August Letters to the Editor
Ideas To Save The Planet
I was inspired by Tracey MacDermott’s opinion piece in last month’s issue. I moved to Denver right before Covid hit. I am looking to get involved on matters of sustainability and thought I would start by reaching out to you. Some ideas that come to mind right away are:
• Getting supermarkets to stop making bags available at all.
• Upgrades on gas pump nozzles to include vapor trapping mechanism.
• Getting energy companies and/or the state to fund free home energy audits with free light-bulb and faucet upgrades.
• Lots of work needs to be done regarding water use and xeriscape, low flow shower heads, etc.
I look forward to connecting to learn how we might be able to collaborate on local sustainability issues. Thank you for all that you do.
Rob Kapner, Park Hill
Bouquets Of Thanks
We are thrilled to announce another successful year for the Park Hill Garden Walk. We thought our record-breaking success last year might have been the result of us all being cooped up from Covid restrictions.
However, we are elated to announce another strong year. Total revenues came in from the 2022 June Garden Walk at just under $17,000. That’s about 8 percent lower than 2021, but still a big success.
We would like to offer our deepest gratitude to all involved in this year’s event, including seven gardeners, Denver Urban Gardens, the Colorado State University Master Gardeners, sponsors, volunteers, ticket sales partners and approximately 700 attendees. Thank you all! This event would not be possible without every one of you.
A special shout out to our garden photographer, Ed Demafiles, who graciously donated his time and skills photographing each of the gardens, as well as the gardeners. His work is beautiful. Check him out at edwindemafilesphotography.zenfolio.com.
The Park Hill Garden Walk committee is made up of just eight people, who are extremely dedicated and work for months to make the event a reality.
If you are interested in joining this incredible group of volunteers, please contact our committee co-chairs, Carla Finch at carla.j.finch@gmail.com or Patty Mead at prmead416@gmail.com. This event raises funds to support Greater Park Hill Community, Inc. Read about the mission of GPHC on page 10.
And, our work is never done. Identifying gardens is a key component and requires year-round commitment.
Ideally, we would like to lock up next year’s list of gardens now so that we can take photos of them in bloom this summer. These photos are used in the brochure, articles and advertisements that are produced in winter and spring months — which is not a good time of year to get photos of the gardens.
If you are interested or if you know someone with a beautiful yard who we should contact, please reach out to Carla Finch at carla.j.finch@gmail.com or Patty Mead at prmead416@gmail.com.
Again, thank you all. We hope to see each of you in 2023.
Happy gardening.
Jean Ercolani, Park Hill
Garden Walk Organizer
There Is A Free Ride
I want to remind everyone that the entire RTD system will be FREE for the month of August as part of the Zero Fare for Better Air program.
This is a really big deal, and I urge everyone to ride RTD’s buses and trains to get to know our city and region through our public transit system. Find schedules and routes at this link: rtd-denver.com/app/schedules.
We desperately need more robust alternatives to cars in Denver, but we also have to be real about how we have built places and access for some people and against others. We can’t just rely on bikes, e-bikes, and scooters.
I grew up in a home without a car until I was 10 and then again lived as an adult without a car for all of my 20s.
When I was a kid, bikes over long distances wouldn’t have helped my mom and/or my family in any meaningful way with our daily transportation needs.
Buses were also not a reliable option, and nowadays, they can feel like even less so with increased fares and reduced routes and schedules.
Please take advantage of the free fares, and show RTD that the public is demanding better public transit that will take us where we need to go, when we need to get there.
Candi CdeBaca
Denver City Councilwoman
District 9
We love your letters, and give preference to those that address an issue that has been covered in the newspaper, or a topic that is Park Hill or Denver-specific. Send letters to editor@greaterparkhill.org, and include your full name, and the neighborhood in which you live. Deadlines are the 15th of each month, for the following month’s issue.