Category: City Park

Nature Play Update & Slideshow, Feb. 6, 5:30 pm, Carla Madison Rec Center, 2401 E. Colfax

City Park visitors have watched with curiosity and mounting excitement as the outlines of City Park’s new Nature Play project has emerged and filled in with whimsical benches and sculptures, a 20 foot tall climeable Bighorn Sheep, a beaver dam, logs, rocks and rustic swing sets. Nature Play is the result of a partnership between the Denver Museum of Nature and Science (DMNS) and Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR). Located in the southeast corner of City Park, south of the museum, the project is designed to delight, stimulate and educate while highlighting Colorado’s eight ecosystems in play areas that follow the spine of the DeBoer Waterway. For the first time in many years, a stream will again flow through the DeBoer Box Canyon creating welcome natural spaces and a key educational tool. According to Dig Studio, who is leading the Nature Play design team, “the restored DeBoer waterway will play a key role in (highlighting) the ecosystems, illustrating how they were formed over millenia through their interaction with water as it flows from mountains to plains.”

On Tuesday, February 6, Jacqueline Altreuter, a Director of Strategic Planning and also Nature Play Project Manager at DMNS, will provide an update on the final stages of the Nature Play project.  Ed Scholz, DMNS Director of Finance and Business, will also be a presenter. Among other news, they will report on the fifty new trees and one hundred native shrubs planned for the four acre area. Native grass seed was sown throughout the space in Fall, 2024.

Jacqueline Altreuter & Faye Braaten (Chainsaw Mama) discuss site plans
Jackie will also give an update on the museum’s new East Plaza Revitalization project. Her slideshow will include new renderings of the proposed renovation and historic photos of what the area looked like originally, including the original grand staircase that lies underneath the carpeted entry to Infinity (formerly Imax) Theater. Come to learn about plans for restoring the original staircase, creating an inviting plaza for public use and remodeling the lobby of Infinity Theater. There will be a Q and A following the presentation.

The February 6 meeting will take place at 5:30 pm at the Carla Madison Recreation Center, 2401 East Colfax Avenue in the Multi-Media Room. Free parking is available to the east of the center and can be accessed from Sixteenth Avenue off York Street.

Meadows Instead of Blue Grass!
Meadows instead of blue grass!

As climate change progresses, many of us are looking at our yards and public spaces and feeling concern about the amount of water it takes to keep the traditional blue grass landscapes alive. City Park Friends and Neighbors is honored to have a speaker for the Tuesday, December 5 program who addresses the solution to our water-guzzling landscapes with knowledgeability and passion.

Michelle Simpson is an Ecological Horticulturalist and the Co-founder and CEO of Otherworlds Seed Co. She was the horticulturist for Denver’s Historic Mount Vernon garden in Washington Park where she designed and implemented its transformation from a high water, high input formal ornamental garden into a dynamic native forward public garden. She worked with the City of Denver on its resiliency task force and with members of the community to educate and empower sustainable systems and practices. She has worked in both public and private horticulture and design in Colorado for two decades.
Michelle Simpson at Mt. Vernon Garden, Washington Park
Simpson’s website, www.owseedco.com announces the Otherworlds Seed Company’s philosophy plainly enough: “Say Farewell to Turf and Hello to a vibrant, low-water meadow.” The company advocates for working with nature and not against it when planting and maintaining a garden, choosing the right native plant for the right space without using chemicals and transforming home landscapes and public spaces into “islands of habitat for insects, birds and other wildlife.”  The Otherworlds Native Landscape in a Box offers fifteen native plants and one pound of native seed, a planting map, care instructions and watering schedules
Michelle Simpson

At the December 5 meeting, Simpson will speak about the principals of ecological gardening and share a beginner’s guide to switching from turf to urban habitat. She will also discuss common garden weeds and what to do about them. A Winter Sow Mix for areas already prepped for planting will be available. Please join us at the Multi-Purpose Room at Carla Madison Recreation Center, 2401 East Colfax Avenue on Tuesday, December 5 at 5:30 pm for this outstanding program with Michelle Simpson. Parking is accessible from 16th Street off York. Light refreshments will be served. For Zoom access, go to:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0ofuCvrTMiG9HJ8irMDZOyfnvXN7z5OGNG

New Projects in City Park

A view of some trees and grass in the distance.


