by Jessica Hughes | Sep 30, 2022 | Main Articles
by Jessica Hughes
Skiing the fresh powder at Vail Mountain. Photo: Andrew Maguire, Breckenridge Ski Resort
Ski runs at Breckenridge along the Tenmile Mountain Range. Photo: Andrew Maguire, Breckenridge Ski Resort
It’s that time of year again, when fall signals the anticipatory announcements of opening day for Colorado ski resorts and the race to be the first to open begins.
On August 22, 2022, Vail Resorts announced their opening dates of its five Colorado resorts including Vail Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, and Crested Butte. The season begins with Keystone Resort set to be the first to open in mid-October and ending with the closing of Breckenridge running well into May, making this one of the longest seasons in the country for its Epic Pass Holders.
The race to the top is tight with Keystone Resort planning to be the first to open in all of Colorado on October 21, rivaling Arapahoe Basin which is set to open on October 22. Historically, the average opening date for the upcoming ski season has been October 22.
In addition, to the opening dates, the company shared it will limit lift ticket sales throughout the season in an effort to manage potential overcrowding. “We care deeply about our guests’ experience at our resorts,” said James O’Donnell, president of Vail Resorts’ Mountain division.
“Limiting lift tickets throughout the season, alongside the big investments we’re making at our resorts, and in our team members, will help us provide our guests with an Experience of a Lifetime this winter.”
Much of this came in response to issues the resort has experienced in past years with long lift lines and overcrowded runs. Pre-purchased passes, including the Epic Day Pass, are not limited, and if tickets are sold out online, guests will not be able to purchase at the window.
Downtown Breckenridge rests near the base of the resort. Photo: Andrew Maguire, Breckenridge Ski Resort
Aside from opening dates announcements, the winter 22/23 season ushers in exciting news from Colorado’s 26 ski areas and resorts with notable milestones, upgrades, and new additions.
Vail Resorts is investing $300 million in the guest experience this season, with new lifts at Vail and Breckenridge, a restaurant expansion at Keystone, and exciting events at all five resorts.
Vail Mountain will unveil its new two-lift project, introducing the Sun Down Lift, a new high-speed 4-person chair that will connect the bottom of Sun Down Bowl to Wildwood, allowing for a smoother connection between Lionshead Village and the Seven Legendary Back Bowls. The lift in Game Creek Bowl will also be upgraded to a new high-speed six-person lift.
Steamboat Resort continues to move forward with its second phase of a multi-million, multi-year transformation of its base area, including an ice-skating rink and new food and drink hall, while World Cup downhill racing returns to Aspen Mountain this spring.
North America’s highest-elevation restaurant re-opens at Arapahoe Basin as the completely renovated and expanded il Rifugio, a European-inspired full-service eatery, while down the road Loveland Ski Area will launch a guided snowcat operation offering backcountry trips for intermediate level and above skiers and snowboarders beginning in January of 2023.
Colorado’s oldest ski area in continuous use since 1915, Howelsen Hill in Steamboat, will open a new snow tubing area and lift to debut this December. This season also marks a few historic milestones. Telluride Ski Resort and Copper Mountain will celebrate their 50th anniversaries, and Eldora Ski Area and Vail Mountain will celebrate their 60th anniversaries.
Opening dates for the winter 22/23 season in Colorado*:
Keystone: October 21, 2022
Arapahoe Basin Ski Area: October 22, 2022
Wolf Creek Ski Area: October 29, 2022
Loveland: October 29, 2022
Aspen Snowmass: November 10, 2022
Breckenridge: November 11, 2022
Vail: November 11, 2022
Winter Park: November 17, 2022
Eldora Mountain Resort: November 18, 2022
Purgatory: November 20, 2022
Copper Mountain: November 21, 2022
Beaver Creek: November 23, 2022
Crested Butte Mountain Resort: November 23, 2022
Aspen Mountain: November 24, 2022
Telluride: November 24, 2022
Steamboat: November 26, 2022
Powderhorn: December 03, 2022
Ski Granby Ranch: December 9, 2022
Aspen Highlands: December 10, 2022
Cooper: December 10, 2022
Monarch Mountain: December 10, 2022
Howelsen Hill: December 10, 2022
Echo Mountain: December 10, 2022
Buttermilk: December 17, 2022
Sunlight Mountain Resort: December 17, 2022
Silverton Mountain: December 24, 2022
*all dates are subject to change based on weather conditions.
