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Tag: lower downtown

  • Jury weighs former Denver cop’s liability for wounding 6 bystanders in LoDo shooting

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    After more than three years of painful recovery and an eight-day jury trial, six bystanders wounded during a 2022 police shooting in downtown Denver are hoping for some relief.

    “They were worried about the little things, like getting nervous around girls,” the plaintiffs’ attorney Omeed Azmoudeh told jurors in Denver District Court on Thursday during closing arguments in the civil case. “And then, in a moment: bang, bang, bang, bang.”

    In the early hours of July 17, 2022, the lively night atmosphere in Lower Downtown was shattered by gunshots as three Denver Police Department officers fired on 23-year-old Jordan Waddy, who they suspected had been involved in a fight near the Larimer Beer Hall.

    The officers — Brandon Ramos, Kenneth Rowland and Megan Lieberson — shot Waddy as he pulled out a gun hidden in his waistband. While Rowland and Lieberson shot the man from the front, Ramos fired from the side, toward the crowd behind Waddy.

    By the time Ramos fired, Waddy had already been shot by other officers and fallen to the ground, Azmoudeh said.

    Six bystanders in the crowd were injured that night, either by bullets or flying shrapnel, Azmoudeh said. Ramos’ “reckless and unreasonable” conduct constitutes battery on all six victims, he added.

    “(Ramos) can’t be the first and only person to shoot into a crowd and then say it was his only option,” Azmoudeh said, dismissing the officer’s self-defense claim. He said Ramos and his defense have talked about the community as “collateral to routine police work.”

    Peter Doherty, Ramos’ attorney, said during Thursday’s closing arguments that the now-former Denver police officer was trying to nip the threat of an active shooter in the bud.

    Police tried to direct Waddy back into the open street, away from the crowd, but he didn’t listen and reached for his weapon, Doherty said. Ramos, who he said routinely dealt with shootings and weapons-related violence in the area, decided Waddy “wouldn’t give up” and would likely escalate the situation.

    “The reasonableness of a particular use of force must be judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight,” Doherty said, referencing a 1968 U.S. Supreme Court decision.

    He said the entire trial has evaluated Ramos’s actions through that hindsight, with no allowances for the danger or high-stress situation.

    The victims suffered “egregious” injuries and went through an event that they shouldn’t have had to endure, but that doesn’t make Ramos responsible, Doherty said.

    From left to right shooting victims Willis Small IV, Bailey Alexander and Yekalo Weldewihet speak at Rathod Mohamedbhai law firm on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. A grand jury indicted officer Brandon Ramos on 14 counts stemming from the shooting in 2022 in which he and fellow officers fired at a man in the crowded LoDo neighborhood, injuring bystanders. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

    Both sides disagreed on the number of bullets Ramos shot and when he fired.

    The plaintiffs’ attorney said Ramos fired twice, pointing to two bullets found away from the main crime scene that are believed to have injured the six bystanders. The bullets tore through multiple people and ricocheted off nearby objects, sending shrapnel into the crowd, before settling on the pavement, Azmoudeh said.

    But Doherty told jurors the evidence could only prove Ramos fired once, and it wasn’t clear from the body camera video where he was aiming.

    While investigators recovered eight bullets, they only found seven shell casings at the scene, Doherty said. Nearby cameras also captured seven audio pulses and a total of seven rounds were missing from the officers’ weapons.

    Ramos’s gun magazine was equipped to fit an extra bullet, and any of the shots fired could have masked the sound of the eighth shot, since all rounds were fired in less than two seconds, Azmoudeh said.

    Doherty dismissed both explanations as speculation.

    “The defendants do not have a unifying theory as to what happened, but that’s not our burden to prove,” Doherty said. “…We’re not trying to throw smoke and mirrors, we’re just saying the evidence is missing.”

    The civil trial follows a criminal prosecution of Ramos by the Denver District Attorney’s Office.

