Some of the most exciting, rare, and delicious beer tappings
you’ll find anywhere.
Comrade Brewing: Benjamin Housman, left, and Andrew Lester from Comrade Brewing were among the breweries that collaborated with other breweries to make unique beers. Comrade, located at 7667 E. Iliff Avenue in Denver, worked with Pelican Brewing and Epic Brewing.
Many good beers filled the exhibit hall of the Hyatt
Regency. Some standouts were Comrade Brewing and Epic Brewing (Denver) who
combined to make a Dry-Hopped California Common. Comrade Brewing also
collaborated with Pelican Brewing (Pacific City, OR) to brew an IPA with Orange
Peel and Citrusy Hops.
The longest lines were at the booth reserved for Cerebral
Brewing (Denver) and WeldWerks Brewing Company (Greeley) who collaborated to
make a New England-style Double IPA Brewed with Nelson Sauvin, Sabro, and Citra
Hops.
New Terrain Brewing Company (Golden) and Molly’s Spirits
(Lakeside) also had a crowd for their Desert Berliner Weisse with Yogurt. It
was one of the most unusual beers found at the fest and was a hit among
attendees. Stop by Molly’s Spirits in Lakeside for this and other collaboration
beers while supplies last.
Milkshake IPAs were at a few booths and one collaboration
that stood out was from Launch Pad Brewery (Aurora) and Bent Barley Brewing
(Aurora). This beer was brewed with fresh carrots, walnuts, lactose, vanilla
beans, and spices.
Fiction Beer (Denver) and Calicraft Brewing (Walnut Creek,
CA) brought a single malt grain bill to set the stage for the combination of
yeast, hops, and fruit. Peaches and Viognier Grapes made up 25% of this beer. A
custom blend of bretttanomyces and champagne yeast were used to ferment this
beer dry with almost no residual sugar. Only whirlpool hops and huge dry hops
add to the complexity. The bright aroma of citrus, tropical and stone fruit
from the hops are the perfect complement to the sweet nectar and herbal aroma
from the fruit and our blend of yeast. The flavor is enhanced by the incredibly
dry finish. Crisp, bright, and complex.
Collaboration Fest: The 6th Annual Collaboration Fest was held on March 16, 2019, at the Hyatt Regency in Denver.
Visit www.collaborationfest.com for more information and a full list of all collaborations. Stay tuned for next year’s event as Two Parts always puts on a high quality and well-organized event.
Planned 2019 Test Flight To Hit Speeds Of 1,688 MPH;
Denver Co-Founders Raise $150 Million For Start-Up Firm
Future Boom Operator: Japan Airlines has invested $10 million in Boom and was given a special tour of the Denver headquarters. The airline has pre-ordered 20 aircraft and got a peek at the XB-1.
The XB-1 aircraft dubbed Baby Boom — a one-third-scale
supersonic demonstrator — being built by Denver-based Boom Supersonic plans its
first test flight later this year. Designed to reach speeds of up to 1,688
miles per hour or twice the speed of sound, it is the prototype for a
commercial 55-passenger plane with a range of 5,180 miles to be introduced by
2023.
Co-founded by Denverites Blake Scholl and Josh Krall in
2014, the firm had raised $151 million by January of this year. Among the
startup investors were several venture funds that kicked in $33 million in
March 2017. In December 2017 Japan Airlines invested another $10 million,
enough to build the XB-1 “Baby Boom.” Then in January Boom Supersonic was given
another $100 million by Apple founder Steve Jobs’ widow Laurene Powell Jobs.
Supersonic Building Boom: Co-founded by Denverites Blake Scholl and Josh Krall in 2014, Boom Supersonic plans a test flight of the XB-1 aircraft dubbed Baby Boom this year.
Comfortably Close: The 55-seat plane named the Boom Overture will be able to fly from New York to London, Paris to Montreal, and Madrid to Boston in under four hours or less than half the time of conventional jets.
Boom says its aircraft — with a price estimate of $200
million — will produce a sonic boom at least 30 times quieter than the
Concorde, which was also dogged by high operating costs and fuel consumption
plus low capacity utilization. Boom estimates that fares for its aircraft will
be 75% lower than the Concorde and comparable to current business class
tickets, due to better fuel efficiency.
