Home Care In Denver, CO

Denver has been trying for years to become the place for immersive art and immersive experiences, and it’s shown results — not just with places like Meow Wolf and Casa Bonita, but also with shows like “Camp Christmas” and “Carne y arena.”

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) has been central to supporting and staging those original shows and others, including the renowned David Byrne’s Theater of the Mind, through its Off-Center immersive production arm.

Established in 2010, Off-Center was a spearhead for establishing Denver as the immersive hub, staging some 70 original immersive productions. It had a dedicated space and worked around the state.

But now the DCPA and the larger scene are facing a big change. Off-Center will stop producing original works, instead focusing on presenting immersive shows from other outfits. Its co-founder, Charlie Miller is leaving as well.

“Off the top, it's a loss. I don't think anyone thinks it's a good thing, generally speaking,” said David Thomas, the co-founder of Immersive Denver, an organization that aims to connect and advocate for immersive artists in Denver and Colorado.

He was one person that Denverite interviewed about the next step for the immersive scene after this substantial change.

Immersive art is a multisensory experience that puts the viewer in the space of the show, like a Disney ride, but instead of being in a seat, people get to choose their own pacing and story experience.

Thomas said that despite the excitement, some regional arts organizations have struggled to make it work.

“As immersive started to blow up, Denver had several big benefits. Meow Wolf put a lot of eyes on Denver,” Thomas said.

So did the renovation of Casa Bonita, the surreal restaurant experience in Lakewood, and the work of groups like Off-Center.

“By the time we had run the Denver Immersive gathering in 2023, all eyes were on Denver for all of these factors. So that still exists," he explained. “But in this world, attention only lasts as long as there's heat.”

He added that outside of DCPA, and even outside Denver, artists throughout the immersive world are looking at where they fit and who their audience is.

“It's been kind of a soul-searching time nationally and even internationally for immersive. So it's not surprising to me that the DCPA is making decisions based on that kind of era of uncertainty,” Thomas said. “But we're looking to the future right now.”

‘That’s the thing about this immersive stuff: You’ve got to be really, really, adaptable.’

Lonnie Hanzon has been creating immersive art since 1985. He’s the artist behind “Camp Christmas,” an immersive experience he, in partnership with DCPA, has put on since 2019. However, Hanzon said that this year, his studio, Hanzon Studio, is taking the lead on more aspects of the production and operation.

Camp Christmas is an art installation that takes people on a walk-through Christmas extravaganza. People can meet Santa and earn “Merry badges.” There will be different themed nights, bars and food as well.

This year, the holiday experience-turned-tradition is returning to Stanley Marketplace. Hanzon said decisions about next year will be based, as always, on how this season goes.

“We're actually really approaching it from a community standpoint and totally new financial structures, but that's what you got to do to keep this stuff going. You adapt,” Hanzon said. “That's the thing about this immersive stuff, you've got to be really, really adaptable.”

It’s no secret that the economy is unstable, both nationally and locally. That uncertainty can affect just about anything, Hanzon said, especially the arts.

“It's a time right now that the world is very contractive. Everybody wants to be safe right now. Everybody's waiting for the other shoe to drop,” Hanzon said. "It's a very fearful time, but when the going gets tough, the artists get going.”

But Hanzon said he doesn’t believe the closure of Off-Center is the end of Denver’s immersive hub, but the beginning of a new chapter for the art form.

The first era of immersive “definitely seems to be coming to an end, both nationally and internationally,” Hanzon said.

Denver’s immersive hub is still growing elsewhere.

While one of the staples of the Denver immersive community is closing, others are looking to build and expand.

The Denver Immersive Repertory Theater (DIRT) is currently under construction in Lower Downton. The two behind the theater, Steve Wargo and Blair Russell, came to Denver from New York.

“We came out for that because Denver was sort of like a flashing red light on our dashboard,” Wargo told Denverite in August. “So we came out and we spent the weekend and we were mightily impressed with the city and the potential we saw here. And also just this fervent love for immersive work.”

The theater is set to open early 2026, with a 380-page show, 11 character arcs simultaneously happening, a cabaret lounge, a cocktail bar — all within a two-floor theater.

Another immersive experience is opening this week. OddKnock’s First Test Kitchen is running from Oct. 23-26. The website calls it “a rolling residency for physical theater artists to dive in.”

It will occupy an empty, 3,700-square-foot storefront in the River North area. Over the span of four months, they’ll produce three “work-in-progress” showcases, according to their website.