    A grand jury indicted Ramos on 14 criminal counts in January 2023, including second-degree assault, third-degree assault, prohibited use of a weapon and reckless endangerment.

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  • Denver City Council makes room for new skyscrapers around Nuggets, Avs arena

    Denver City Council makes room for new skyscrapers around Nuggets, Avs arena

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    The Denver City Council on Monday cleared the way for Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche owner Stan Kroenke to build new skyscrapers on the expanse of parking lots around Ball Arena where those teams play.

    They also ensured the teams will stay on Kroenke-owned land in central Denver for another quarter century.

    The ability to construct buildings as tall as 30 or 40 stories around the arena is a critical component of plans to greatly expand downtown Denver. That density will provide room for up to 6,000 new apartments and condos in a city desperate for more housing, according to Matt Mahoney, senior vice president for development at Kroenke Sports and Entertainment.

    “We are committed to downtown. Our company offices downtown. Our teams win championships downtown,” Mahoney told council members Monday night. “Our plan is a pedestrian-focused development, placing a priority on open space and people, not cars.”

    View protections pierced

    The first in a series of six bills related to the future of the 70-acre Ball property that the council voted on Monday amended the city code to provide an exemption to the Old City Hall view plane.

    That view plane is essentially an invisible triangle the caps building heights on the properties that fall within it. It’s a legal mechanism to protect westward views from a specific point on the ground at the intersection of 14th and Larimer streets where the city’s original city hall once stood.

    City planning and legal staff informed council members that the view plane is already largely defunct. The Auraria Higher Education Center campus buildings along Speer Boulevard — built by a state agency exempt from city rules — have already blocked it out.

    That was reason enough for some council members to vote for the exemption Kroenke and company were seeking even if they had concerns about the broader impact on mountain views.

    “I’ve come to the conclusion that I am going to vote yes on this exemption … because of the fact that this view plane no longer exists,” Councilman Kevin Flynn said. “I would have actually preferred the (Community Planning and Development) had come to us and just said repeal this view plane.”

    Flynn voted with the majority in a 10-1 decision to allow properties with a specialized zoning to pierce the plane.

    The council also approved rezoning the arena property. The land was already zoned for buildings as tall as eight stories in places, according to city planning staff, but the specialty zoning that the council unanimously signed off on Monday allows for buildings that are much taller in exchange for the inclusion of more affordable housing on site.

    While the view plane vote allows Kroenke Sports and Entertainment and its namesake billionaire owner to move closer to its goals, some neighbors from the Lower Downtown neighborhood had their hopes of preserving their largely unobstructed views of the Rocky Mountains dashed.

    Casey Pitinga was among the residents of the Larimer Place condo tower at 1551 Larimer St. that urged council members to vote no on the view plane changes. She argued that it was not just her building that would be impacted by the appearance of new skyscrapers west of downtown. Businesses that tout rooftop views — including the recently expanded Colorado Convention Center which added a terrace as part of its $233 million expansion completed last year — could also be hurt, she said.

    “Most importantly, the unique beauty of Denver will be compromised forever,” Pitinga said.

    Amanda Sawyer was the one council member who sided with those neighbors. She noted that residents of her eastern Denver district benefit from a view plane that protects westward views from Cranmer Park.

    “It’s not a precedent I am willing to set,” she said of amending those legal protections even for a development she acknowledged may be something that could benefit the city.

    Benefit agreements inked with community group and the city

    An overwhelming majority of speakers who testified during a public hearing covering the rezoning spoke in favor of allowing dense development on the land and the new housing that it is expected to bring.

    “It’s exactly the type of project we need as a city,” Denver resident Matthew Larsen said. “It’s dense. It’s infill development. We need projects like this to meet our greenhouse gas goals in the state.”

    KSE last week signed a detailed community benefits agreement with a committee representing nearby neighborhoods and community organizations. That agreement, which was created with support from city leaders but independent of the authority of the city, includes a bundle of specific obligations that KSE must fulfill.

