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Denver to deploy hundreds of people in yellow vests as it aims to create a ‘clean and safe’ downtown

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Denver to deploy hundreds of people in yellow vests as it aims to create a ‘clean and safe’ downtown


DENVER – Mayor Mike Johnston and his administration hope a new program announced Monday will be another step in revitalizing the city’s economic and cultural center, which continues to recover from dwindling foot traffic caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Calling downtown Denver the “living room of the city” where Denverites come to see a ball game, eat or enjoy hours of shopping, Johnston said he wanted every resident and guest coming to Denver for the first time to “feel safe right here in our living room and also to feel inspired by the creativity and the innovation and the ingenuity of what Denver has to offer.”

To do so, the mayor outlined a multi-step program involving not just the city or the police department, but businesses, nonprofits, residents and tourists to create a plan “built on the belief that a safe and clean and beautiful downtown is all of our responsibility,” the mayor said alongside the CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership and the head of the Denver Dream Center, a nonprofit that helps formerly incarcerated people rebuild their lives after their release.

Part of the revitalization is already underway with the closing of several encampments downtown, Johnston said.

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“Our plan now is to keep it that way, is to make sure that we can keep downtown free of camping and keep people connected to services and supports they need to get back up on their feet,” the mayor said.

Calling on Denverites to engage in a shared ownership to keep downtown Denver beautiful and safe, Johnston also encouraged Denverites and tourists alike to report any suspicious activity they might encounter with the help of the new Clean and Safe Denver app unveiled by Kourtny Garrett, the CEO of the Downtown Denver Partnership. The app, unveiled during Monday’s news conference, is available for both Apple and Android devices.

“That way if there is unsightly trash, you can let us know. If there’s someone in mental health distress who needs support, you can let us know. If there’s someone that is using or abusing drugs, you can let us know. If there is someone that needs access to support and services, you can let us know,” the mayor said. “We want Denver to be a place where everyone feels comfortable, and we can be sending the right responder to the right place at the right time” with the help of the app, he said.

Garrett told reporters Monday the app will empower people to “be a part of making our downtown just that more beautiful, more clean and more safe (sic)” by allowing users to take a photo of any non-emergent activity people feel needs responding by the city, which will then be sent to the appropriate team of responders to deal with the issue.

She told Denver7 the app and the yellow vest Ambassadors are an expansion of the safety partnership started in November 2022 under the Mayor Michael B. Hancock administration. She said the Ambassadors program is based on the Downtown Action Team, which brought together local enforcement and outreach agencies. But this new iteration is “on steroids,” she said, because the partnerships are broader and more visible.

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Mayor Mike Johnston announces creation of Denver Ambassadors Program

While not the Colorado Guardian Angels of the 90s, Johnston also announced the creation of the Denver Ambassadors Program – “a plan to unify the responders that come out to help people in the city and the speed at which we can respond” which will consist of nonprofits, city employees, people in private security and yes, even the Denver Police Department, according to the mayor. “The idea is that we can have the right person with the right response there quickly to be able to support people as soon as you need it.”

Wearing yellow vests (like the one the mayor is seen donning in the photo of this article), the job of the Ambassadors would mostly focus on helping people with non-emergent needs such as helping a tourist find how to get to Coors Field, or request the help of Denver’s STAR program if someone is in distress downtown.

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“This is if you are going for a run at 9 o’clock at night, you can see a yellow vest and you know that is someone that is there to provide support,” Johnston said. “You know these are folks that can either directly support you or connect you to the right person.”

While the mayor couldn’t say how many Ambassadors would be patrolling downtown, the numbers would be in the hundreds due to all the personnel with whom the city is partnering to make the program possible. The program, Johnston added, would at first focus on neighborhoods downtown before looking at expanding to other areas.

People in an emergency would still need to call 911 for help or 311 if they’re need in of city services, the mayor stressed.