Pre-Orders Booming
Boom has 76 pre-orders for the 55-seat plane. The first
commercial airline to back the venture with investments was British airline
Virgin Atlantic that has options for 10 of the new aircraft. They made the deal
14 years after the final flight of the Concorde. In addition Japan Airlines has
the option to purchase up to 20 Boom aircraft and will assist efforts to hone
the aircraft’s design and passenger experience, according to the companies.
Called the Boom Overture, the 55-seat plane will be able to
fly from New York to London, Paris to Montreal, and Madrid to Boston in under
four hours — less than half the time of conventional jets. Although the plane will
have fewer than half the seats of a Concorde, company officials say it will
have a much better range — a staggering 5,180 miles.
The supersonic jet will also be more economical, and its
sonic boom will be “at least 30 times quieter” than Concorde, the company
claims. They also say that when it comes to landing and take-off: “Overture
will be as quiet as the subsonic aircraft flying similar routes today.”
Mach 2.2 Speed
The firm says its jetliner — expected to enter service by
the mid 2020s — will fly at speeds of Mach 2.2, 10% faster than the
British-French joint venture Concorde, which popularized supersonic jet travel
in the 1970s.
With 500 viable routes, there could be a market for 1,000
supersonic airliners with business class fares. It expects to keep the delta
wing configuration of the Concorde but would be built with composite materials.
It would be powered by three dry 15,000 20,000 lbf (67-89 kN) turbofans; a
derivative or a clean sheet design will be selected in 2019.
General Electric Co., Honeywell International Inc. and
Netherlands-based TenCate Advanced Composites are among suppliers for the
Denver firm’s supersonic jets.
Accessible Planet
The Denver-based company was founded for the express purpose
of making our planet dramatically more accessible. “We are taking proven
science and engineering and using it to build a Mach-2.2 airliner that will
kick off the supersonic era. And we are making the company a place where the
best people on the planet can be inspired and enabled to do the best and most
meaningful work of their careers,” says Founder-CEO Blake Scholl.
Blake’s Baby: Making high-speed travel mainstream is why Blake Scholl, who lives in Denver and is the father of three, founded Boom Supersonic.
Speed isn’t about going really fast Scholl says, “It’s about
closeness. It’s about making far-away places feel like they’re right around the
corner.” His point: Some people say that speed makes the world smaller. But at
Mach 2.2, the planet is as big as ever. Life is bigger when it is experienced
in person — with supersonic speeds, we’ll all experience a bigger world than
ever before.
Over long distances people don’t think in miles and kilometers.
They think in hours,” the CEO clarifies. He explains it this way: Crossing the
U.S. takes about five hours. Going from New York to Dubai takes about 14. Speed
isn’t about going really fast. It’s about closeness. It’s about making far away
places feel like they’re right around the corner. If we can fly twice as fast,
the world becomes twice as small, turning far off lands into familiar
neighbors.
Founding Trio
Making high-speed travel mainstream is exactly why Scholl
who lives in Denver and is the father of three founded Boom Supersonic. With a
BS in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon, he has held leadership roles at
Amazon and Groupon and co-founded mobile technology startup Kima Labs that was
acquired by Groupon in 2012.
Engineering Change: The first go of Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 engines on a U.S. Air Force Academy test cell ran to 95% of power.
Sitting at the intersection of engineering, design, and marketing, Josh Krall — who also lives here — co-founded Boom with Scholl. He also attended Carnegie Mellon and has an MBA-MPP from Chicago Booth. Co-founder of two startups, his technical work includes owning multidisciplinary design automation software used for conceptual and preliminary aircraft design. He is leading Boom’s efforts to re-imagine the experience of flying and to craft the company’s brand.
Andy Cipra is the third member of the Boom team. He served
as head of marketing at Denver’s Dish Network where he created partnerships
with Southwest Airlines, Apple and Netflix. Most recently he was Chief
Marketing-Commercial Officer for several start-ups in the healthcare and
technology space. He holds a Mechanical Engineering degree from Purdue and an
MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.