As for Miller, the co-founder and executive director of Off-Center, many people in the Denver Immersive space said they aren’t too worried about him.

“Charlie Miller is a force. He's not just a producer,” Hanzon said.

He noted that Miller was in Montreal at the Immersive Immersive, an international version of the conference that happened in Denver. Miller is the co-founder and director of that organization.

“We've all been a huge fan of the work Charlie Miller's done,” Thomas said. “Charlie's an amazing guy and we expect big things out of him, with or without Off-Center.”

According to the people in Denver's immersive arts, this is a time of change, a time of development, and a time for a pulse check — but the scene is far from dead.

“Soul searching always is the thing that comes before progress,” Thomas said. ”I think there's a real pain happening now, but that's temporary and the success will be the next thing we experience.”

The city of Denver's largest tenant, the leaseholder for the Denver Post building at 101 West Colfax Avenue, stopped making its monthly $650,000 rent payments to the city in August. And with late charges, the leaseholder is now about $2 million behind in rent, according to an exclusive CBS News Colorado investigation.

"It is a large amount of income for the city, and if we cannot recover that, we will have to turn around and find more budget cuts," said Denver City Councilwoman Sarah Parady.

The city of Denver bought the Denver Post building in early 2024 for $88.5 million, saying the 303,000 square foot building would eventually be needed to house Denver's court system. The Denver City Council approved the purchase by a 9-4 vote but several council members were skeptical of the price the city was paying, the timing of the purchase and the need for the building.

Lisa Lumley, Denver's Director of Real Estate, told council members the deal would be revenue neutral as the monthly $650,000 payments from the master leaseholder, DP Media Network LLC, would cover the city's financing charges.

But in August, the leaseholder, DP Media Network LLC, stopped making its monthly rent payments, according to a notice of default obtained by CBS News. For August, September and October, it has not only not paid rent but has also accrued late charges of $32,477.51 for each month, bringing the total amount owed to just over $2 million in unpaid rent and late fees.

The city was banking on nearly $8 million in rent from the building this year.

CBS News emailed four lawyers representing DP Media Network seeking an explanation of why the lease payments stopped. None of them responded.

Jon Ewing, a spokesperson for Mayor Mike Johnston, responded to the CBS News Colorado investigation with a written statement. "Denver pays its debts on time and DP Media Network should do the same," wrote Ewing. "We are working with the tenant to restart payments and intend to recover every penny we are owed."

Laura Swartz, Communications Director for Denver's Department of Finance, said there had been no written communication between the city and the master leaseholder beyond the default notice issued Aug. 25. "We don't typically decline interviews, but in this case we need to," wrote Swartz. "The City's goal is to see a positive outcome from this situation, for which legal discussions are underway."

Denver City Council members said while they have been in the throes of budget cutting for months, the mayor's office never informed them of the significant revenue loss. Parady said she only learned of what was going on from the CBS News Colorado Investigation.

"If you're asking if I think city council should be aware of an income stream of $700,000 a month that stops coming in during a time of budget crisis when we just laid off $10 million worth of employees, the answer is 'yes,' I absolutely think I should get that information from internal not from a reporter on the outside," said Parady.

Another council member, Kevin Flynn, said he too "didn't know anything about it" until he heard from CBS News Colorado.

"Before you told me about it I wasn't aware the lease payments weren't being made," said Flynn.

He voted in favor of the building purchase saying, "It looked like a very good deal as long as the payments are being made."

Flynn called the loss of monthly revenue for the city "pretty substantial because its a large amount of money."

"I have to say, I wish I had known by now," he said.

With the city facing a $200 million budget shortfall in 2026, Parady noted: "The loss of that amount of money is something we would have to account for one for one by cutting something else -- personnel, contracts or services. I would say it's upsetting."

She said she now wonders what kind of due diligence the city did regarding the master leaseholder for the Denver Post building and "wonders about warning signals" and if they are "a bad player."

Making the situation even more unusual, the city of Denver actually leases space in the building it owns, and is paying DP Media Network LLC, the master leaseholder, almost $166,000 every month for that space.

"The city is fulfilling its contractual obligations for this lease as we are required to," wrote Swartz. "This is part of the reason why we are currently working this as a legal matter with the tenant, and will not have more to share until this is resolved."

By HAP FRY

Special to The Gazette

GREELEY – A trip to Carter Hall on an early fall Friday morning to visit the offices of Dr. Andrew “Andy” Feinstein can reveal that the University of Northern Colorado president has the wherewithal to reconfigure space in the most unlikely places.