Source: https://www.onthesnow.com/colorado/projected-openings
by Charles Bonniwell | Sep 30, 2022 | Main Articles
Zoning War Possible Between Cities
by Charles C. Bonniwell
High Density King: David Tryba, Principal of Tryba Architects. His firm has submitted a “Concept Site Plan” for an area that borders Glendale along Cherry Creek Drive South that includes 15 and 20 story apartment buildings. In 2016, his firm proposed buildings to be constructed in Glendale that would have been the tallest in the state. Glendale officials rejected the concept.
Site Plan: The concept site plan submitted to the Denver Planning Department by Tryba Architects includes five buildings along Cherry Creek Drive South and East Kentucky Avenue with buildings 4 and 5 bordering Glendale and totaling 20 and 15 stories respectively.
Tall Buildings: The red lines in the above photo illustrate how tall the proposed buildings would be if approved by Denver’s Planning Department. They would be 157 feet and 210 feet respectively and block out any views East along Cherry Creek Drive South from Glendale.
The massive density along Cherry Creek within the City and County of Denver appears to be continuing unabated with the creek being canyonized by tall buildings. High density developers’ favorite architectural firm, Tryba Architects, has submitted a “Concept Site Plan” for 5250 East Cherry Creek Drive South to Denver Planning and Development that has surrounding neighborhoods and the City of Glendale in an uproar.
David Tryba, the head of Tryba Architects, had come along with Dana Crawford, to Glendale City Hall in February 2016, to convince city officials to allow a massive tower of luxury apartments/condominiums. The building would have been potentially the tallest building in Colorado and located along 3.8 acres acres of land owned by the proprietors of Authentic Persian and Oriental Rugs on Colorado Boulevard. At his meeting with Glendale officials, Tryba
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noted how landowners could make a great deal more money the more density they can squeeze on a property. He stated that they had come to Glendale because they were “frankly interested in having more flexibility than they could have in Denver in terms of being able to go vertically.”
Community And Glendale Objections
Glendale was not impressed and did not approve the concept, but Denver in the waning days of the Hancock administration has become more “flexible” than it was previously. The Glendale City Council directed its staff to oppose the 5250 East Cherry Creek Development due to its extreme density and asked them to point out “the serious negative impacts to traffic, parks, and the surrounding lower density Denver and Glendale neighborhoods, and encouraged a development that is “more compatible adjacent zoning and density.”
Glendale did not object to a redevelopment of the present site which has 328 units and a density of 28 units per acre. Glendale notes the redevelopment would drastically increase the number of units to 1,232 with 196 units per acre — a fourfold increase. The redevelopment would be comprised of five buildings with the two tallest being 15 and 20 stories and back up to one and two-story buildings in Glendale. In one property in Denver, there would be 40% of all residential units in Glendale combined.
Both Cherry Creek Pediatrics and the Board of the Cedar Pointe Condominiums have sent objection letters to the Denver Planning Department pointing out many of the problems that the size and mass of the buildings could effectively destroy the existing landscaping in Glendale.
Parking And Traffic
Glendale in its correspondence noted the enormous parking and traffic problems that the project would bring. Denver allows as little as 1.5 parking places per unit while Glendale requires much more plentiful parking but does not allow on street parking. Adjacent Cedar Point Condominiums has 573 off-street parking for 270 units. The overflow parking from the project would therefore be forced into Denver’s Virginia Village neighborhood streets and overwhelm them.
Proposed Site: Creekside Apartments, which has 328 units, currently sits on the property that is most likely going to give way to a massive development sprawled over 11.632 acres.
Traffic created by the redevelopment would create bottlenecks on Cherry Creek South during rush hours and double the traffic on East Kentucky Avenue. The redevelopment does not provide a full signalized intersection with pedestrian crossings. Glendale points out that the redevelopment is not consistent with the 2010 Blueprint Denver which provides for low to medium residential development for the area.