Begin Spring Fling At Sunrise Services, Egg Hunts, Bunny
Bolts Then Dine On Scrumptious Spring Lamb
Holidays are always about family in the Cherry Creek Valley
but none brings more smiles than Easter. Truly unique worship experiences
including the 72nd Annual Red Rocks Sunrise Service plus family egg hunts and
bunny bolts fill the day with happiness and joy.
Moreover, family and friends also spend the day enjoying
incredible holiday feasts. There are dozens of Easter brunches around town or
those lucky enough can enjoy spit-roasted whole lamb served annually at
Denver’s Monaco Inn Restaurant.
Here is our Egg’stra special selection of Easter things to
do: Easter Services
Red Rocks Sunrise Services
Sunrise Sanctuary: The Colorado Council of Churches hosts its 72nd Annual Easter Sunrise Service at Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 4:30-7:30 a.m. The unique worship experience annually draws 11,000 attendees.
On Resurrection Sunday April 21, the Colorado Council of
Churches will host its 72nd Annual Easter Sunrise Service at Red Rocks
Amphitheatre, 4:30-7:30 a.m. This is a truly unique worship experience that
draws people from across the Cherry Creek Valley, all of the Rocky Mountain
area and rest of the nation.
In previous years, an estimated 11,000 people attended the
service. For many attendees who don’t regularly attend church, this is a
special opportunity to hear the gospel. Given the spectacular venue and the
service, it’s no wonder that so many people have this event on their “Bucket
List.”
Given the extraordinary turnout for this worship service, it
is recommended that attendees arrive close to 4:30 a.m. Once the Amphitheatre
is at capacity, police handling traffic will not allow additional access.
Remember to dress warmly as it can get quite cold before the sun rises.
Easter Grand Encampment
Easter Preparation: Denver’s Greek Orthodox Metropolis Cathedral in Glendale replaced the Pantocrator icon damaged by dome leakage before Orthodox Easter April 28. The icon meaning “Ruler of All” in Greek is the oldest known icon of Christ written in the sixth century and preserved in the monastery of St. Catherine in the Sinai desert.
The Knights Templar Association of Colorado has announced
that the Western States Easter Grand Encampment has moved from Salt Lake City
to Denver.
The Encampment is from April 18-21 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel
downtown, just minutes away from the Scottish Rite Consistory where Easter
service will be held on April 21, 6:30 a.m., Doors will open at 5:30 a.m. Breakfast
will be available at the Consistory following the ceremony.
The Colorado Easter Sunrise Service has been celebrated and
conducted by the Knights Templar of Colorado for 94 consecutive years. Not only
do the Templars participate, but every other Masonic body as well.
Registration: wseo-denver.com.
More Easter Services
Augustana Lutheran: 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. services located on
E. Alameda Ave.
Bethany United Methodist: 9 and 10:30 a.m. services located
on W. 1st Ave.
Catholic Basilica of the Immaculate Conception: 8:30 a.m.
& 6:30 p.m. mass located at Logan and Colfax Ave.
Cherry Creek Spiritual Growth Center: 10 a.m. services
located on E. Yale Ave.
Christ Lutheran: 6:30 a.m. sunrise worship; 9:30 and 11 a.m.
services located on S. Broadway.
New Covenant Christian: 6 a.m. sunrise worship; 9 and 11
a.m. services located on Ivanhoe St.
Montview Presbyterian: 9 and 11 a.m. services located on
Dahlia St.
St. John’s Episcopal: 7:30, 9 and 11:15 a.m. Eucharist rites
located on Clarkson St.
St. Paul’s Lutheran: 9 and 11 a.m. services located on Grant
St.
Trinity United Methodist: 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. services
located on Broadway.
Easter Eating
Thanksgiving is the undisputed king of Valley food holidays
nonetheless at many eateries Easter is just as satisfying. The reason is
simple, Easter is the Thanksgiving of spring. At many restaurants you can eat
to the point of bursting but without the family pressures of Thanksgiving.
Toasting Easter: Dozens of Valley eateries are offering Easter brunch specials. Ocean Prime with locations in Larimer Square and in Greenwood Village has this lobster toast brunch special.