Johnston also briefly touched on the city’s Dynamic Downtown Denver plan, aimed at distributing hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants.

Individuals, nonprofits, community groups and businesses are eligible to apply for the grants, which will range from $500 to $25,000, Garrett said previously. To learn more about these grants and how to apply, click here.

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“If you see someone on the street with a yellow vest, you can stop and ask them (to help). They can jump in and help right away, and (then the next step is) to do ongoing activation of all these spaces because we know the opposite of crime is not safety. The opposite of crime is joy,” Johnston said in closing remarks. “And so what we want to do is really, deliberately, sow joy on all the streets with both the community activation we’ll have downtown, all the business activations where people are down here with the people they love, doing the things they love, in a place that they love.”


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Denver, CO

Nuggets Get Encouraging Jamal Murray Injury Update

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Nuggets Get Encouraging Jamal Murray Injury Update


Things are looking up revolving around Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray and his injury status moving forward after his recent ankle sprain.

And it looks like leading up to the Nuggets’ upcoming game vs. the OKC Thunder, Murray could even have a chance to play, just days after leaving Denver’s contest vs. the New York Knicks with an ankle sprain.

According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, Murray is considered day to day following his ankle injury suffered against the Knicks, and is expected to be listed as questionable against the Thunder.

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“Nuggets star G Jamal Murray is considered day to day after leaving Friday’s loss to the Knicks with an ankle injury, sources told ESPN. Expected to be listed as questionable for Monday’s game in OKC.”

It’s a massive breath of fresh air for the Nuggets after seeing their star guard go down with a scary-looking injury headed into the weekend, but it may actually be an injury that isn’t as bad as initially thought.

Jamal Murray Could Play vs. Thunder

There’s no guarantee whether Murray will be able to go against the Thunder and not miss any time with his ankle injury, but seeing his status trending in the right direction is a sign that he’ll be on the floor sooner rather than later.

Compared to the injury troubles the Nuggets have faced all year long, with multiple impact players missing multiple weeks of the regular season, it’ll certainly do.

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When Murray has been on the floor for the Nuggets this season, it’s paired with some career-best numbers en route to his first-ever All-Star selection earlier in the year.

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In 59 games played across the year, Murray has averaged a career-high 25.8 points per game, along with 4.3 rebounds and 7.8 assists on 48.3% shooting from the field and 43.1% from three.

Mar 6, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) during the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
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This season, Murray’s also been one of the Nuggets’ most available players on the roster in a campaign where virtually all of their top names have missed multiple weeks with their own respective injuries.

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Murray has missed five games up to his latest injury from the Knicks game, and could even have a chance to keep that total where it’s at, depending on how his status develops before playing the Thunder.

The Nuggets’ health has started to turn a corner in a positive way in recent days and weeks, as both of their starting forwards, Cam Johnson and Aaron Gordon, returned to play against the Knicks, thus allowing Denver their entire starting five healthy and on the floor at the same time since November.

Peyton Watson remains one of the few names out with his respective hamstring injury leading into the final month stretch of the regular season, but expect to see him returning in the next few games. As for Murray, it looks like he also could be back on the floor in the very near future.

Expect to hear more regarding Murray’s injury before tip-off arrives against the Thunder, which could even lead to him taking the floor in one of the Nuggets’ biggest remaining games left in the regular season.

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Denver, CO

Farbers sell LoHi apartment development site for $9.5M

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Farbers sell LoHi apartment development site for .5M


The Farber brothers have sold a site in LoHi with approved development plans, and a groundbreaking is imminent.

Elevation Development Group, founded by Brent, Brad and Gregg Farber, sold 0.68 acre at 3301-3333 Mariposa St. in Denver on Wednesday to Greenwood Village-based Century Communities.

Century, a large homebuilder that also develops apartments, paid $9.5 million, records show. That works out to $322 a square foot.

