Denver, CO
City Park’s new Nature Play project is finally moving toward completion
Visitors to City Park will soon be able to explore the long-awaited, $7.9 million playground that simulates the box canyons, beaver dams and other wild features of Colorado.
The Nature Play project, which is scheduled to open later this year, has been a construction fence fixture at the park ever since it broke ground in January 2023 — 20 months ago.
Project leaders at the time said it would open in late 2024, but about eight months ago, a Denver Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS) staffer mistakenly shared a notice saying it would be open this summer, prompting DMNS leaders to publicly reassert the original timeline.
“We always said it would open in fall 2024, so at the moment we still have to close out permits and are in the process of making sure all the plants we selected are going in,” said Jacqueline Altreuter, director of strategic planning at DMNS, and leader of Nature Play.
“When I saw that (false opening date) over the holidays I was like, ‘Oh no!’ so we tried to take that down pretty quickly,” she added.
Nature Play is a complex project that digs much deeper than the grassy expanses typically seen at Denver’s largest park. Its goal is to simulate miniature versions of the alpine tundra, grassland prairies, wetlands and other distinct environments that cover the state.
One of the templates was set 75 years ago, when Denver Botanic Gardens first opened in City Park. “Some of the areas in the southeast part were theirs before they moved to York Street, so there are lots of leftover plant species still growing,” Altreuter said. “Restoring those waterways, which were originally designed by Dutch architect Saco Rienk DeBoer to mimic mountain streams, is a big part of this.”
Nature Play brings together Denver Parks & Recreation and the DMNS for a project that’s been six years in the making. Situated just outside the museum, the 4-acre, gently hilly strip offers interactive chances for kids and students to learn how they work. That includes the process of carefully restoring natural ecosystems, museum officials said.
“Since Nature Play will be landscaped with native Colorado plants, we are hoping that we will see a return of insect species that aren’t currently found in City Park right now,” said John Demboski, senior vice president of science at the DMNS, in a statement.
Animal footprints from Colorado wildlife lead visitors into different areas, whether it’s a wooden swing set or the path of the waterway that connects the mini-ecosystems.
“When we asked people to tell us about experiences they had in nature that were memorable and meaningful and really lasted for them, 98% described something with water,” Altreuter said. “Now, we’re in an arid state, but we’re all connected by and reliant on water, so we wanted that to be a big component.”
As such, the project was designed to amplify the sounds of splashing water by narrowing the restored waterway at points and adding rocks to create the illusion of a larger stream or river. Nature Play uses very little water, however, and is fed by a diverted storm drain. The same water source irrigates Washington Park and feeds City Park’s Ferrill Lake, and it all eventually filters into the South Platte River, according to Denver Parks & Recreation.
So far, the only Nature Play impression for visitors has been the construction fences concealing the playground, plus a new, winding sidewalk that’s meant to discourage cyclists from barreling down a pedestrian path. But inside, they’ll soon see hundreds of new trees and plants, a 20-foot-tall Bighorn Sheep sculpture and play structure (it’s Colorado’s official state animal), a slide, climbable beaver dam, native pollinators, carven-wood benches, and tableaus inspired by the museum’s dozens of dioramas in its Explore Colorado gallery.
Many of the features in the playground spring from the 800 people surveyed about it in 2021, and crews had to change gears at times, as when researchers discovered a native bee colony they didn’t want to disrupt or move. Staying nimble through the project, which broke ground last year, has allowed designer Dig Studios to adapt to changing conditions, officials said.
About 70% of the space featured existing trees, which they needed to work around, but only one tree was removed, Altreuter said (and that’s because it was dead). Seeing squirrels, falcons, foxes, and bunnies frequent the construction site reassured workers at ECI Site Construction that they hadn’t disrupted the habitat — at least not too much.
“There’s a lot of thoughtfulness and artistry inside the space,” Altreuter said, noting that the Loveland artist known as Chainsaw Mama created custom wooden benches for the project. “We want to connect the museum and its mission to the park, and this brings together so many ways to do that.”
Originally Published:
Denver, CO
Two years later, City of Denver still working to implement voter-approved recycling ordinance
DENVER — In November 2022, 70% of Denver voters approved the Waste No More ballot initiative to require city apartment buildings, businesses and large events to provide recycling and composting services. It would also establish new recycling and composting requirements for large events and construction and demolition sites.
Two years later, enforcement is still on hold as the city works on how to put the ordinance into action.
Earlier this month, Denver7 spoke with city leaders about that process.
“Those big systems changes also come with complications,” said Jonathan Wachtel, deputy executive director for the Denver Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency. “They come with costs.”
“You can have a climate-friendly city and a business-friendly city at the same time, and we’ve been very thoughtful about how we’ve approached it,” said Tim Hoffman, director of policy for Mayor Mike Johnston’s office.