Rezoning And Possible Zoning War
The property had been zoned R-2-A with height limitations but in 2006 rezoned to R-3 with no height limitations. To obtain the rezoning the property owner, Apartment Income REIT Corp agreed to waive its unlimited heights rights to protect the R-2-A Denver property to the south but no protection for any Glendale property to the west. The setback on the Glendale side is proposed to be only 20 feet dwarfing the Cherry Creek Pediatric Center in Glendale. Denver appears to be allowing massive density adjoining Glendale properties. This could result in Glendale in turn rezoning its properties along the Denver border with massive density.
Such a zoning war would hurt both cities, but Glendale may have little choice given Denver Planning Commission’s seemingly willingness to badly damage Glendale.
by Valley Gadfly | Aug 26, 2022 | Main Articles
Free August Fares Sought To Clear The Air, Lift Ridership, But Weekday Rides Jump Just 16% Due To Drug, Crime Worries
by Glen Richardson
Reeling from the pandemic, changing work patterns, and lingering worker shortages, while grappling with drug use and crime, RTD is facing a ridership crisis that threatens to cripple or collapse the transit agency.
RTD’s month-long August “Zero Fare for Better Air” promotion drew only 16% more weekday boarders during the first week when “free” was expected to double ridership. The weekend — with live theatre, Broadway shows, and baseball — did double rides. The agency estimates it will lose $9.2 million in fare revenue during the month. The state approved an $8.7 million grant — Senate Bill 180 — for the fare free program. RTD is responsible for picking up the balance.
Whenever you say free, many contend, “It’s not free, someone is paying!” In RTD’s latest free foray, many expressed concerns that making it free would attract homeless riders, plus increase unruly behavior and criminal activity. Some said it was likely to attract drunk-disorderly riders. “It’s an awful idea and will chase away paying patrons, if it hasn’t so far,” others intimated.
Slow Start Scramble
Crime Clogs Air Campaign: Drug, crime worries clogged RTD’s August Zero Fare for Better Air campaign as the transit agency’s buses, trains can’t find the combustion to attract commuters.
At the start of Zero Fare’s second week — safety and security issues were clearly crippling ridership. A series of outreach events with RTD Transit Police and Denver Police were quickly added. The four events — the first on Aug. 10 — were coffee chats designed to engage with potential customers and the community about security, service, and the Zero Fare incentive.
In March the agency hired Steve Martingano as RTD Police Chief. He has 22 officers to cover 2,300-sq.-miles. In June, RTD also approved a one-year contract extension with Allied Universal Security Services for up to $20.3 million.
RTD impact teams try to head off problems before customers board. Bus operators are asked if there are any problems on buses, seeking to ensure trips operate safely. At Union Station — where customers, employees, and visitors say they feel unsafe, and at least one business closed over crime — RTD is working with police, who have stepped up patrol. Denver Police made more than 800 arrests in and around Union Station in the six-months between November 2021 and April 30 of this year.
RTD’s System, Riders
Bus Boondoggle: RTD’s bus network is adequate, but bus stops often aren’t more than a pole with a small sign. Sometimes there’s a lonely bench, but only 5% have shelters.
RTD’s metro service includes six light rail lines, two commuter rail lines, and 84 local-regional bus routes. There are more than 340,000 daily transit trips. Approximately 230,000 of the trips — or about two-thirds — are within Denver.
Annual ridership in 2021 included 6,585,500 commuter rail, and 10,016,300 light-rail riders. That compares to 4,954,167 on commuter rail in 2020, and 10,464, 678 on light rail. Bus boardings in 2021 were 31,598,000 compared to 32,932,000 in 2020.
In 2019 there were 9,711,377 commuter rail and 24,585,300 light rail boardings. Bus boardings in 2019 totaled 59,685,653.
Cars In Control
Cars Dominate Commute: Traffic on Valley highways and arterials at near-normal levels whereas RTD is still struggling to attract ridership for commuter trains and buses.