Take an upstairs attic in Carter Hall, for example. Feinstein first came across it while moving into UNC in 2018 to start his presidency. He immediately saw potential in the tiny space.

“It was a storage room – just stuff all over the place,” Feinstein said. “As I was cleaning it out, I thought it would make a cool music room. I’ve always loved music and have a friend who had these crazy speakers – like a 1980s wall of sound or something. I don’t go up there that often, but when I do, I enjoy it. I feel like I might blow the walls out.”

In the here and now, Feinstein has far grander design plans in the works for UNC, specifically near the center of campus, where Bishop-Lehr Hall stood for decades.

UNC is on track to open its College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) in 2026, which will give Colorado its third medical school and extend the university’s visibility and reach well beyond its Greeley campus, and, likely, beyond Feinstein’s wall of sound.

The University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine and Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine house the state’s two other medical schools.

A review board from the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) was on campus earlier in the month. If all goes well, UNC should receive pre-accreditation status in December to actively recruit and enroll medical students to be on campus in August of 2026.

UNC already has its Dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) in place. The department chairs for principals and practices, as well as primary care, are also on campus.

Meanwhile, the construction of the new 100,000 square-foot building that will house UNC’s COM School – the site of where Bishop-Lehr Hall once stood – is expected to be completed by June.

“It’s exciting,” Feinstein said. “I selfishly think this is one of the more profound initiatives that has been undertaken by the university in its 136-year history, but the rewards, the outcomes, the impacts aren’t going to be felt for decades to come. I think it’s going to change the university in many ways, even outside of health education.”

UNC officials highlight that the medical school is expected to boost Colorado’s economy by $1.4 billion over the next 20 years, with nearly half a billion of that impact remaining in Weld County.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Greeley – the Weld County seat and home to UNC – is the fourth fastest-growing metro area in the United States, and it experienced a 30% population growth from 2010 to 2020.

More importantly, the opening of the medical school at UNC will help address the area and the state’s growing demand for physicians.

The U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration noted that only 35% of Colorado’s physician needs are being met, and the Cicero Institute highlighted that 54 of Colorado’s 64 counties presently contain regions with professional shortage areas in primary care.

Dr. Kelli Glaser, UNC’s Chair of Primary Care for its medical school, said a big selling point of coming to UNC from Rocky Vista University in Parker was that the school could help address the need for more physicians in Colorado’s rural communities moving forward.

“There’s a constant turnover of physicians in a lot of these rural communities,” Glaser said. “I knew that with the positioning of UNC in Greeley, it would probably more directly meet the need and recruit students who came from areas nearby, especially the rural areas, and that they might be more likely to return to those rural areas to practice. I wanted to help foster that taking place.”

UNC officials said the school has the capacity to graduate 150 new doctors into the workforce annually, which is notable.

Colorado ranked No. 28 in the U.S. for the number of enrolled medical students per 100,000 population in 2023-2024, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).

“We’re definitely a state that needs another medical school,” said Dr. Beth Longenecker, the College of Osteopathic Medicine dean. “This is a state with only two medical schools – one public and one private. To me, if you’re going to start another medical school, go where it is needed.”

In addition to the geographical and population advantages Greeley provides, Longenecker said that, because UNC’s medical school is a public institution, it will also be able to create pathway programs through the university’s undergraduate population.

As the UNC President, Feinstein carries himself a little differently. He makes it a point to introduce himself as “Andy.”

“One of the ways that I kind of knew he was an open, people-oriented person is that everyone called him by his first name,” Glaser said. “I thought that was really unusual for a president, but that he can’t be that bad if he’s like that with everyone, including our students.”

Longenecker said making the jump from being a dean of a medical school to a founding dean is significant. It’s a move she would have been hesitant to make from her previous position as a medical school dean in Ohio without seeing eye-to-eye with the university president and believing in his vision.

“I talked with other founding deans, and they all told me to make sure you like the president,” Longenecker said. “When I interviewed with Andy (Feinstein), we had some back-and-fourth dialogue and we talked about timelines. I told him that (opening up) in 2025 was overly ambitious. He did not agree immediately, but he listened and was willing to debate. That really indicated to me that he is visionary.”

Part of what sets Feinstein apart from his presidential counterparts is his background.

He and his brother were adopted in Cleveland, and he grew up in Hawaii and California. He noted that his first job was working at his elementary school’s cafeteria.

