Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

Tag: Denver

Denver DMVs rated among worst in the U.S.
No Comments
Approved, Local, Westword

Denver DMVs rated among worst in the U.S.

By Brendan Joel Kelley | Westword Would you rather spend a few hours getting a root canal, or sitting with a paper number in hand, waiting for someone to call your name at the DMV? A rhetorical exercise, perhaps — but at least the endodontist will numb you with a local anesthetic and, if you’re lucky, provide nitrous oxide for your trouble. The DMV offers no such panacea. But Denverites really hate their DMVs, according to a new report from SudokuBliss, a sudoku gaming website that (and you'll be shocked to hear this) recommends sudoku as a way to pass the time at the DMV. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE WESTWORD
Read More
Denver rent down $65, but rising costs leave renters struggling
No Comments
Approved, Denverite, Local

Denver rent down $65, but rising costs leave renters struggling

By Kyle Harris | Denverite When Cassie Welch Rubin moved to Denver in 2022, she paid $1,400 a month for a bug-infested, rundown studio apartment in University Hills, a neighborhood she hated. To get to her job, she took a two-hour bus ride each way.   This year, Rubin left her University Hills studio for a one-bedroom in Capitol Hill. She’s still paying $1,400 – but for a larger place in a central Denver neighborhood. “I’m really happy with the location,” she said.  Trees line the blocks. She’s close to museums, the botanic gardens and the zoo. She wakes up long before dawn for her 3 a.m. shift as a produce manager at King Soopers. But now she’s a short walk — not a two hour-long bus ride — away from her job. Like many other renters in Denver, Rubin has found ...
Read More
Downtown Denver’s 16th Street Mall still mostly empty despite taxpayer-funded revitalization
No Comments
Approved, kdvr.com, Local

Downtown Denver’s 16th Street Mall still mostly empty despite taxpayer-funded revitalization

By Carly Moore | Fox31 DENVER (KDVR) — According to a new annual report, the 16th Street Mall is still struggling to fill vacancies, and it’s also dealing with decreased foot traffic. This has been a spot that has struggled to keep businesses for several years, but as construction wraps up by the end of May, representatives at the Downtown Denver Partnership remain optimistic. The Downtown Denver Partnership said the retail vacancy rate is about 30%. Empty storefronts still line 16th Street Mall, and the vacancy rate is twice as much as the rest of downtown’s average of 15%. There are 45 spaces that are empty right now along the mall. “We’re working really closely with the City and County of Denver to provide incentives to provide things like facade and patio grant...
Read More
Trump prioritizes Venezuelan gang crackdown, while Colorado and other sanctuary states resist
No Comments
Approved, denvergazette.com, Local, National, State

Trump prioritizes Venezuelan gang crackdown, while Colorado and other sanctuary states resist

By Nicole C. Brambila | Denver Gazette As millions of immigrants fleeing the economic and political chaos in Venezuela used social media to navigate the journey north, Tren de Aragua (TdA) operatives embedded in their ranks and exploited these same platforms — particularly WhatsApp — to coordinate extortion, smuggling and violence. Venezuela’s economic and political chaos made the rise of an enterprising criminal organization like TdA almost inevitable, according to Ronna Rísquez, a Venezuelan journalist who's been investigating the gang. “The heads of the Tren de Aragua identified the massive and forced Venezuelan migration as a goldmine of business opportunities,” Rísquez wrote in her book, “El Tren de Aragua: La banda que revolucionó el crimen organizado en América Latina” (The...
Read More
Cole: Illegal driving, rising costs, and scarce patrols—welcome to Denver’s roads
No Comments
Approved, Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Cole: Illegal driving, rising costs, and scarce patrols—welcome to Denver’s roads

By Shaina Cole | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Each afternoon, my three-mile commute home in Denver’s metro area is a nerve-wrecking ordeal. Drivers speed through stop signs, ignore red lights, or stop inexplicably at unmarked intersections. Cars swerve across lanes, straddle the center line, or disrupt four-way stops.  Vehicles without plates, with expired tags, or overdue permits are all too common.  As a single-income earner with only liability insurance, I dread a crash with an uninsured driver.  One accident could destroy my car—my lifeline to work and rent.  Since 2020, Denver’s roads have descended into chaos. I believe the combination of unenforced traffic laws, a 25% rise in undocumented immigration, and soaring cost of living fuels this...
Read More
Gazette editorial board: Sanctuary policies cost Denver taxpayers—again
No Comments
Approved, denvergazette.com, Local, National