RTD hoped its Zero Fare for Better Air would attract customers by saving them money and reducing stress. It aimed to limit air pollution and ground-level ozone. The agency has added a 36 battery-electric sub-fleet on the 16th St. Mall and purchased an additional 17 zero-emission buses, as its better air commitment.
Nonetheless, RTD struggled despite free fare. Federal monitoring of traffic on the state’s highways-arterials, shows traffic at near-normal levels. Volume, at times, actually exceeds 2019 monthly totals. That’s true, even as the Valley’s weekday rush hours have changed.
Based on several studies, for Denver drivers to switch from their cars to riding buses and trains would require frequencies of every 15 minutes. That is far from the 30-minute standard here and in other cities.
Fab Hub Fades Fast
Fall Of Great Hall: Opening in 2014, Union Station’s Great Hall initially attracted 10 million people annually. Today it is depicted as a hotbed of violence and drug dealing.
Union Station — the $54 million renovation of the 1914 Beaux-Arts train station that opened in 2014 as RTD’s transit hub — was initially an amazing place. Located at 17th and Wynkoop, it included the historic, station house, a modern open-air train shed, and a 22-gate underground bus-light rail station.
It encompasses the Great Hall and Crawford Hotel plus dining-retail space. A popular weekend and holiday getaway spot for locals and travelers, it attracted more than 10 million people and featured dozens of free community events annually.
Eight years later it is depicted as a hotbed of violence and drug dealing. The Union Station neighborhood was consistently Denver’s 2021 second most crime-ridden neighborhood, according to Denver’s crime mapping. RTD has shut down bus terminal public restrooms and may corner-off a section of the terminal for those with paid fares.
X-Factor: Commuters
Even prior to the pandemic, RTD confronted several years of gradual and puzzling ridership drops. Ridership fell about 5% from 2014 to 2019, with a bigger 2019 bump.
Ridership bottomed out at 30% of normal in the spring of 2020. Even as riders slowly return, recovery remains uneven. Buses attracted just 56% of the riders in November of last year as it did in the same month of 2019. Even with fewer trips, train ridership is performing at 37% to 48% of 2019.
The struggle to attract riders continues, with monthly data through last November indicating that about 53% of riders have returned.
Bus, Train Troubles
Crime Crisis: Not only did security worries cripple the better air campaign, RTD’s transit hub has been the scene of more than 1,200 arrests and tickets in the last six months.
Where RTD’s bus network has frequent service, it correlates well to population density. Service, however, is less reliable and stop amenities are lower quality. Thus, ridership lags despite buses going where people want to go. Meanwhile, RTD and Denver Police are literally trying to reclaim Union Station’s bus terminal. Planned security upgrades should help.
Denver’s light rail focuses on suburban-downtown trips. Service and amenities are decent, albeit stops often aren’t in useful spots and trains don’t show up on schedule.
A series titled “Ghost Train” is the focus of a CPR podcast miniseries that contends the ambitious, costly rail lines “have done relatively little to shift people around the region and is a story of disappointment and betrayal.”
by Jessica Hughes | Aug 26, 2022 | Main Articles
by Jessica Hughes
Rocky Ford Cantaloupes are famous for their sweet and flavorful taste.
The famous Rocky Ford melons have hit the shelves at big box grocery stores and local farmers markets across Colorado and this season is one of the sweetest yet. This season’s crop yielded some of the sweetest melons in years, particularly the cantaloupe.
Rocky Ford, Colo., lies in the Lower Arkansas River Valley, about an hour east of Pueblo. It is famous for producing some of the best cantaloupe, watermelon, and honeydew melons in the state and the world. The area is well-known for its melons due to its ideal climate, which includes large temperature swings — from hot and dry during the day, to much cooler evenings (which helps stimulate the sugars in the melon), the ideal soil composition, and right elevation.
“In my opinion, we produce the world’s best cantaloupe. The sweetest tasting and most flavorful,” says Eric Hanagan, owner of Hanagan Farms.
In fact, the region is so coveted that Rocky Ford Cantaloupes are trademarked. Just like how wine can’t be called Champagne if is produced outside the Champagne region of France, there is a defined area of where Rocky Ford melons can be grown and labeled as “Rocky Ford melons.”