The Farbers bought the property in 2019 for $5.65 million, records show. At the time, it was home to industrial buildings, which have since been demolished.

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The site is zoned C-MX-5, which generally allows a mix of uses up to 5 stories.



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Brothers sentenced to 40 and 40 years for deadly,

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Brothers sentenced to 40 and 40 years for deadly,


Two brothers who were involved in the 2024 drive-by shooting death of a man outside the Downtown Aquarium in Denver were sentenced to serve decades in prison.

Antonio Vasquez, 21, and Jason Trujillo, Jr., 19, were sentenced on Friday to 40 years and 20 years, respectively, in state prison. Both brothers pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, and a number of charges, including first-degree murder, were dropped as a result.

Vasquez, who was 19 at the time of the shooting, fired the weapon that killed 19-year-old Dacien Salazar over two years ago, according to investigators. Trujillo, who was 17 at the time, drove the car.

Dacien Salazar is seen in a handout photo from Denver police investigators after the 19-year-old was shot and killed outside the Denver Downtown Aquarium on Feb. 14, 2024.

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Denver Police Department


“Dacien Salazar’s murder was not just a tragedy for his friends and family, it was a crime that shocked countless Denver residents — a shooting in broad daylight in a busy public place,” Denver District Attorney John Walsh said in a statement on Friday. “Today’s sentences ensure that Antonio Vasquez and Jason Trujillo will pay a heavy price for their cold-blooded actions.”

The shooting occurred on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, 2024, outside the popular aquarium near Interstate 25 and Water Street.

Given the location of the shooting, and before police knew if it was random or targeted, a large police presence was seen at the aquarium soon after the 911 calls came in.

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Salazar was taken to the hospital but later died of his injuries, according to Denver police. After the shooting, the brothers took off southwest, toward the REI store, and investigators worked to develop information about the suspects.

Shooting at Denver Aquarium

Denver police officers investigate the scene of a shooting outside of the Denver Aquarium in Denver, Colorado, on Feb. 14, 2024.

Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via Getty Images


Salazar was at the aquarium with two other people. The three left Pueblo earlier in the day and got to the aquarium around 2 p.m. that day, a witness told investigators. They left about an hour later, and as they were walking back to the car they came in, a black Chevrolet sedan pulled up and a person, later identified as Vasquez, was in the back seat with a black ski mask on and started shooting.

Salazar was the only person struck by gunfire that afternoon.

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One of Salazar’s friends told police that Salazar “had a lot of people that were after him.” That person’s name was redacted in a 10-page arrest report, as was the rest of the paragraph after that claim.

One person interviewed by police told a detective that they saw threats against him on Facebook, made by Trujillo and three other people, whose names were redacted. Screenshots of the threats were also fully redacted in the arrest report.

Forensic investigators say they matched the ammunition used in a shooting in Pueblo, allegedly involving at least one of the suspects, to the one used to kill Salazar. Many details surrounding the Pueblo shooting were redacted, but the report says that .223-caliber rifle ammo was recovered from both scenes.

Court records don’t show any criminal cases out of Pueblo for either brother, aside from a 2022 traffic ticket for Vasquez.

Shooting at Denver Aquarium

Denver police officers investigate the scene of a shooting outside of the Denver Aquarium in Denver, Colorado, on Feb. 14, 2024. 

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Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via Getty Images


Investigators went through traffic camera footage near the shooting and found the car that matched wintesses’ description and saw it had a temporary license plate. Detectives traced the ownership of the car back to a Pueblo address and then honed in on a cellphone that pinged cell towers in Pueblo, Littleton, and Denver during the time before, during, and after the shooting.

They traced the movement of the car and phone to a hotel — although the exact hotel’s name is redacted from the arrest report — and got security camera footage, which detectives say showed Vasquez and Trujillo leaving and returning to the hotel before and after the shooting.

They were arrested in early May, formally charged on May 8 — both as adults — and held on a $1 million cash-only bond.

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