    Those include dedicating $3 million to programs, internships, and scholarships for young people who are from surrounding neighborhoods, are Indigenous or are from families that were displaced from the historic Auraria neighborhood that is now home to the arena and the neighboring higher education campus.

    La Alma-Lincoln Park resident Simon Tafoya co-chaired the committee that brokered that deal with KSE. In comments Monday night, he delved into some of the specifics including a guranteed that 50 housing units built in the forthcoming neighborhood will be reserved for people making 30% of the area median income. That’s $27,000 per year for a single person and $39,100 for a family of four.

    Councilwoman Jamie Torres is a descendant of people displaced from the Auraria neighborhood. She noted how important that agreement was to her constituents and her comfortability in supporting the package of bills.

    “The city did not dipalce 900 residents in the 1970s for us to build a shiny neighborhood that was inaccessible to them,” she said. “I could not be a part of something like that.”

    The council also approved a bill cementing the city’s own development agreement with KSE.

    That sets requirements including mandating that 18% of all new housing built on the Ball lots been reserved as income-restricted affordable housing. That figure exceeds the city’s existing affordable housing requirements by at least 3% and could result in 1,080 new units of affordable housing, according to city planners and KSE officials.

    The city ensured the agreement mandates that the affordable units be spread across the property instead of concentrated in one area, according to senior city planner Tony Lechuga.

    Property tax plan leaves some council members uneasy

    The council approved three other measures related to Kroenke’s ball arena plans before calling it a night on Monday.

    The very last of those bills amend an existing arena agreement between the city and KSE tying the Nuggets and Avalanche to the property until 2050.

    The chamber, largely filled with KSE staff members as the final was cast after 10 p.m., enrupted in applause when that passed unanimously.

    Another bill approved at the meeting extended the timelines for a development agreement governing the neighboring River Mile property, also owned in part by Kroenke. That agreement also now runs until the middle of 2050, matching with the Ball Arena timeline.

    The city agreed to vesting language that provides some zoning certainly for both properties for the next 26 years. Manhoney emphasized that KSE is approaching the combined 130 acres as one interconnected neighborhood.

    He acknowledged that Elitch Gardens Theme and Water Park will be moved as part of the company’s long-term development plans though a landing place for the park has not yet been determined.

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    Joe Rubino

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  • Denver food truck owner says she never returned to LoDo after first ban was put in place two years ago

    Denver food truck owner says she never returned to LoDo after first ban was put in place two years ago

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    DENVER — Around two years after Denver police banned late-night weekend food trucks in Denver’s Lower Downtown in response to a shooting in which 6 bystanders were injured by gunfire from officers, a similar ban is back as police tries to yet again curb crime in the area.

    Here’s who you’ll hear from for this story:

    • Leilani Johnson, owner of RJ’s Tacowich, a food truck owner, who stopped doing business in LoDo after the first ban in the area back in 2022.

    Why we’re bringing you this story: Denver7 continues its commitment to hold your public officials accountable by bringing you the voices of people affected by decisions made by the city. For this story, we bring you the perspective of a food truck owner who had to look elsewhere to sustain their business after DPD banned food trucks in the area, and why they said bans won’t address the underlying issue of safety.

    Owner of RJ’s Tacowich Leilani Johnson said after the first ban was put in place, she never went back to LoDo because it was so detrimental to her business. Instead, she found new places to operate.

    “To see it again to the people who are working so hard… what are you doing about the actual problem?” asked Johnson in response to the latest food truck ban, announced by Denver police last week.

    Between the hours of 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. Fridays through Sundays, food trucks aren’t allowed in the highly-trafficked area on Blake, Market or Larimer Streets between 18th and 21 streets, as well as 21st St. between Market and Larimer.

    They are only allowed in a new designated zone.

    Click on the video below to see which areas will be affected by the new food truck ban:

    Here’s where DPD is banning food trucks in LoDo starting Sept. 6, 2024

    DPD officials said the goal is to reduce the number of fights and incidents that occur after bars and clubs let out, which they said could lead to gun violence.