Eric Hanagan, his wife, their children, and workers, who have been with them for nearly 30 years, run Hanagan Farms in Swink, just a few minutes east of Rocky Ford. The Centennial farm has been in business for generations growing produce in the Arkansas Valley for nearly 115 years. While their mainstay is now Rocky Ford cantaloupe, melons, and watermelons, they also produce vegetables such as peppers, pumpkins, and tomatoes.
Hanagan Farms produces other plentiful crops such as peppers.
“We have diversified over the years,” says Hanagan. “As the industry changes, so do we. In agriculture, if you aren’t changing, you are dying,” Hanagan expresses. For example, the introduction of drip irrigation technology at his farm has yielded high-producing crops over the years and helped to save 70% of their irrigation water usage. In fact, all his melons are raised on drip irrigation.
Despite a near 20-year drought the eastern plains and a lot of the country is experiencing, this doesn’t affect their melon crop much. “We don’t really need a lot of rain. In fact, we like it hot and dry but we need adequate snowfall in the winter so we can irrigate with mountain run-off from the Arkansas River,” says Hanagan. No hail is nice too!
So, where can you buy Rocky Ford melons? While some, like Hanagan Farms, sell mostly retail, direct to consumer at their farm, a good portion are packed and shipped by Hirakata Farms to grocery stores like King Soopers.
Watermelons are another popular crop grown in the Arkansas Valley.
Hanagan also suggests getting to know your farmer by visiting local farmers markets. “When you get to know your farmer, you get to know your food,” says Hanagan. “We wouldn’t sell anything we wouldn’t serve to our own family.” There are several farmers markets in the Rocky Ford region in which to buy fresh melons, along with plenty of roadside stands where the farmers are selling directly to their customers.
Despite the fact there are only five or six farmers that actually grow melons in the region, albeit very large farms, the future looks bright with generational possibilities on the horizon to keep the farms going. “We are still cranking out more melons than ever,” says Hanagan.
To learn more about Rocky Ford melons and harvest season visit rocky-ford-grow ers-association.mandccommunications.com. And to stay updated with happenings at Hanagan Farms, follow them on Facebook @hanaganfarm
All images are provided by Hanagan Farms via Hanagan Farms Facebook
by Mark Smiley | Jul 22, 2022 | Main Articles
Soloist Odell Stroud Has The Cory-Merrill Neighborhood Dancing In The Street ‘Feeling Good’ As They Learn To Chill Out
by Glen Richardson
Sunset Serenade: Music fans stand or sit on lawn chairs adjacent and across the street at Cory-Merrill sunset pop-up musical series.
For decades Denver was a boom town. More people were moving in than out. Deep-pocketed investors were everywhere. Each month, everybody and everything seemed to be breaking records. But as inflationary pressures reach neighborhoods through the gas pump and grocery store, the unstoppable metropolis has suddenly put on the brakes.
Every time there is a report of good news and citizens begin to think the city is recapturing its footing, a flood of bad news follows. As a result, ordinary citizens are beginning to realize things are still unpredictable, erratic, and volatile. In Denver’s Cory-Merrill neighborhood families are learning to chill out a little, as they simply take it day by day.
With summer here, the time was right for dancing in the street. For the last couple of years Frank Baier and his wife Christine have treated the neighborhood by entertaining them with his band Groove Machine on their front lawn. The group includes Tim Greenhouse on keys, Doug Banbridge on percussion, and Baier on base. Odell Stroud — lead singer for Denver’s Montage Band — belts out songs for the sunset series.
Swayin’ In The Hood
There’s something different about the little Cory-Merrill neighborhood street concert of summer. It has become a communal block-party that connects people without overwhelming them. First reported on by the Chronicle in August 2020, it has attracted families for the last couple of years.
Neighbors, sightseers, and dogs congregate to enjoy the jam session and musical gig that has increasingly become a blast and a ball. A summer enticement for the crowd to party down.
