Denver Blog

President Barack Obama's Saturday appearance at Central High School in Grand Junction was a consistently civil event, particularly compared to healthcare town halls like the one staged by Representative Ed Perlmutter earlier this month. But predictably given the number of national media representatives in town to cover the get-together, there was plenty of hubbub outside the gymnasium where Obama spoke -- and no lack of grandstanding. Above, check out a clip of a man who proudly gave the finger to Obama's motorcade. The highlight? HIm narrating his daring move with the line, "Getting ready for the flip-off...." Hope he didn't pull anything.

After the jump, check out two more videos: a photo montage that attempts to equate healthcare opposition to patriotism by substituting natural sound for a stirring rendition of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." as well as footage featuring a woman sure that the current plan won't let her keep her current doctor, but uncertain what part of the bill creates this edict. She also points out that Obama isn't God, because only God is God. Betcha it says that right on His driver's license. His truth is marching on!

Photo by Jonathan Shikes

The new-urbanist enclave of Highlands' Garden Village.

Last week, the Congress for the New Urbanism held its annual conference in Denver -- an event we commemorated with examinations of Bradburn Village, Highlands' Garden Village and several other New Urbanist developments in the city; find them in our Not-So-New Urbanism archive. As for the conference itself, the issues debated there are currently being chronicled on the Huffington Post by Frank Gruber, a columnist for the Santa Monica Lookout News. He's posted three dispatches thus far, with the first, "New Urbanism: Very Misunderstood," setting the stage for the discussions to follow by, among other things, sharing some of the criticism levied against the movement. He writes:

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new-urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out which is the most urban of the new urban.

On a sunny summer morning, with the sun glinting off the nearby cornfields and recent rains having turned the parks a deep emerald green, Prospect looks too good to be true. But this is the reality of not-so-new urbanism.

Prospect, which is just down Main Street in Longmont, turned an eighty-acre tree farm into Colorado's first new urbanism community, winner of the Governor's Smart Growth Award in 1996. Developer Kiki Wallace hired Duany Plater-Zyberk (DPZ), the planners of Seaside, Florida, and Kentlands, Maryland, to make real his vision for his family's farm, and the results today are stunning. The architecture ranges from modern to Southwestern to victorian to old mining shack; the landscaping is mature, and trees shade the narrow, winding streets.

But there is trouble in this paradise: The project, now in its fourth stage, is still short of the planned 585 units, and many of the retail spaces in the charming little downtown are empty. Still, the long-term prospects of Prospect look good. Very, very good.

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new-urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out which is the most urban of the new urban.

In some ways, it's not fair to compare Highlands' Garden Village with other new-urbanist developments. Conceived in 1998 and built on the site of the former Elitch Gardens amusement park, it benefits from being in the middle of an already established, vibrant neighborhood with an existing street grid, businesses, multi-cultural population and old-urbanist pedigree. Comprising only 27 acres, it is also smaller than other new-urbanist developments, measuring three blocks long by two blocks deep.

The homes here include front porches, balconies or decks, while the Village itself was built with alleys, garages behind the houses, sidewalks, small parks, a community garden and beautiful trees and flowers planted by the Denver Botanic Gardens. But there also are few backyards to speak of, oddly curved streets, ugly communal mailboxes and a complete lack of privacy that could make for either really good or really bad neighbors.

Photo by Melanie Asmar

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out for sure just which is the most urban of the new urban.

Lowry is big. The ten-year-old new urbanist development occupies 1,866 acres in east Denver, 800 acres of which are dedicated to playgrounds, ball fields and an eighteen-hole golf course. The rest is taken up by shops, towering office complexes, schools, a museum and library and about 3,500 houses and apartments ranging from modest condos to stately mini mansions.

Before Lowry was dominated by wide sidewalks and dog-walkers, it was an Air Force base. The military closed the base in 1994, but by then, Denver and Aurora -- 11 percent of Lowry is in Aurora -- already had plans to redevelop it. By 1998, the first residents of the new Lowry had moved in.

Today, Lowry seems like the ideal place to host a neighborhood garage sale or play street hockey until dusk. But the abundance of perfectly manicured lawns and artsy bus stops -- not to mention the plethora of parking outside the grocery store -- makes it feel the opposite of urban.

The view west from Founder's Green...

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out for sure just which is the most urban of the new urban.

Forest City's developers had an urban vision for the site of the old Stapleton Airport when they began planning what it would look like in 1998. But, today, its 10,000 or so residents may be much more interested in suburban perks than urban ones.

I crossed through the portal into Stapleton on a Wednesday morning and found moms and dogs and little kids and chai lattes. From my vantage on Founder's Green, the most striking thing about the neighborhood is its symmetry.

On one side is the E. 29th Avenue Town Center -- a tidy little vein of cozy commercial comforts. On the other is a huge, straight street with friendly young trees and colorful brownstone knockoffs. Both extend into the distance. Standing there, it's hard to imagine the real world of North Park Hill, just a few blocks west.

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out for sure just which is the most urban of the new urban.

I made my maiden voyage to Belmar -- the mixed-use development in the irregularly beating heart of Lakewood -- at around 6 p.m. on a recent weekday evening. It's a nice time to experience a neighborhood. It's a time, between work and dinner, between day and night, that active people engage the place they've chosen to live. In Wash Park, young families walk the dog or water the plants. In Highland or LoDo, ties are loosened and pints tipped. In Greenwood Village, high school kids swarm into Chipotles, still sweaty from whatever it is they were practicing, their parents swooping through parking lots to pick them up or waiting busily at home.

In Belmar? Sad to say, nothing.

Church, steeple, but where are all the people at Bradburn?

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out for sure just which is the most urban of the new urban.

Bradburn Village is a 125-acre new urbanist development in the north end of Westminster along 120th Avenue. The collection of homes, apartments and businesses is brought to you by local firm Continuum Partners, the same master planners behind Belmar and the massive Union Station redevelopment.

But while the above projects are considered "urban infill" of formerly-used sites, Bradburn Village was constructed atop virgin soil amid the prototypical suburban developments that we've all come to know and accept. Thus, it's a bit of an oddity -- a development with a suburban footprint but "urban" ambitions. One online poster described the place as "like a charming pre-WWII town, but new," a phrase that kinda makes my skin crawl but is essentially accurate.

My basic assessment: If you had to live in Westminster, this would probably be a good place to do it.

The Congress for the New Urbanism is holding its annual conference in Denver June 10-14, complete with bus tours of our most well-known new urbanist enclaves. But how do you judge walkable, neighborhood-based developments? Is it by the diversity (or lack thereof) of their residents, the number of parks nearby, their stumbling distance to a local watering hole? Over the next few days, we'll explore and judge -- oh yes, judge -- six of these developments and find out for sure just which is the most urban of the new urban. But first, enjoy Kenny Be's take on new urbanism from this still-relevant 1996 cartoon. Click here to view a larger PDF image of the complete cartoon.