The hunt is over: Here’s where to break bread with family
and friends this Easter weekend over brunch, lunch or dinner:
Dining Delights
Monaco Inn Restaurant
Celebrating Easter is much more than an epic holiday meal at
the Monaco Inn Restaurant — it’s a Valley tradition stretching back more than
30 years. Easter without Colorado spring lamb slowly roasted outside on
rotisseries at this family run eatery just south of Leetsdale on Monaco at
Tennessee is hard to imagine.
Savor the fresh roasted lamb served with roasted oven Greek
potatoes, a Greek salad or Avgolemono soup with a glass of wine. Begin your
Easter celebration with a flaming Greek cheese Saganaki appetizer, Opa! End the
holiday enjoying Galaktoboureko, the traditional Greek dessert made with a
custard in a crispy phyllo pastry shell.
Serving Easter Sunday from noon to 8 p.m. Make your
reservations early. Information: 303-320-1104.
Easter Breakfast
Dave & Busters
This American food and arcade game fun spot on S. Colorado
Blvd. is serving breakfast with the Easter Bunny from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. In
addition to a full breakfast buffet you receive a “power card” with unlimited
video game play. Coffee, tea, soda and juices are provided. Also included are
photos with the Easter Bunny (bring your camera or phone) plus arts &
crafts. Information: 303-209-2907.
Other Breakfasts: In connection with sunrise services the
Bethany United Methodist Church at 3501 W. 1st Ave. is serving breakfast at 9
and 10:30 a.m. During this year’s Easter Grand Encampment the Scottish Rite
Consistory at 1307 Grant St. will serve breakfast following the ceremony.
Best Brunch Bets
Celebrate Easter Sunday by enjoying a special brunch at a
local restaurant. There are buffets to share with families plus eateries where
you can spend time on the patio soaking up springtime outside with mimosas.
Charcoal Bistro
Charcoal Bistro, the eatery on Old South Gaylord in the Wash
Park neighborhood is serving Easter brunch with a buffet of sweets and starters
followed by ala carte entrees of your choice.
Edge Restaurant
The Edge Restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel downtown is
serving a brunch buffet with bottomless mimosas. Brunch item selection will
include a raw bar, special carving selections and Easter themed dessert.
Fire Restaurant
Fire, the restaurant in the Art Hotel in the Golden Triangle
adjacent to the Art Museum, offers a brunch buffet from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. The menu
includes a raw bar, herb crusted leg of lamb, whole smoked salmon and Easter
desserts. Parking is complimentary and there will be a surprise visit from the
Easter Bunny.
Ocean Prime
This seafood and steakhouse with locations in Larimer Square
and on Belleview Ave. in Greenwood Village offers a special Easter brunch from
11 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Features include blood orange mimosas, lobster toast, crab
& eggs, braised short rib surf & turf and a blackened salmon salad.
Easter Egg Hunts
Easter Eggstravaganza
Bunny Hopping: Valley families can expect the Easter Bunny to make appearances at churches, restaurants and egg hunts again this year.
The annual Glendale Sports Center’s annual egg hunt is at
the Infinity Park Sports Field located at 4599 E. Tennessee Ave. in Glendale on
Saturday April 15, 10 a.m. sharp. The event is divided into three age groups: 0
to 3, 4 to 6 and 7 to 19, all starting at the same time. Bring an Easter basket
plus camera or phone to create great memories for you and the kids. The Easter
Bunny will be hopping by for a visit. Information: 303-639-4711.
Spring Search: Easter Egg Hunts are an annual rite of spring across the Valley. Two of the biggest are Glendale Sports Center’s egg hunt at Infinity Park and the Faith Mountain Church event in Lakewood.
Children’s Museum Bunny Trail
The annual event on the Marsico Campus is April 15, 10 a.m.
to 5 p.m. with no age limit. The Easter extravaganza is full of art projects,
treats and an Easter Bunny visits. Hop your way over with the kids and
grandkids for a good time with normal museum admission.
Bunny Bolt 5K-10K
The 6th annual event is Saturday April 15 for the whole
family, not just the little ones. Held in City Park on N. York St. it features
Denver’s only Golden Egg Hunt for adults. As you move along the course if you
find the precious golden eggs you win awesome prizes. There’s also a free yoga
class plus prizes ranging from race t-shirt to a goody bag and free photo
downloads. Bring the kids for the 1K Rabbit Rush, the massive Easter Egg Hunt,
face painting, balloon artists and photos with the Easter Bunny.