When singer Stroud — an unforgettable vocal talent — launched into “Feeling Good” as the mid-July evening was winding down, people began swingin’ and swayin’ and it be
Singer Stroud: Unforgettable vocal talent Odell Stroud had the crowd “Feeling Good,” thus the economy and inflation were forgotten.
came an invitation to dance in the street. As Stroud belted out, “It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life,” the crowd went wild and started dancing in the street. The economy and inflation no longer mattered; families were laughing, singing and swaying to the music as they danced in the street.
A Sense Of Freedom
A feature of the history of Street Dance, is that it offers opportunities for creative expression. It also gives people a sense of freedom and gives a “voice” to the unrepresented and their communities through the means of music and dance.
Movement and dance are extremely expressive, which allows you to escape and let loose. Moreover, it helps boost your mood. Barbara Ehrenreich, author of 21 books asks, “Why is so little left?” She suggests the ecstasy of the rituals are nearly as inherent as the quest for food and shelter.
Dancing connects us to a society or culture in many universal and personal ways that deepen our understanding of our world and ourselves, according to experts.
Upbeat Signs
As Denver rewires, there are encouraging signs the new economy is working in ways the city can take advantage of for years to come. The metro Glendale-Denver area is thriving in amazing ways. The Cherry Creek Valley has become one of the nation’s leading examples for economic vitality.
Based on 28 key indicators, our economy ranks 5th in startup activity, 6th in high-tech jobs, and 7th in annual median household income. Especially encouraging, we’re cultivating a flourishing workforce:
Moreover, the number of homes and condos available for sale in metro Denver surged by nearly two-thirds between May and June, and nearly twice as many properties are now on the market compared to a year ago, according to the Denver Metro Assn. of Realtors.
Disturbing Signs
Regrettably, the Mile High City is losing ground in key areas that are equally troubling:
- People counted in a 2020 Denver city limits survey, revealed 24% were unsheltered. Fact: Colorado’s chronically homeless population grew by 266% between 2007 and 2021, more than any other state.
- Denver is averaging more than 450 violent crimes per month this year. More: Colorado has 2022’s 7th biggest drug problem.
Moreover, more than 27,000 automobiles were stolen last year, up from 13,000 in 2019.
Tourism Troubles
Back in 2019, Denver’s tourism industry was booming, with 1,026 conventions, 17.7 million overnight visitors, and $7 billion in revenue. By 2020, the city was on track to break records in the tourism industry, before the pandemic obliterated it. Today the industry is
Moving To The Music: Summer street concert in the Cory-Merrill neighborhood had people swingin’ and swayin’ to the tunes of Groove Machine.
slowly crawling back.
Explains Visit Denver CEO Richard Sharp: “Tourism is 100% dependent on Denver being a clean, safe, humane, and inviting city,” he says. “One of the top complaints we get is about the number of people sleeping downtown, especially on our No. 1 tourist attraction, which is the 16th Street Mall.”
The Bottom Line: Denver’s reputation is suffering and the outlook remains dim!
Finding The Groove
The soft, smooth, gentle, mellow, rich, raucous, and loud Groove Machine performance and Stroud’s singing were masterful performances. The street song-dance concert is a signal for the entire Cherry Creek Valley to chill out, and take it day by day.
Expanded social and cultural interaction can only improve the Valley’s feeling of well-being and togetherness.
Hopefully, the Mile High City can begin to control the stage, capture the attention of the its audience, and take command of the metropolis. Then Denver will increasingly flourish, making our region an even better placed to live and work.
by Mark Smiley | Jul 22, 2022 | Main Articles
Auditor O’Brien Warns There’s A High Risk Of Errors, Misuse, Potential Fraud Of The City’s $126.9 Million In Federal Relief Funds
by Glen Richardson
Homeless Help: City & County of Denver is using the largest amount of Coronavirus Relief Funds to pay for shelter and housing for the homeless.
Denver Auditor Timothy M. O’Brien’s follow-up to his 2021 audit, flagged several gaps in the Denver Department of Finance that need to be fixed, especially as the City prepares to take in hundreds of millions of dollars more in federal funds from the ongoing pandemic response. “We saw huge amounts of money coming into the city from the federal government and going out the door just as quickly,” he says.
