Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home page
Briefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.
There is a myriad of issues that need attention to address the most urgent issue, quality of life and the vitality of the City of Denver. There are many tools that have been utilized to address the unhoused, safety, infrastructure, and economic challenges. The most effective tool is a comprehensive plan for land use which encourages prosperity and viability for the places that the citizens of Denver want to live, work and enjoy.
What should Denver leaders do to address the city’s lack of affordable housing?
There has been a significant amount of people and monetary resources committed to this issue. The core issues and causes for the economic disparity between the “haves and the have-nots” have not been adequately addressed — access to opportunity and sensitivity to the impact of policy decisions made by the city is a start. There should be a positive for providing affordable housing, not a penalty.
Do you support redevelopment at the Park Hill golf course property? Why or why not?
There have been a number of good arguments on each side of this debate. I, in concert with the feedback I received from my council district, voted against the redevelopment at this time. There are many issues – legal and otherwise – that need to be untangled and explained before we move forward with any redevelopment. This cannot be decided ultimately by either side with a war of sound bites.
What should Denver leaders do to revitalize downtown Denver?
Create a greater vibrancy and a sense of place. The revitalization of the 16th Street Mall is a great start and we should look at engaging the pedestrian realm on 14th, 15th, and 17th as well. We also need to look at adaptive reuse of structures within downtown.
What is Denver’s greatest public safety concern and what should be done about it?
The living conditions of the unhoused are of great concern on a personal level. The argument that allowing individuals to camp wherever is inhumane – the ripple effect on the entire community has been contrary to the premise that all deserve safe shelter and a healthful environment in which to thrive. It has perpetuated a culture of despair.
Should neighborhoods help absorb population growth through permissive zoning, or do you favor protections for single-family neighborhoods?
We are not faced with an either-or proposition. I will reiterate that through comprehensive planning and zoning a wide range of city challenges can be addressed – single-family neighborhoods and sufficient density and options to make the city a vibrant community.
Should the city’s policy of sweeping homeless encampments continue unchanged? Why or why not?
No policy is absolutely pure of unintended consequences but the current conditions of the encampments are deplorable and not healthy or safe. We need more housing models that offer wrap-around services and housing such as the Social Impact model Denver passed in 2016.
Should Denver change its snow plowing policy? Why or why not.
As a lifelong resident, I have witnessed the challenges that the weather has brought upon the delivery of city services. The number one goal should be responsiveness to current weather conditions, which ensures safe passage for the most utilized roadways citywide.
What’s your vision for Denver in 20 years, and what would you do to help the city get there?
Denver has become the “it” place due to its attention to creating an active center city. Denver has also created an environment where those who want to build and grow can do so and are encouraged to follow their dreams. Denver has hit a plateau or maybe even stumbled a bit as the challenges of becoming that place have been exacerbated due to COVID and economic challenges nationwide. We must engage with our comprehensive planning with that lens — not only what is happening now but what that impact has on our future. Plan, provide the blueprint and a guide with the flexibility to reach the vision of a great city.
How better can city officials protect Denver’s environment — air quality, water supply, ground contamination? And should the city take a more active role in transit?
There is a wide range of environmental issues that we face, due to our geographical location and population base. The federal and state government in conjunction with Denver are all responsible for creating a sustainable environment. By working closely with RTD, Denver Water, and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment a collaborative and complementary effort can be employed to monitor, protect and alleviate the impacts caused by our human footprint. The City of Denver should encourage and lead that effort of collaboration. Once again, comprehensive planning which creates and supports sustainable communities.
Briefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.
The city has become unaffordable for too many individuals and families who helped build it. We lose neighbors and community anchors every day to being priced out with nowhere close to land, outside of being criminalized when we find ourselves unhoused. We need to stabilize housing costs, increase housing access and development for the most vulnerable in our communities, end rampant displacement, and support our neighbors in maintaining the homes they have, sometimes for generations.
What should Denver leaders do to address the city’s lack of affordable housing?
We need to make sure that we are developing, rezoning, and maintaining housing in thoughtful ways that deter displacement, restrict local growth caps, and ensure affordability. We need to increase the rights of renters, protect against unjust evictions, and support the repeal of the rent control ban so that communities can stabilize rents and give back access to working class, poor, and middle income individuals and families to live in the communities we work in. We need to stop criminalizing our neighbors who are unhoused, and instead prioritize getting them the supports they need in ways they direct.
Do you support redevelopment at the Park Hill golf course property? Why or why not?
I do not support the current plan for Westside to develop the Park Hill Golf Course. I believe that all development should be community driven, and the development plan has not included the community voice necessary to ensure that development is done in the way that is most supportive of the residents of Park Hill. The people who have built the Park Hill neighborhood, and specifically Northeast Park Hill, should be the ones who determine what their neighborhood needs, not politicians, and certainly not developers.
What should Denver leaders do to revitalize downtown Denver?
End the camping ban, end the sweeps, and instead invest in social supports that create access to housing and services that are developed by the individuals most impacted. If we want to revitalize downtown Denver, we need to ensure economic stability for all residents, not just those who can afford a roof over their heads, and transportation to move about the city.
What is Denver’s greatest public safety concern and what should be done about it?
Denver has invested millions of dollars into systems that are data proven to stagnate, and sometimes worsen public safety. Crime increases are directly correlated to wealth gaps and lack of access to basic needs. Denver needs to prioritize funding of mental and behavioral health services, housing first, thriving wages, healthcare and food access, substance use supports and treatment without stigma or justice involvement, and free, equitable, and accessible childcare and education.
Should neighborhoods help absorb population growth through permissive zoning, or do you favor protections for single-family neighborhoods?
Yes. We need to increase housing inventory, and one of the only ways to do that reasonably and without significant detrimental impact to climate change, is through permissive zoning. Population growth and lack of housing access are realities for Denver, and rezoning single family neighborhoods is a necessary solution to combat the housing crisis. We do need to make sure we do it in the right way though, to avoid displacement and ensure affordability, rather than exacerbating the already untenable problem.
Should the city’s policy of sweeping homeless encampments continue unchanged? Why or why not?
Absolutely not. The fact that we criminalize individuals and families based on their economic situation is already reprehensible, but the reality that we then remove personal belongings, leaving our neighbors without homes with literally nothing, is despicable and violent. We should be using those funds to create access to affordable, accessible, integrated housing. Not taking things that keep people warm, keep them mobile, keep them healthy, keep them clothed, and ultimately keep them alive.
Should Denver change its snow plowing policy? Why or why not.
Denver needs to change its snow plowing policy. Climate, population, and traffic have all changed dramatically, and city policies need to be looked and updated accordingly on a regular basis to ensure they are meeting community needs.
What’s your vision for Denver in 20 years, and what would you do to help the city get there?
I envision a thriving city where people have agency over their lives in a way that still ensures their basic needs are always met. I envision a thriving economy where every individual and family can be housed, fed, educated, and employed while accessing healthcare, transportation, and everything our amazing city and state have to offer without wondering which bill they can afford to pay month to month.
How better can city officials protect Denver’s environment — air quality, water supply, ground contamination? And should the city take a more active role in transit?
City officials should be looking at environmental impact in every project the city funds and approves. Environmental justice is a human rights issue, and the city has spent too long prioritizing development over the health of communities for too long. Development should never come at the cost of human life, and low-income communities, predominantly communities of color, have suffered at the hands of development for too long. The city should absolutely take a more active role in transit. Public transportation is a necessity for so many of our neighbors, and the financial, geographic, and physical accessibility of RTD is just not good enough.
Candidates are ordered alphabetically by last name.
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