Rueth Easter Egg Hunt
This event is at the Fleming Mansion located at 1510 S.
Grant St. on April 13, noon to 3 p.m. The hunt has treats, face paintings,
games, sack races and giveaways. For ages 1 to 5 the egg hunt begins at 2 p.m.
while ages 6 and up begin at 2:15 p.m.
Faith Mountain Egg Hunt
Sponsored by Faith Mountain Church this is Lakewood’s
largest egg event with 20,000 candy filled eggs to give away. Located at 12344
W. Alameda Pkwy, the event is April 20, 9 to 11 a.m. In addition to the egg
hunt there are carnival games, bounce houses and the Easter Bunny.
Dining Delights: Easter is the Thanksgiving of spring
annually celebrated with Colorado spring lamb slowly roasted outside on
rotisseries. Antigone Tsikoudakis, right, and Sonny Balafas check lamb being
cooked outside at Denver’s Monaco Inn Restaurant.
Economic Forecast Breakfast: Over 400 business owners and entrepreneurs kicked off the new year at South Metro Denver Chamber’s annual “Economic Forecast Breakfast” held at CU South on January 18, 2019. The sold-out event’s two speakers exhorted attendees to collaborate with each other, to see the opportunities for the area’s growth and to understand the challenges that might obstruct that growth.
The invitation to this year’s South Metro Denver Chamber’s “Economic Forecast Breakfast,” held at CU South, said attendees would learn “how Colorado businesses will fare under the new [Democratic] legislature.” But speakers at the January 18 event eschewed partisan concerns and concentrated on the big picture. J.J. Ament, CEO of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, painted the positive half of that picture, describing past successes and a limitless future, while economist Henry Sobanet lobbed gentle warnings to the sold-out crowd: the world has changed, and Colorado must change with it.
Education And Transportation
Moderator, Lone Tree Mayor Jackie Millet, began the discussion — “How can we be successful, as a state, as a region? We can accomplish so much as a collective!” sounding a theme of collaboration that presenters would echo, in different ways.
Millet introduced Sobanet (“I always learn something when Henry talks!”), currently CFO for Colorado University, previously budget chief for Colorado governors Bill Owens and John Hickenlooper; Sobanet did, in fact, explain economic concepts in an unusually clear fashion.
“The world does not look like it did 10 years ago,” Sobanet began. “Ways of making a living have changed. The model of retiring after 30 years with one corporation, — certainly changed. Demographics have changed …”
Sobanet showed how the 65-and-older demographic will grow disproportionately by 2025, as will the 85-and-older set, previously not considered significant. Another rapidly growing group: those just entering the workplace.
“Fifteen to 20 years of globalization, a lot of automation and these demographic shifts … These are the forces underpinning economic issues.
“The aging population and the resultant impact on revenue and spending … are going to collide with an incoherent school finance system and insufficient money for infrastructure,” Sobanet outlined, then simplified: “The challenge going forward is education and transportation.”
Bad People Or Bad Systems?
The knotty heart of the matter, Sobanet offered, is three Colorado laws: the Gallagher Amendment, which in 1982 changed the way property tax was configured; TABOR (taxpayer bill of rights), which in 1992 began limiting the amount of revenue Colorado can retain and spend; and Amendment 23, which in 2000, changed how Colorado funds public schools.
As intently as everyone stared at Sobanet’s slides of pie charts and percentages, many found it difficult to grasp exactly how they connected. “I’m a financial person and even I didn’t quite understand,” said Louis Llanes, founder of Wealthnet Investments. But Llanes, like everyone, got Sobanet’s gist: these laws will prevent Colorado from getting the revenue it needs to thrive.
“Isn’t TABOR set up so if Colorado needs cash, they can ask the voters?” someone asked.
Yes, said Sobanet, who pointed out it wasn’t sensible to put these decisions on voters’ shoulders. “The laws, you’ve seen, are complicated. And for politicians to say they want taxes raised is political suicide.
“I’d like you to entertain a hypothesis,” Sobanet offered. “Is it bad people or bad systems?”
Colorado Loves Business!