Recently awarded the National Excellence in Government Accountability Award for local auditors, his follow-up discovered the Finance Department had failed to reconcile some bank accounts related to pandemic relief funding for at least two months and supervisors had not reviewed some reconciliations for at least four months.
The Department of Finance had committed to implementing all five recommendations from the original audit, but more than six months later, four of those recommendations were not implemented, he reveals. The department did successfully implement O’Brien’s recommendation that it provide more detailed guidance to city staff on what kinds of documentation they need to keep so they can prove that an expense was related to the pandemic.
Reconciling Bank Account
Funding Failure: Department of Finance committed to implementing five recommendations after 2021 audit, but more than four months later four of the five were still not executed.
Discovery that the Finance Department had failed to reconcile pandemic relief funding bank accounts is particularly worrisome, he enlightens. “Bank reconciliations are an important procedure in any accounting system, because they help ensure accurate records and reduce the risk of errors and fraud.”
The Department of Finance promised to implement O’Brien’s recommendations following his original audit by September 2021, but they hadn’t been done six months later. Moreover, the department still has not sufficiently cross-trained its staff, and it does not yet have sufficient policies to ensure staff reconcile bank accounts each month — and that supervisors then verify that those bank reconciliations actually happen.
“While I’m pleased the city is offering better guidance on documentation, implementing only one recommendation is not good enough considering the high risks and high-dollar amounts involved with pandemic relief funding,” O’Brien warns.
Tracking Interest
The follow-up works also found the department’s procedures for tracking interest overlook critical steps, which render them ineffective. They do not ensure city staff post interest earnings in a timely and accurate manner each month and that grant managers then monitor their grants to account for the interest earned.
Pandemic Funding Risks: Auditor’s follow-up to 2021 audit finds gaps in the Department of Finance as city prepares to take in hundreds of millions of dollars more in federal funds.
Because of this, the city risks not using all available dollars when the money must be used by a certain date. “Our original audit found this happened with about $1.8 million in interest earnings the city was unaware it had in 2020 as it was planning pandemic-related projects,” he reveals. While that error was eventually corrected, it could have kept additional relief dollars out of city services and programs through 2020.
“By still not adequately accounting for interest, the city risks forfeiting additional valuable aid it could otherwise use to help the Denver community as our residents continue recovering from the pandemic,” Auditor O’Brien declares. “I hope the Department of Finance will continue working to fill in these crucial gaps in its process.”
Pandemic Funding
Federal aid in 2020 helped Denver pay for a wide array of unexpected costs related to its pandemic response. The money from the Coronavirus Relief Fund was used to support food assistance, public health efforts, economic support, and individual support. The largest amount was planned to pay for shelter and housing.
Other sources of pandemic relief aid were not part of our 2021 audit. In total, the City and County of Denver was awarded more than $604 million in pandemic-related funding from various sources, as of April 2021.
Furthermore, as of last summer, Denver was to receive another $308 million from the American Rescue Plan, which it will need to spend by Dec. 31, 2024.
Months ahead of the first payouts from Denver’s new Fair Elections Fund, the Clerk & Recorder’s Office was still working to ensure accuracy in how it will manage the program, according to a new audit from Auditor Timothy M. O’Brien, CPA. The first payments from the Fair Elections Fund will go out this month (August 2022), ahead of the next municipal election in April 2023.
The Clerk & Recorder’s Office needs a policy to verify campaign contributions made to participating candidates come from valid sources. And the office needs a way to confirm candidates are accepting only small-dollar contributions, Also the office needs to create a policy to ensure it accurately pays out any matching funds. Plus, it needs to make sure candidates are trained consistently and within the required time frame. The office needs a plan for how it will notify candidates that they have been approved to participate in the Fair Elections Fund, and it needs a way to enforce the public debate requirement for participating candidates.
“The next municipal election is coming up in less than a year, and candidates are already declaring their intent to participate in the new Fair Elections Fund,” Auditor O’Brien notes. “I felt it was important to audit this program now, so the Clerk and Recorder’s Office has a chance to get ahead of any outstanding operational needs.” Our team completed a readiness audit of the Fair Elections Fund and looked at gaps in policies and procedures, as well as how the office is planning for accountability after the 2023 Denver municipal election.