    Denver7 requested an interview with someone from the police department to find out how crime is trending in that area, but a spokesperson only referred us to their Crime Map and other dashboards.

    DPD’s Crime Map only offers the last six months of data and shows as few as two violent crimes in a four-week period in that area and a maximum of seven in that same time frame.

    “There is a lack of accountability,” said Johnson.

    While Johnson has taken her business elsewhere, she believes food truck operators like herself are being unfairly targeted.

    “The actual problem is that people are going and being over-served,” said Johnson.

    She wants law enforcement to consider other factors that might be to blame, rather than punishing small businesses.

    “How much enforcement is present? How much lighting is available?” asked Johnson.

    Coloradans making a difference | Denver7 featured videos

    Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what’s right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.

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  • Where are Denver’s worst parking lots? Here are the city’s biggest offenders — and a few in the suburbs, too.

    Where are Denver’s worst parking lots? Here are the city’s biggest offenders — and a few in the suburbs, too.

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    Too few parking spaces, lengthy queues for open spots, cramped designs that can’t handle crowds — Denver-area drivers brace themselves for headaches when they try to navigate the most stress-inducing parking lots in the city and beyond.

    The Denver Post went searching for the worst parking lots in metro Denver, with help from more than 100 people who weighed in with their opinions in an informal survey on social media platforms X and Facebook. Within Denver’s city limits, older central neighborhoods like Capitol Hill — where space is at a premium — host parking lots that received an onslaught of criticism.

    But that doesn’t mean suburban communities are immune to precarious parking set-ups.

    Poor parking lot experiences can affect drivers’ loyalty to a business, one expert says. Consumers are constantly forming judgments about brands, so “parking is one of the critical elements for brands to get right,” said Brent Coker, a marketing lecturer at the University of Melbourne.

    “Everything that happens to a consumer informs their attitude, which defines their future behavior,” including purchase decisions made minutes later, the Australian said. “If the carpark sucks, then yeah — that’s gonna give someone a negative attitude.”

    Here are the parking lots that stand out the most in Denver:

    1. Trader Joe’s urban locations

    Grocery store chain Trader Joe’s has two Denver locations in older neighborhoods, with small lots that challenge drivers in Capitol Hill on Logan Street and in Hale on Colorado Boulevard.

    “It’s no secret that Trader Joe’s parking lots are a nightmare,” said customer Rob Toftness, 42. “You add in their tight quarters with drivers’ inability to behave like adults, and you have a difficult recipe.”

    On a rainy Monday afternoon, shoppers weren’t deterred from completing their errands at the Capitol Hill store. They stepped in front of cars waiting for openings in the lot. Drivers tried to squeeze into narrow spots, parking haphazardly before darting into the store themselves.

    Four cars were queued in the left lane on Logan Street, turn signals blinking as they waited to enter.

    However, for cyclists and pedestrians, the store is a breeze to navigate. Toftness, a Five Points resident, opts to ride his bike along the 7th Avenue bikeway, then locks it at the bike rack while he shops.

    In an episode of the company’s podcast, Inside Trader Joe’s, co-host Matt Sloan said, “We don’t open stores with the world’s most ridiculous parking lot on purpose.” The size of a Trader Joe’s lot is based on the store’s square footage, with the chain’s locations often smaller than the average grocery store, especially when they’re squeezed into older neighborhoods.

    “Stores of a more recent vintage — more recently open stores — have larger parking lots when we can get them,” Sloan added.

    Trader Joe’s spokesperson Nakia Rohde declined to respond further.

    A shopper exits a King Soopers grocery store on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024, in Capitol Hill in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

    2. King Soopers in Capitol Hill

    The King Soopers grocery store on East Ninth Avenue leaves local customers lamenting the amount of time it can take to secure a parking spot in the main lot.

    Those who choose to park in the overflow lot are also inconvenienced, as the anti-theft wheel locks on shopping carts engage at the edges of the main lot, forcing patrons to carry their groceries across a busy street. Nine cars idled in the parking lot on a Monday afternoon, as drivers tried to park or back out of spots.