J.J. Ament took the floor in typical upbeat fashion — “Let’s talk about economic growth!” — and recalled just how rapid Denver’s growth has been. “Back in the ’80s, you could drive a car from Union Station to the State Capitol Building and not worry about hitting a soul.
“Now, everyone wants to live here,” beamed Ament. “The Denver International Airport flies more places non-stop than any other airport! Denver is a brand!”
The potential for economic growth is endless if we do it right, Ament opined. “Denver is comprised of some 70 communities. But we have to take a regional approach. Businesses go elsewhere if they see we can’t get along.”
When Amazon put out requests for proposals in 2017, Ament gathered business leaders and submitted a package, including a film he showed that morning: ordinary and famous Coloradans happily claiming, “Colorado loves the outdoors!” “Colorado loves the Broncos!” “Colorado loves business!”
Amazon chose to build elsewhere but Ament, unfazed, regards the submission process with pride. “We spoke with a collaborative voice. Not with 70 different voices. One voice.” He shared other companies that recently relocated to Colorado, “like the VF Corporation, which brought 6,800 jobs.
“This is our goal,” Ament stressed. “The creation, recruitment and retention of good jobs.”
Takeaways
“My biggest takeaway was how we’re sweeping problems under the rug,” said Tom Skelley, of Evolution Communications Agency in Littleton, adding, “I really liked something J.J. said. ‘In between Utopia and the Apocalypse, we need legislators who make decisions based on facts, not ideology.’”
“I am one politician,” said Millet, “who advocated for sales tax to pay for transportation.”
“Colorado’s one of the top five states,” said an attorney on his way out the door. “But we got a C+ rating for infrastructure.”
“Now that you know a little bit more about how the systems work,” Sobanet said, “tell your public officials you would back them to change the system …
“The whole purpose of coming to an event like this is not just to make your business better. It’s making it all better.”
Not Here
Attendees began walking to their cars. Under the big Colorado sky, statues of bears and wolves dotted the snowy, quiet campus. “I’ve heard Henry has been pushing to raise taxes for years,” said a realtor who owns her own agency. “But it’s not gonna fly. Not here. There’s got to be another way.”
Deeper Issues: Many teachers believe the issues bargained in the strike were emblematic of deeper issues, central philosophical beliefs about education.
The Denver teacher strike made national headlines as the latest district to join the Red4Ed movement on February 11. The strike ended three days later when the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) and officials representing the Denver public school system (DPS) signed a tentative agreement. Denver wasn’t the longest strike — Los Angeles held out for five days, West Virginia for nine — but it stood out in another way. “You are a little bit unique here in Denver,” said National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen Garcia, alluding to the controversial pay system known as ProComp. Why ProComp, originally liked by teachers, now caused teachers such distress — why the once-popular pay-for-performance system caused Denver teachers to upend the lives of 72,000 students, put their own livelihoods at risk and enter the first strike in 25 years — is a layered story that goes back 15 years.
Disrespected
Denver educators were also protesting the same issues that caused red-shirted educators to stand up in Oklahoma and Arizona: excessive emphasis on standardized testing, smaller class size, and pay they considered a living wage. At demonstrations, many teachers carried this sign: “When we can’t afford to strike, that’s when we have to strike.”
Newly appointed DPS Superintendent Susana Cordova let her feelings be known: the strike could be avoided if “we sat down and engaged in a discussion that found our common values and beliefs.” But the 93% of DCTA educators who voted on January 22 to strike disagreed. They believed that each succeeding proposal the district offered showed they weren’t really hearing teachers’ demands, or feelings.
And the way DPS prepared for the strike — hiring more substitute teachers, arranging to pay subs twice their usual rate, spending $137,000 on lesson plans for those subs — revealed teachers’ main concern, that DPS does not regard classroom teachers as valuable professionals. That concern was amplified when a week before the strike, a leaked document, posted online, showed how top heavy the DPS payroll was with administrative positions and how many administrators received bonuses on top of six-figure salaries.
Joining The Picket Line: Dr. Carrie Olsen, first row, second from left, longtime teacher, was elected to Denver’s Board of Education in 2017. She could not continue teaching, the board said, due to “conflict of interest.” Board members, however, are not required to be neutral, so Olsen joined teachers on the picket lines on the third day of strike.