From there, he continued to gravitate toward service and hospitality, working in restaurants during high school and even taking a year off to work between high school and college to work at a ski resort in California.

“It was during that year that I realized that I wanted to go to college in hospitality management,” Feinstein said. “Hospitality has been such an integral part of my success.”

Feinstein would go on to receive both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Hotel Administration from UNLV, as well as a Ph.D. from Pennsylvania State University’s School of Hospitality Management.

“Understanding how to create experiences for others and appreciate their efforts is a part of hospitality,” Feinstein said. “Although I don’t look at students as customers at universities, there are a lot of parallels in the way in which we should be treating students and their needs and providing that experience that not only happens in the classroom, but also in our daily lives – just ways in which we create environments for students to build community.”

Creatively casting a net

Feinstein had to lean on many of those skills he learned in hospitality, as well as those he’s picked up during his long tenure as a high-ranking education administrator, to turn UNC’s medical school into a reality.

As one might expect, navigating the landmines of launching the state’s first public osteopathic medical college were numerous and complex.

Feinstein initially began brainstorming the idea of starting a medical school after receiving a phone call from Banner Healthcare executive Margo Karsten in 2020 when COVID-19 was erupting.

“She was worried about doctor shortages and wanted to know if I could help,” Feinstein said. “I read up about it and said we would absolutely want to help.”

From there, Feinstein began talking with a team of consultants who believed that a medical school was in the cards.

Still, they were just as quick to point out that the most difficult challenges would be raising the necessary $200 million in funding for the project, as well as securing the clinical rotations that would be required for the number of students entering a four-year medical school program.

Before making good on his promise, Feinstein had to tackle an unforeseen obstacle he didn’t see in the periphery in 2021, when he learned that there was a bill on the books in Colorado that said the only public university that could offer medical education was CU.

“I thought it was ridiculous that there was a law in Colorado that disallowed other institutions from offering medical education,” Feinstein said. “One of the first things we had to do was create a bill and lobby the legislature to overturn that bill and to allow medical education to be offered at UNC.”

The result was unanimous support of Senate Bill 56 in 2022 to allow UNC to offer a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program.

Raising the required $200 million presented its share of challenges, but Feinstein got creative with lobbying for legislative support and seeking donations.

His advocacy secured financial commitments totaling more than $200 million to UNC, including a $25 million gift from The Weld Trust — the largest in UNC’s history.

The investment was made possible by the passing House Bill 1231 in 2024 that Feinstein helped initiate and develop.

The bill provided a historic $247 million to four health science education projects in the state, including $128 million toward construction, startup and accreditation expenses, along with $41 million for the escrow needs for UNC’s medical school.

“It took a Herculean effort from a lot of people,” Feinstein said. “I think it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and it’s probably the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done when you factor in all the political, economic, and academic hurdles that we had to overcome.”

Upon reflecting on his work at UNC, an idea popped into Feinstein’s head. He got up and guided his two guests up a narrow spiraling staircase that led into Carter Hall attic he first stumbled upon in 2018.

Feinstein selected the Grateful Dead’s “Without A Net” album to play.

After all, Feinstein has cast a large net over UNC, and possibly the future of healthcare in Colorado, all while reconfiguring space in the most unlikely places.

Work is underway to open a highly anticipated outdoor destination between Denver and Colorado Springs.

Castle Rock’s Town Council recently approved a contract for trail construction in Lost Canyon Ranch Open Space — an approval that also came with a unanimous vote on a master and management plan. The plan had been in the works since last year, following the largest single open space acquisition in the town’s history.

A short drive from downtown on Castle Rock’s southeast edge, Lost Canyon’s 681 acres are “a stunning blend of grasslands, towering ponderosa pines and dramatic canyon cliffs,” the master plan reads, going on to describe “a landscape rich with history, diverse wildlife and sweeping scenic views that echo the beauty of its neighbor, Castlewood Canyon State Park.”

Planners have envisioned an experience similar to that state park across a 15-mile trail network exploring Lost Canyon’s lower, creek-fed woods and rugged rock that rises around a panoramic, grassy top. In his presentation to the Town Council, Parks Director Jeff Brauer painted the picture of a nature escape unlike any other in Castle Rock.

It will be an escape for hikers only — no bikes or dogs allowed. That’s in line with a conservation easement held by Douglas Land Conservancy, Brauer said during his presentation, which followed months of public feedback that reportedly emphasized “low-impact recreation with protections for wildlife and cultural resources.”

