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Denver, CO. No More BIDs Privatizing Public Space!! Tell City Council to vote NO

June 25, 2021 by Jonathan Leave a Comment

No More BIDs Privatizing Public Space!! 
Tell City Council to vote NO on renewing the Downtown BID Contract

On Monday June 28th Denver City Council will be voting on the renewal of the contract with the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District. 

Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) take public funds and public space and privatize it. BIDs were set up for private businesses to control public space and they continue to do so. This private-public partnership gives the BID the ability to use city money for their private priorities, use private security to police public space, and use public money to lobby for policies they choose. 

The Downtown Denver BID, specifically, is the most powerful and most harmful BID in Denver. The Downtown Denver BID consists of 420 property owners and 877 properties that span across its 120-block district, which includes the 16th Street Mall, the Colorado Convention Center, and Performing Arts Complex. The leadership of the board consists of mayoral appointees who are owners of commercial property within the Downtown Denver BID boundary. (As you may imagine, almost all white men.)

 

The Downtown BID spends the largest chunk of their budget on security to police homeless or ‘unwanted’ people out of the area. For example, over a five-month period in 2019, the Downtown Denver BID security program reported responding to the following types of incidents: 2,130 sit and lie, 1,847 trespass, 721 unauthorized camping, and 2,285 “welfare” checks. (‘Welfare check’ usually means they don’t really have a law to use against the person, but they need some excuse to stop and harass them). All of these 6,983 security contacts in 5 months were regarding people existing in public. 

The Downtown BID also spends a large chunk of their budget on policy advocacy (though sometimes cloaked under Downtown Partnership which they are contracted together with). In total, the Partnership has donated $254,900 in municipal elections and $161,00 in statewide elections. The Partnership contributed $200,000 to the Together Denver campaign, a committee

registered in opposition of the Right to Survive. The Downtown Denver Partnership boasts publicly of their successful advocacy for the Breathe Easy Ordinance, Urban Camping Ban, Sit/Lie Ban, and various ballot initiatives including opposition to the Right to Rest initiative. It was the Downtown BID that approached Councilman Brooks in 2011 about proposing the Urban Camping Ban.  

We can not keep handing over public space to private entities – especially not private entities with no democratic processes, no accountability, no interest in protecting racial equity, and absolutely no interest in seeing homeless people. 

Tell City Council to vote no on this contract renewal and to read more about BIDs on the WRAP website.  

Short Info on BIDs

https://wraphome.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/BID-Policing-Factsheet_FINAL.pdf 

https://wraphome.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/BIDsTerrorizehandout.jpg 

https://wraphome.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/June-5th-Report-June-3-2019.pdf 


Sign Up to Speak! Friday starts at noon… See details below…


What
: General Public Comment

When: Meets Mondays at 5-5:30pm

Where: Virtually at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/

Password: Denver

To call in to listen: 720-928-9299 enter 960 0657 7923 for the webinar ID. 

How: Starting at 12 p.m. on the Friday before the next scheduled general public comment session, sign up

  • Online by clicking the button at the top of the page https://www.denvergov.org/Government/Departments/
    Denver-City-Council/Public-Input/General-Public-Comment
     
  • By calling 720-337-2000

Topics are required, so include them in all emails and voicemails, or your submission will be considered void.

Sign-up closes at 4 p.m. the day of the general public comment session.

 

Contact
Denver Homeless Out Loud
info@denverhomelessoutloud.org
720-940-5291

Filed Under: #right2rest, #StopTheSweeps, Actions, Denver Homeless Out Loud, Direct Actions, WRAP Members

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Community spirit and perspective and a cool organi Community spirit and perspective and a cool organizing training!
With sweeps and fascist policing/immigration tactics ramping up all over the country, we must make sure our initiatives to fight them are informed by, come from and are supported by the people who are directly impacted!!! Street outreach is how we do this!
https://conta.cc/46GwXKG
Join WRAP on Tuesday, July 22 on zoom at 3pm pt | Join WRAP on Tuesday, July 22 on zoom at 3pm pt | 4 pm mt | 6 pm et for a training on the different methodologies, context and implementation of street outreach! There will be examples from WRAP members who represent organizations in different states who have been fighting back against criminalization and sweeps in their communities.
Accountable organizing through street outreach! 

