In the spring of 2006, Mayor John Hickenlooper invited Denver residents to participate in Partnership Denver: Neighbors Building Solutions. A series of six community forums were held in March and April of 2006 to provide an opportunity to find solutions to neighborhood concerns by building partnerships with the City, neighborhoods, nonprofits and businesses.
Over 400 people from all corners of the city attended these meetings, and we thank you for your partnership. Participants used interactive key-pad technology to facilitate discussions and provide real-time data gathering and feedback, similar to the Denver Listens public feedback series in 2004. Mayor Hickenlooper, City Council members, and members of the Mayor’s Cabinet attended.
The Mayor’s Office analyzed the data from the six meetings to identify the common themes and best strategies for implementation. This effort included working with City Council, department managers and City staff to determine which proposed Partnership Denver strategies connected with existing City efforts and which necessitated the creation of a new solution team.
Two issues were expressed by citizens at every meeting: The need for youth mentoring and a comprehensive response to graffiti vandalism. We are grateful to the many volunteers and participants who have committed to building partnerships and lasting solutions on these issues.
- The Youth Mentoring Collaborative is a partnership of 15 mentoring organizations and eight resource partners and is funded by Denver Human Services. The Youth Mentoring Collaborative is sponsored by Bank of the West, Mile High United Way and the Denver Office of Strategic Partnerships. To get involved, call Mile High United Way’s 2-1-1 or go to www.metrovolunteers.org.
- On October 18, 2006, Mayor Hickenlooper convened a citywide summit on graffiti to provide City agencies and interested community members, businesses and nonprofit organizations a framework to examine how other cities are addressing graffiti and develop new strategies for Denver to more effectively abate graffiti damage, enforce graffiti ordinances, and prevent future vandalism. More than 200 people attended the summit, and scores were involved in the Mayor’s Graffiti Task Force. To read the comprehensive Task Force recommendations or to get involved, please visit www.denvergov.org/graffiti.
Please call Neighborhood Liaison Heather Barry at (720) 865-9103 for more information or ideas about how we can partner with you.