Walking around Lost Canyon, “you see how significant some of those resources are, and I think you’ll be able to tell why we went ahead and made that recommendation,” Brauer told councilmembers, who sounded in support.

Asked if bikes and dogs could eventually be allowed, Brauer said: “It is something we will stay open to. But we have invested heavily in some other areas where people can take their canine companions and their bikes, and we have some very heavily used areas like that.”

Like Philip S. Miller Park, which encompasses 320 acres and 11 1/2 miles of trails for hiking, mountain biking and dog walking. The master plan details data suggesting an average daily traffic count of 1,094 there. At Lost Canyon, the plan foresees visitation more in line with Ridgeline Open Space, where a daily average of 184 hikers and bikers was tallied.

The comparison was made for Ridgeline’s bigger, more varied trail system. Lost Canyon’s system promises to be even more so.

Of three trailheads identified, Brauer said the one called Creekside would be the first priority — the first trailhead reached driving into the open space along Lost Canyon Ranch Road. An out-and-back path follows the creek, while stacked loops will tour “a mix of forest and canyon environments,” Brauer said.

The upper Cattleman’s Trailhead, meanwhile, will feature “dramatic outcroppings and canyon cliffs,” he said. “Just some fantastic trail opportunities in this particular area.” The network recalls Lost Canyon’s Wild West era and prehistoric past, with trail names such as Bootlegger’s and Echoes of Ancestors.

A third trailhead could be developed later: the High Prairie Trailhead. The upper trails would respect a golden eagle nest as well as the surrounding neighborhood, Brauer said. “We’re screened by vegetation and topography; we worked with the neighborhood to make sure we weren’t visible.”

Another blueprinted trail connects to Castlewood Canyon State Park, where 466 vehicles a day on average have been counted. With the connector trail, would more of that traffic funnel through the neighborhood to Lost Canyon? a councilmember asked.

“We’re interested to see which way traffic goes,” Brauer said, referring also to the state park manager. “We do think that is a particularly challenging trail, so we think the use will probably be on the lower end.”

The Town Council approved $859,965 to contract Timberline TrailCraft for construction that Brauer said would entail technical rock work and creek-crossing bridges. Another $2 million has been set aside for traffic-slowing measures on Lost Canyon Ranch Road — such as speed displays, speed bumps, curb extensions and stop signs — along with road maintenance and signage in the open space.

The aim is to open Lost Canyon in summer 2026.

Asking what’s in Denver, Colorado, is a little like asking how to cook an egg. Sure, it’s not as big or influential a city as New York City, LA, or even Chicago, but Denver’s become one of the most desirable places in the country to live in and visit in recent years.

One of the characters on Netflix’s hugely popular show Money Heist, AKA La Casa de Papel, is named “Denver,” if that gives you an idea of the city’s growing popularity and visibility within popular culture. If you’ve never been to the Mile High City, there’s a lot here to see, do, drink, hear, and learn about.

From fascinating cultural and historical offerings to a bountiful offering of recreational and medicinal marijuana dispensaries to hip neighborhoods with skyrocketing rents and home prices, a lot is happening in Denver.

A robust park system and famous outdoor spaces

Factoring in the mountains just west of town, the Denver area boasts almost 20,000 acres of parks, including the world-famous Red Rocks Amphitheater and beloved urban staples like Washington Park, City Park, and Sloan’s Lake Park. If you prefer your park experiences to have a haunted element, consider spending some time at Denver’s Cheesman Park. Before it became one of Denver’s prettiest public spaces, Cheesman Park was a failing cemetery.

Denver leaders decided to convert the space into a massive public park and hired an unsavory character named E.P. McGovern to relocate the estimated 5,000 graves on site. McGovern dismembered bodies and stuffed them into child-sized coffins to reduce his workload. Anywhere from 400 to 4,000 bodies or parts of bodies are thought to still be under the park to this day.

Though it’s not technically in Denver, Red Rocks is a crucial part of Denver’s identity. The unique, larger-than-life outdoor venue has hosted virtually every large and influential modern musical artist you can think of, from The Beatles’ first American concert down to sold-out shows featuring Ray LaMontagne, The Avett Brothers, and Denver’s favorite, jam bands.

Despite what you may have heard, the unique shape of this venue doesn’t provide natural acoustics that improve the sound, and in fact, the outdoor setting poses some significant challenges for audio engineers. But even so, a night at Red Rocks featuring an artist you love simply can’t be beaten.