With sweeps and fascist policing/immigration tactics ramping up all over the country, we must make sure our initiatives to fight them are informed by, come from and are supported by the people who are directly impacted!!! 

Street outreach is how we do this! 

📣 WRAP : STREET OUTREACH TRAINING 
🗓️ Tuesday, July 22 | 🕒 3pm PT | 4pm MT | 6pm ET
🎟️ RSVP : bit.ly/wrapoutreach 
✉️ Contact joemae@wraphome.org for any questions

Read More: https://conta.cc/3ZXkCxS
Last year, on April 22nd, I stood with over 700 pe Last year, on April 22nd, I stood with over 700 people from around the country in front of the US Supreme Court demanding that the court focus on proven solutions to homelessness like housing, and not on things like handcuffs and jails that make homelessness worse. Months later, SCOTUS shamefully decided that homeless people are not included in the Constitution’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment and could be ticketed or arrested for simply sleeping outside. https://conta.cc/44m9rjl
The city continues to sneak in their sweeps of our The city continues to sneak in their sweeps of our friends and neighbors to nowhere. They sneak their sweeps in and hope those that care and give a sh&! against this violence won’t show up. We will do all we can to challenge this and won’t let the city block us from the community care they are afraid of.

Join us for a virtual gathering to learn how to show up, how to build community care. July 10th from 7-8:30pm. DM us for more info.

#sweepskill #fucksweeps #stopthesweeps #stoptheharrellhorrorshow #communitycare #showup
🏠Housing is a human right, and it is about time 🏠Housing is a human right, and it is about time our communities actually accept this!

On June 28th 2024, Grants Pass v Johnson was overturned (a case that had required cities to not criminalize the unhoused if adequate shelter was not provided by the city). On June 28th from 10am-12pm, we are asking our community to gather on the Missoula Courthouse lawn to show our city that we don’t support the ways they are criminalizing unhoused Missoulians. 📣

After the rally, from 12-2pm we will hear from various local organizations that are impacted and addressing this issue in our community. 🫂 From those working in the legal system to renters to mutual aid groups, our entire community is impacted by the overturning of Grants Pass v Johnson, the closure of the Johnson Street shelter, and the criminalization of unhoused Missoulians. Municipal elections are coming up this year and it is critical that we show city council where our priorities lie.
The Sovereign Roses Virtual Alumni Chapter invites The Sovereign Roses Virtual Alumni Chapter invites you to WRAP with the Roses! Learn more about the Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP) and a potential Project I.M.P.A.C.T area we’re exploring. WRAP is dedicated to ending homelessness and poverty by uplifting the voices of those directly impacted and advocating for systemic change rooted in justice and equity.
Discover why WEE believe that partnering with WRAP is a powerful step toward making a real, sustainable difference in our communities.

📅 Date: June 30

🕔 Time: 5:52 PM CST

📍 Zoom:
Meeting ID: 98812438845
Code: 567524

🌐 Learn more about WRAP: www.wraphome.org (http://www.wraphome.org/)

Together, we can push for change, challenge injustice, and build impact that lasts. Don’t miss this opportunity to get informed and get involved!

#GammaSigmaSigma #ServiceSorority #SRVAC #WRAP #Projectimpact #GSS #SFE #ServiceFriendshipEquailty
June 28th marks the One Year Anniversary of the Su June 28th marks the One Year Anniversary of the Supreme Court making it illegal to be homeless. Join me in the fight to push back! Helen Cruz
June 28 4-7pm | Echo Park Lake, LA for more inform June 28 4-7pm | Echo Park Lake, LA
for more information: @lacanetwork_official
Instagram post 18073374346940611 Instagram post 18073374346940611
City Council Vote on Salvation Army Shelter Contra City Council Vote on Salvation Army Shelter Contract TODAY Monday 

The City Council is set to vote on renewing the Salvation Army’s contract to run Crossroads shelter today (Monday), and then set to discuss renewing their contract to run the Doubletree on Wednesday. 

Read More: https://wraphome.org/2025/06/16/denver-co-city-council-vote-on-salvation-army-shelter-contract-today-monday/
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Community spirit and perspective and a cool organizing training

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Email from Western Regional Advocacy Project With sweeps and fascist policing/immigration tactics ramping up... Hey everybody!  With swee...
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