    Kara King, 33, said she’s never secured a parking spot on her first go-round.

    “You constantly have to circle the lot, waiting for one to open up,” the Speer neighborhood resident said. “Otherwise, your option is to park on the street and haul your groceries to your car.”

    King Soopers spokesperson Jessica Trowbridge didn’t respond to requests for comment.

    3. Whole Foods Market in Cherry Creek

    At the Whole Foods Market on East First Avenue in Cherry Creek, customers’ criticisms are largely directed at its lot design.

    “Whole Foods in Cherry Creek is awful,” said customer Krista Chism, 48. “All the spaces are designed for compact cars.”

    She called the lanes “too narrow,” which heightens the risk of hitting another vehicle parked behind her car while reversing. When she visits, “I seriously weigh the cost of paying to park against the possible cost of someone hitting my car,” the Park Hill resident said.

    This Whole Foods location has long been notorious, with Westword referring to it in 2011 as “singularly the worst parking lot in the city.”

    The Whole Foods media team didn’t respond to a request for comment.

    4. Denver Botanic Gardens

    Visiting the Denver Botanic Gardens often comes with parking difficulties on busy weekends, despite a dedicated parking garage. The gardens are most heavily trafficked by guests during events, including Blossoms of Light, Glow at the Gardens, the Spring Plant Sale and the Summer Concert Series, said Erin Bird, associate director of communications. Popular times for visitors also include warm, sunny weekends and Scientific and Cultural Facilities District free days.

    Bird said representatives understood visitors’ parking frustrations and urged guests to take extra time to secure parking in either the garage or the surrounding neighborhood.

    “The Gardens’ multi-level parking structure was designed to maximize the limited space we have due to our location that borders city parks in an established residential neighborhood,” she said. “Timed entry has eased some of the parking strain.”

    Denver's flagship REI store on the ...
    Denver’s flagship REI store on the South Platte River, pictured on Sept. 11, 2012, has a front surface lot (shown), an underground garage and auxiliary lots. (Photo by John Leyba/The Denver Post)

    5. REI Co-op’s flagship store

    The REI Co-Op Denver flagship store on Platte Street near downtown is the source of consistent parking gripes, including tight spaces, incidents of bike theft and the price to pay to park for lengthy shopping trips (after a 90-minute grace period).

    Patrons say the outdoor co-op attracts the most crowds during the weekend, but that doesn’t mean its ground-level parking areas don’t fill up at times during the week, too. On a recent Wednesday evening, the metered street parking was also mostly occupied as a few customers dashed across the busy street to the former Denver Tramway Powerhouse building that now houses the retail chain.

    The REI store earns 4.5 out of 5 stars on Google reviews, but at least 20 one-star reviews mention parking troubles. The designs of one surface parking lot and the underground garage are noted as cramped. One reviewer wrote: “The store itself really is great. But PLEASE fix the parking.”

    The REI media team didn’t respond to a request for comment.

    What about the suburbs?

    Outside of Denver, plenty of parking lots throughout the metro area give shoppers and visitors grief, too. Here are some notable ones:

    Costco: The warehouse club chain’s locations in Lone Tree, on Park Meadows Center Drive, and in Arvada, on Wadsworth Boulevard, draw particular complaints about parking lots that rattle the nerves. Costco stores face guff elsewhere, too: On Reddit, a thread asking the question “What’s your Costco’s parking lot situation?” has garnered hundreds of responses. Objections include waiting for spots during busy shopping hours and aggression in parking lots, such as honking, cursing and even car accidents. The Costco media team didn’t respond to a request for comment.

    Construction workers pour concrete in the upper parking lot at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre on Feb. 6, 2024, in Morrison. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)
    Construction workers pour concrete in the upper parking lot at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre on Feb. 6, 2024, in Morrison. (Photo by Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post)

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    Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton

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