City Park Friends and Neighbors is pleased to present two outstanding speakers for our November 7 program:  Alex Gutierrez, Senior Manager of Outreach for the Mayor Johnston Administration and Edward Scholz, Vice President of Finance and Business Operations for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science (DMNS). Alex will speak about Mayor Johnston’s vision for Denver’s parks, particularly City Park. Alex has consulted with East Denver Parks District Planner, Mallory Roybal, about several new City Park projects in the southeast corner of City Park. One is to convert the South Meadow (the expanse of blue grass lawn south of DMNS) to a meadow of native grasses and plants. Another is the Living Land Acknowledgement that will establish native plantings in the South Meadow and also the Lily Pond suggested by local native American tribal members and community groups. The third project will convert the east playground that borders the east bank of Ferril Lake into a picnic area and gathering space. All these projects are recommendations from the 2018 City Park Master Plan Update (pg.63).  https://issuu.com/mundusbishop-denver/docs/final_city_park_master_plan_update Denver Parks and Recreation has drafted a Request for Proposal (RFP) to send to on-call contractors for these projects and anticipates beginning implementation in 2025.
East entrance, Denver Museum of Nature and Science
Ed Scholz will report on plans for the DMNS East Plaza Revitalization project that will transform the east entrance where Infinity (formerly Imax) Theater-goers enter in the evening and the plaza outside the entrance into an inviting indoor/outdoor space for museum visitors and park-goers to enjoy. The historic staircase will be revealed with removal of the existing canopy.  Designs for new landscaping, surface improvements and outdoor seating are underway. The project aims to improve program offerings like regular sensory-friendly screenings and Free Night programming and also aims to create spaces for private events, like weddings and parties. Ed will present a slideshow that shows the current design concepts for this exciting new museum project.
Alex Gutierrez

Alex Gutierrez is the son of immigrants from Aguascalientes, México. The eldest of five boys, Gutierrez began working in politics at a young age due to two major events: the September 11 attacks and the fight for LGBT+ Equality.

Wanting to give back and help the many activists who came before him, Gutierrez has spent nearly a decade in the political landscape by helping elect effective leadership and inspire community involvement and engagement.

During Mayor Mike Johnston’s Mayoral campaign, Gutierrez showcased his exceptional organizational and mobilization skills in the field all over the city from throughout the campaign. Immediately after the election he got to work as one of the Assistant Deputy Directors of then Mayor-Elect Mike Johnston’s Transitional Team by managing Transition Committees focused on five city department.
Edward Scholz

Edward Scholz is Executive Vice President of Finance and Operations for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and is responsible for all traditional administrative functions as well as guest, volunteer, and retail food operations.   He previously served in various financial roles for the City and County of Denver, including as the Budget Director, Deputy CFO, and CFO.  His studies of music and finance led him to an MBA in non-profit management from Binghamton University in NY. He is currently a member of the Audit Committee for the City and County of Denver and serves on the board of the Public Education & Business Coalition.

The program will take place next Tuesday, Nov. 7 at the Carla Madison Recreation Center, 2401 East Colfax Ave. in the Multi-Media Room off the lobby from 5:30-6:30 pm. There is parking available north of the center, accessible from 16th Avenue. We recommend attending in person to easily access Ed Scholz’s slideshow of new design plans for the DMNS east entrance. To attend the meeting by Zoom, please click here to register for the event: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwvcu6oqjwiE9XmLgh_mI0p-G_mijU4RdDD. Come with all your questions and concerns. Alex and Ed really want your feedback! Light refreshments will be served.

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