Hoffman added that he “completely” understands the frustration some have with the ordinance not being implemented more than two years after passing.
City of Denver
Brian Loma, an environmental advocate and one of the original proponents of the ordinance, is feeling that frustration. He said Denver is “lagging behind” other Colorado cities that are implementing their own Zero Waste policies.
“The intent was for Denver to be the leader, the largest city in the state of Colorado doing the hard work to show everybody else it can be done,” he said Wednesday. “It’s a matter of civic pride.”
After discussions with advocates and the business community, the city is now proposing exceptions to the ordinance.
“Making sure that we weren’t putting undue burdens on small businesses, small restaurants, small events,” said Hoffman.
For example, restaurants with 25 or fewer employees who made $2 million or less in revenue the previous year would be exempt from the composting requirement. Loma said that should not be an excuse.
“My business doesn’t do $100,000 a year, and I compost and recycle as much as humanly possible,” he said. “It’s not about how much business you do. It’s about how much waste you produce.”
Environment
City of Denver working to expand recycling and composting
In their own waste management ordinances, cities like Boulder and Longmont have exemptions for businesses facing “economic hardship” situations. Longmont specifically spells out an exemption for businesses whose losses from the prior fiscal year were more than 10 percent of gross sales.
But Loma said an exemption solely based on profits and employee count would be unique and unnecessary.
“The point of Waste No More was to get people to talk about their waste plans,” he said. “Create a plan on how to divert and then look at what the costs are and determine if that would be a hardship or not, not to carve out and just say a whole bunch of people are exempt before you even come up with a plan.”
That being said, Loma clarified that he and the other originators of the ballot measure want to discuss and meet somewhere in the middle with city leaders.
On Wednesday, Denver City Council’s business committee pushed the next conversation to July, but with a sense of urgency.
“There’s been so much work done and I don’t want the policy to flounder or to take more time when we need to get this implemented in, because stuff is going into the landfill as we speak,” Denver City Councilmember Stacie Gilmore said during Wednesday’s committee meeting.
Ordinance enforcement is slated to begin in April 2026, but city leaders suggested during the meeting that further delays in finalizing exemptions would put that timeline in jeopardy.
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The Golden State Warriors have a major offseason ahead with hopes of building a championship-level roster around Stephen Curry. That’s been obvious for the last few years, but Golden State should be even more aggressive this summer after a brutal second-round exit in this year’s playoffs.
The Warriors took a major step in that direction after acquiring Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline. However, there are still problems to be fixed within the roster, which means they’ll be a team to watch this offseason.
Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported that one ex-NBA champion should be a major name to watch in free agency. Former Denver Nuggets wing Bruce Brown could be looking to join an elite playoff team after years with the Toronto Raptors, Indiana Pacers, and New Orleans Pelicans.
“Adding depth on the wing is also an essential part of the Warriors’ offseason plans,” Siegel wrote.
“Andrew Wiggins was a player who could be a shooter off the ball on the wing and also create scoring opportunities for himself. The Dubs hope to find another player like that who can wear many different hats on the wing and help be a lead secondary scoring threat. Caris LeVert and Bruce Brown are two names to keep an eye on in this regard for Golden State.”
Brown averaged 8.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists this past season. If given the right opportunity, the 28-year-old could be a high-impact player on a contender. He’s known for his ability to fit in a specific role on offense but provide suffocating defense on the other end.
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The Denver Nuggets recently had their season ended by the Oklahoma City Thunder, as their hard-fought series ended in seven games, with the Thunder blowing them out as a result. A season that featured highs like Nikola Jokic’s MVP campaign but also featured lows like firing their head coach and general manager, change could be on the way to Denver this summer.
Even though the Nuggets were able to get strong production from their inexpensive contracts like Russell Westbrook, Christian Braun, Julian Strawther, and Peyton Watson, the same can’t be said about their four highest-paid players. The one that perhaps was the biggest letdown was Michael Porter Jr, who shared a bittersweet message after the loss.
“Everyone in this locker room means a lot to me,” Porter said according to The Denver Post. “I’m not sure if it’ll be the same exact group next year. But whatever’s next for me, whatever’s next for this team, I know that the guys will be ready for it.”
Porter Jr. averaged 18.2 points per game during the regular season, but averaged just 7.4 points and 5.3 rebounds during Denver’s second-round loss to the Thunder. While he was dealing with a shoulder injury, his performance did not match his $35.8 million price tag.
If Denver decides to look at trading Porter Jr. away, this recent playoff run definitely hurts his trade value. He has two years, $79 million remaining on his contract starting next season, and has shown he can be a high-level shot-maker over the past three seasons. His price tag will limit Denver’s options on the market, and they are probably better looking to replace him with a pair of role players.
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