by Lauri Dannemiller
Manager, City Of Denver
Parks and Recreation
With the ongoing popularity of
Washington Park and the unusually high visitation the park has received this
summer, I wanted to provide you with actions Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) has
taken to address concerns as we approach the Labor Day weekend.
In cooperation
with other City agencies, DPR has taken several proactive measures to prevent
many of the intrusions that occurred over the July 4 holiday in Washington
Park.
Denver Parks and Recreation has contracted
with the Denver Police Department to provide off-duty officers to patrol
Washington Park. The officers have been in the park when visitation is at its
peak. Denver Park Rangers’ hours at Washington Park have also been extended to
provide additional coverage. The Park Rangers have increased their contacts
with commercial groups and have been trained to be more proactive in working
with these groups to communicate what are allowable and non-allowable
activities.
DPR has added more portable restrooms to the
park in more locations and will temporarily add even more portable restrooms
for Labor Day weekend. Also, DPR has enlisted additional help from Denver
Public Works for parking enforcement around the park.
Event permits for Labor Day weekend were
issued only to outside groups who had already had permits in place more than 30
days in advance. The Washington Park Boathouse is hosting two wedding
receptions, one on Sat., Sept. 1, and one on Sun., Sept. 2. On Monday, Sept. 3,
the Park to Park 10-Mile Run starts at
7:30a.m. in City Park and goes through Washington Park
before concluding at All- City Stadium. Those are the only permitted events
scheduled for the park over the weekend. At this time, no picnic permits have
been issued for the park, but DPR may issue picnic permits for small groups if
requested.
We are very serious about providing a safe
and enjoyable atmosphere at beautiful Washington Park for visitors and
neighbors. We are also very serious about enforcing Denver’s park rules and
regulations. Since July 4, the increased vigilance at Washington Park has led
to more than 25 issued citations for alcohol, glass bottles, loose dogs,
narcotics and parking, as well as 10 evictions of kegs, 10 written warnings for
violations and too many verbal warnings to count.
All of this comes at a cost, and our
department is already operating on an extremely tight budget. We are able to
cover these temporary services from a limited 2012 contingency fund. In the
short-term, this level of service addresses the high level of activity we have
experienced in Washington Park on extra-busy weekends. A review of the
long-term strategies to address these matters will take place over the fall and
winter season and through the budgeting process for 2013.
As always, we welcome your feedback and
observations. Best wishes for a happy and peaceful Labor Day weekend. |