DPS hoped Colorado’s new governor, Jared Polis, would accede to their request and intervene. But on February 7, Polis announced the two sides should work it out themselves, seeing as how their differences were “minor, small … limited.”
Negotiations for those “minor” differences could be seen online. Residents following the bargaining talks on Saturday, February 9 and Sunday, February 10, heard hours of haggling about what a PDU (Professional Development Unit) would be worth — but the talks always circled back to ProComp.
What Exactly Is ProComp?
ProComp — Professional Compensation — is a system that came into being in November 2005, when voters approved a $25 million mill levy override to provide incentives to teachers who worked in “hard to serve” schools. DCTA and DPS jointly designed the system, which was implemented in January 2006, with a stipulation that both parties could revisit the contract in 2007.
Late in 2007, DPS did want to make changes; reluctantly, teachers came to the bargaining table. But after months of fruitless discussions, then DPS Superintendent Michael Bennet issued an ultimatum: teachers should accept the district proposal — higher bonuses and lower base pay — or DPS would no longer honor the master agreement. The ProComp contract was revised early in 2008.
When the ProComp agreement expired in 2013, DPS asked teachers to put off negotiating a new one; they were about to conduct studies on ProComp’s efficacy. Between 2013 and 2017, DPS made changes to ProComp that teachers did not like: “Hard to serve” schools shifting categories; teacher evaluations based on students’ standardized scores; how paychecks had become impenetrably confusing and distressingly unpredictable. “I never know how much money I’ll have for the month,” said a high school English teacher.
DCTA President Henry Roman kept saying that the short-term bonuses were “shortchanging our students. … Teachers deserve a professional career salary.”
What Lies Underneath
The shape ProComp took reflected the reform educational measures DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg (2008-2018) installed. But ProComp’s changing parameters mostly stemmed from something that happened 15 years before, when Michael Bennet was DPS Superintendent and Boasberg his Chief Operating Officer.
Both men came from the business world and were considered to be financial wizards. Together, they developed a plan to purportedly save DPS millions. They would borrow $750 million for DPS’s outstanding pension debt. Three hundred million would go to pay back already existing pension debt; $400 million would go to fully fund the DPS retirement fund and $50 million would pay banker and lawyer fees.
And although there were indications something was happening in the world financial markets at that time, Bennet and Boasberg went ahead with their plan, which ultimately included institutions such as Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citibank, Wells Fargo and Bank of America, in April 2008. DPS hoped this plan would allow their retirement fund to join the statewide retirement fund, which would in turn allow DPS employees to easily move in and out of the system, which would reduce DPS’s retirement debt — which would provide more money for classrooms. Win/win, right?
Pensions And ProComp
By 2018, that $750 million loan had doubled. DPS now owed $1.8 billion.
Boasberg and Bennet were able to convince the Colorado legislature that DPS should get the equivalent of “pre-payment” credit to deduct the ProComp’s fees and interest from what would have been their normal pension contributions,” explains Jeannie Kaplan, BOE member at that time and unofficial DPS historian. “Because of these actions DPS employees saw their pension fund drop from fully funded on January 1, 2010, to a little under 80% funded in June 30, 2018.”
How the above connects to 2019 teacher strike: base salaries — which ProComp was originally designed to boost — are pensionable. In 2008, the ProComp “bonus” went from a base building system to bonus-based — and since these bonuses do not contribute to a teacher’s pensionable income, this diminishes the amount a teacher has in retirement, and makes smaller demands on a dwindling pension fund.
By 2019, many educators were fed up with ProComp. As the district offered proposals that didn’t address their demands, many wondered who was making decisions for DPS. “Cordova is not the full boss but she definitely has a say,” said one teacher, while educational activists cited DPS Chief Financial Officer Mark Ferrendino and BOE President Anne Rowe, long affiliated with reform groups such as A+ Colorado — and they were heard to say during a closed-door session, “Do not give in to the teachers — as influential.”
Agreement
In the end, DPS did “give in to the teachers.”
