By Diana Helper

In Denver July is hot and dry,
Which is better than muggy
and sweaty and buggy.

Where we grew up. Back there, meetings did not go on all summer because it was too darn hot and sticky to think. Out here, we can think all the time (!) so there’s no vacation from earnest discussions to save the local world.

EXCEPTION: The Annual 10a.m. 4th of July Parade at Observatory Park! UP-ers gather to see hundreds of kids, decorated trikes, bikes, wagons, strollers, dogs, etc. traverse the one-block route over and over. And listen to the great VFW Band, enjoy the fire truck’s cool spray, and super-neighborliness. Maybe that’s a way to save the local world.

The INC Parks/Rec committee meets in UP at the Heritage Club at 6p.m. on July 17, to take on issues such as park use – by neighbors, businesses, dogs, noisy groups, drinkers, etc. Angela Casias and other Denver Parks & Rec (DPR) staff, and sometimes Parks/Rec Advisory Board (PRAB) members attend. Everyone’s welcome to come discuss and make recommendations to maintain and enhance this important natural part of our local world.

The Buchtel Blvd./Parkway Coalition (BBC) meets at the Heritage Club July 18 to continue its work to make this parkway a continuous, safe, attractive route for pedestrians, bikes, etc., from S. Colorado Blvd. to S. Logan and west through the Gates redevelopment to Platte Greenway. It’s a great connection to bus, light rail, schools, parks, businesses, and neighborhoods. You are all encouraged to attend, and contribute your ideas to this project. For more info please contact Mary Myers, 303-733-1786 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

The UP Community Council board meets August 7 at 7p.m. and Pres. Dana O’Connor sends out an e-mail update the first of each month. To get e-mails or to offer agenda items, please visit the UPCC website, upcc.us or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it To help with the annual UPCC Purple Pages (ads, editing, etc.) call Ellen Seymour at 303-759-2488 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Big bridge-work is going on in McWilliams Park – no, Dino isn’t getting new teeth ... it’s where the original bridge over Harvard Gulch is being replaced by a stronger, wider version, which will allow DPR work vehicles to use it. It’s to be completed in August. Also, thank Karen Coffey for being UP’s official Dragon/Dinosaur De-graffitizer. Don’t want the kiddies to see bad words and ask mommy what does that mean?

DPR would like some volunteers to work with the flower garden at Observatory Park. Last year there was a vegetable garden there that Linda Rundle and others took care of under a Grow Local program. They donated the crops to the food bank at the University Church of Christ on S. Monroe St. The bed is a bit shady, so flowers have returned. If you’d like to help there, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 303-733-4902, and we’ll try to work out a schedule. To work with Grow Local, contact growlocalcolorado.org. Neighborhood kids enjoy watching the garden’s progress.

A city crew Re-planted native grasses at Buchtel Centennial Park, made sure the irrigation system is all in order, and by golly it’s getting green. Bring the kids by to watch it grow, and teach them to use a sundial (and read Henry A. Buchtel’s fine words on the plaque).

UP School playground is being redone this summer. UP’s Stephanie Montague tells us that many new trees will be planted as part of this project. Some older trees were removed, but clearly there is great benefit for the future. There was useful study and discussion with experts, to allay the fears that beset UP tree-lovers when any tree seems in trouble.

The June band concert-and-picnic at Observatory Park was an UP-beat success.  Some folks who were visiting wrote extolling UPCC’s great free neighborhood gathering. (UPCC, with 125 years’ experience, gladly shares info on how-it-does what it does ... events, zoning, planning, parks, traffic, news, sidewalks, parking, safety, history, membership, new technology and old-fashioned neighborliness.)

Summertime – and work goes on! But parties also may go on – into the night. If a party is too loud too late, we are all urged to call the police non-emergency number: 720-913-2000. If it’s at a rental property, you might call the landlord next day, as well. Here’s to a peaceful summer!

If you have news or views of UP, please contact Diana Helper, 303-733-4902 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it