Here’s a look at our favorite parks in Denver.

Lots, and lots of pot dispensaries

After hundreds of dispensaries began popping up after Colorado first legalized recreational marijuana in 2012, Denver residents pondered whether the number of dispensaries would soon eclipse the number of Starbucks. By 2016, Denver was home to twice as many dispensaries as Starbucks, according to Business Insider.

It’s tricky to pin a concrete number on pot dispensaries that are currently operating because new ones are always setting up shop, but some tally the number close to 600 as of winter of 2021. Pot has become an integral part of Denver’s cultural identity, and if you’re skeptical of this fact, just head to town and smell for yourself.

World-famous breweries and a trend-setting beer culture

In addition to being home to some of the most celebrated breweries in the world, Denver hosts the Great American Beer Festival every late September or early October, which happens to be the biggest beer festival in the United States. It’s also one of the most influential beer-focused gatherings on the planet.

You’d be hard-pressed not to find breweries in any decent-sized American city these days, but that wasn’t the case three decades ago, back when Denver’s craft beer brewers were hard at work innovating in basements and garages before the microbrewing trend caught on nationally and then internationally. Some of Denver’s most influential and celebrated breweries include Crooked Stave, Great Divide, TRVE, and Renegade.

Lots of sunshine every year but maybe less sunny days than you think

Every day, people move to Denver thinking they’re in for an average of 300 days of sunshine a year, and every day, they are wrong. Yes, Colorado gets lots and lots of sunshine compared to the rest of the country, but the 300 number comes from a railroad publicist in the 1870s who was working to attract tourism from the East Coast.

The publicist not only knew nothing, or very little we can assume, about climatology, but also spread the falsehood before climate records in the area were recorded.

While the publicist’s claim might have been completely untrue, you’ve got to give the guy credit because after 150 years, people still think it’s true, and there’s no sign of the lie losing its staying power anytime soon.

Exploding housing costs and hip neighborhoods

Denver’s become one of the most popular places to move to in the United States, and unfortunately, the ballooning demand for housing in the city has come with steep costs not only for newcomers but for the people who were already living here. Take a look at the years 2020 to 2021, for example. That year, rents jumped 16.5% while house prices skyrocketed 21.5%.

If you’re going to live here, it’s going to cost you. However, if you come from a place like New York City, Seattle, San Francisco, or LA, Denver is still considerably less expensive.

With music venues, bars, art galleries, and unique shops, neighborhoods like Baker, the Highlands, and RINO have become some of the most coveted locations in the city to live in or visit. Plus, there are a plethora of previously overlooked spots, such as West Colfax, Globeville, and Berkeley, getting lots of attention. Even areas in Aurora and Lakewood have become too expensive to rent or buy a home for many Coloradans.

A place looking to the present and future to find its identity, not the past

There are a couple of fascinating locations that shine a light on its past, like the Brown Palace Hotel and Spa, Molly Brown House Museum, Union Station, and Larimer Square. But compared to other major American cities, Denver is a place that has largely hedged its bets on the future, not the past.

If you need convincing, consider Auraria. What’s now a sprawling and visually uninspiring higher educational campus consisting of two colleges and a university was once Denver’s oldest and most historic neighborhood. In the late 60s, the city began demolishing homes and businesses in the area to make way for concrete and glass buildings that would later house the Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and the University of Colorado Denver.

250 businesses and 33 business homes were displaced, and many residents from the largely Hispanic and working-class neighborhood relocated to the nearby Lincoln Park Homes housing project. Thousands of residents and business owners lost their communities, and the cultural toll on the city is incalculable.

While events like the National Western Stock Show highlight the city’s Western heritage, Denver heavily prioritizes modernity over its historical legacy and origin story.

Light and commuter rail service

America’s western cities are largely car-centric, and many lack public subway and rail transportation. Denver is not one of them. The city’s light and commuter rail lines connect over 50 stations throughout the metro area.

One of the most important routes is from Union Station (located in Downtown Denver) to Denver International Airport, which sits 23 miles east of town. With the city’s population exploding in recent years with no end in sight, public transportation has been critical in alleviating traffic conditions by taking cars off the road. Yes, any Denver local will tell you how bad traffic has gotten recently, but how much worse would it be without light rail?

From the Denver Mint to the University of Denver to loads of historic buildings, holiday traditions, and prominent figures, there’s much more that could be added to this list of what’s in Denver. What’s featured here is just a bird’s-eye view of what’s happening in this growing Mountain West city.