“This [February 14] agreement is a win, pure and simple,” said DCTA President Roman. To get that win, Rob Gould, chief union negotiator, said, “I had to use the last tool in my toolbelt.” The agreement provides a more traditional pay system, significant pay raises, a transparent 20-step salary schedule including a 7 to 11 percent increase in base pay — and still keeps incentives for teachers at high poverty schools. Part of the money for teacher raises, said CFO Ferrandino, will come from cutting administrative costs, including 150 central office positions.
For well over a year, DCTA had been trying to negotiate the above points. “For 15 months, the district chose to ignore us,” said Denver teacher Rachel Sandoval. “Can you hear us now?”
Almost every mayor of Denver who has two or more terms in office has some project or initiative that highlights what the individual wanted to accomplish in public office. For Mayor Robert Speer it was Speer Boulevard and the City Beautiful movement. For Mayor Stapleton it was the Mountain Park System and Civic Center Park. In the case of Mayor Wellington Webb, he was justifiably proud of what he was able to accomplish with Confluence Park and Mayor Federico Peña fought tirelessly for Denver International Airport.
But what about Mayor Michael Hancock? He has been able to destroy and/or monetize parks and open space throughout Denver. He has been able to take the 16th Street Mall, the pride and joy of Mayor McNichols, and turn it into a dangerous place at times that reeks of urine and feces emanating from the alley ways. He has been able to destroy or damage neighborhoods throughout the city with ugly high rises built right to the curb. He has driven out African-American families who have been in the city for generations with his gentrification efforts and making affordable housing in the city a thing of the past. He has turned the once beautiful Speer Boulevard into a concrete canyon. Driving about Denver has become a chore almost any time of the day and parking has become scarcer and scarcer. If he and Councilman Albus Brooks have their way they will have defacto legalized heroin/meth use and sales with so-called Safe Injection Sites.
What could represent and highlight these and many other similar achievements by his honor. We suggest Initiative 300 could do the trick. It would alter the municipal code of Denver to provide a right to rest in any public space in Denver and to live in any motor vehicle on any street without being asked to move. It allows for people to eat, share and serve food in public places. It would make it a crime to harass any person exercising these rights and would override any and all laws of Denver or the State of Colorado that are in contradiction of these provisions.
How perfect can you get to represent the ideals and aspirations of the Hancock Administration. This initative would help to destroy the enjoyment of most people in Denver of those parks and open spaces that Mayor Hancock hasn’t already closed or monetized. It would solve the affordable housing crisis since one could live almost anywhere within a tent and drive down home values so that houses would be “more affordable.” These wonderful legal provisions would also apply not only within the boundaries of the City and County of Denver, but also to the Denver Mountain Park system which would not only apply to Red Rocks concerts and Evergreen Golf Course but apparently to Winter Park.
Initiative 300 applies not only to parks and open space but any public space any land owned or leased by the City and County of Denver or any property upon which there is an easement for public use which would include the sidewalk in front of your house and any street median by your home. Asking too loudly for the person camped out in front of your house not to urinate or defecate on your lawn could be deemed a form of harassment subjecting you to arrest.
The only real obstacle to this initative is the fact that high density developers who control the mayor’s office and who want to destroy the city and its parks and open space for their own profit and fun, are opposed. How dare the homeless advocates make the city an undesirable place to live and work when the high-density developers are doing a bang-up job on their own. The flotsam and jetsam over at Colorado Concern, who runs the day-to-day operations of the city along with the mayor’s Chief of Staff Alan Salazar, will put money in to defeat the proposition. Mayor Hancock himself has been strangely silent on the matter afraid to alienate anyone on either side of the issue with his dubious re-election campaign in full swing. But his silence is in part understandable as he is spending a significant part of his time chasing and harassing women down in Atlanta away from prying eyes.
But we as citizens of Denver all owe it to our beloved mayor who we have elected twice (once without any opposition) and who will, in all likelihood, be re-elected for a third term given the enormous war chest he has built up from high-density developers. It is not easy to destroy a once beautiful and very livable city especially when you have money to burn, but Hancock is helping to achieve the same and Initiative 300 could, in fact, be the crown jewel ode to his time of public service.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to attract thousands of drug-addicted street people from across the country to the Mile-High Queen City of the Plains to share our new utopian vision provided by Mayor Hancock. Vote “Yes” on Initiative 300, and help the mayor destroy our once beautiful city.