Gazette editorial board: Sanctuary policies cost Denver taxpayers—again

The Gazette editorial board | Denver Gazette Say what you will about the Trump administration, but give it credit for sparing U.S. taxpayers from bailing out cities whose sanctuary policies made them magnets for illegal immigration. The fact that Denver is among those cities isn’t Washington’s fault. It’s Mayor Mike Johnston’s. And the fact that Denver now likely won’t be reimbursed some or all of $32 million it had forced local taxpayers to pony up in welcoming the latest wave of illegal immigrants, as reported by The Gazette, is Johnston’s comeuppance. It’s also Denver taxpayers’ loss. The Mile High mayor who showboated before a congressional panel in Washington last March — and sanctimoniously pronounced, “… Denver made a choice as a city not to hate each other but to help e...
Read More
Denver vs. Aurora: Homelessness reports reveal two competing visions
No Comments
Approved, Local, State, Westword

Denver vs. Aurora: Homelessness reports reveal two competing visions

By Bennito Kelty | Westword The first state-funded homelessness report to look at the crisis across Colorado came out on Monday, April 28, with an estimate that nearly 53,000 people are experiencing homelessness statewide. The recommended solution sets it apart from another report published just a couple of weeks ago. "Homelessness ends with a home," The Colorado State of Homelessness Report 2024 urges in its call to action. "Every part of the homelessness response system — from street outreach to emergency shelter — must stay focused on connecting people to permanent housing as quickly as possible." Funded by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, the new report suggests that government agencies and nonprofits continue focusing on putting people in housing, s...
Read More
FEMA cuts $32 million from Denver’s immigrant shelter grants under Trump directive
No Comments
Approved, denvergazette.com, Local, National

FEMA cuts $32 million from Denver’s immigrant shelter grants under Trump directive

The Denver Gazette The Trump administration has terminated roughly $32 million in grant funding to Denver earmarked for the city's response to the illegal immigration crisis, saying such spending no longer aligns with the federal government's enforcement priorities.  "The Department, consistent with President Trump's direction, is focused on advancing the essential mission of enforcing immigration laws and securing the border," the letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.  "Consequently, grant programs that support, or have the potential to support, illegal immigration through funding illegal activities or support for illegal aliens that is not consistent with DHS's enforcement focus do not effectuate the agency's current priorities," the agency said. "T...
Read More
Cole: Denver’s dangerous dance with low cash bail and ICE detainer policies puts public safety at risk
No Comments
Approved, Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Cole: Denver’s dangerous dance with low cash bail and ICE detainer policies puts public safety at risk

By Shaina Cole | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Denver prides itself on progressive values and compassion for its diverse communities. But recent events have exposed a troubling reality: the city’s criminal justice policies—specifically low cash bail for serious felony offenses and short notification windows for ICE detainers—are creating a revolving door for dangerous criminals, putting our neighborhoods at risk.  The case of Bayron Turcios-Murillo, a confirmed Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang member, is a stark example of how these policies fail to protect the public while allowing violent offenders to slip through the cracks. On April 17, 2025, Bayron Turcios-Murillo was arrested in Denver for felony drug charges, allegedly possessing nearly 1,000 fentanyl pills and powde...
Read More
Treta: Denver’s broken permitting system is driving up housing costs—and it’s time to fix it
No Comments
Commentary, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Treta: Denver’s broken permitting system is driving up housing costs—and it’s time to fix it

By Robert Treta | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice I’ve been designing and building homes in Denver for 28 years. I pulled my first permit in 1997—for a small room addition on a house. It took one day. One. That kind of efficiency used to be the norm. Permitting was straightforward, business-friendly, and a basic example of how local government should work. But over the past two decades, I’ve watched the city’s permit approval process become increasingly bloated, inefficient, and damaging—not just to builders like me, but to every Denverite who rents or buys a home. This problem isn’t new. Denver’s permit delays became a real issue as far back as 2007, when the wait time for a standard permit grew to four months. Now, in 2024, the average wait time is 385 days. That’s more t...
Read More