City of Denver to Host Earth Day Fair
Civic Center Park Wed., April 22
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
New this year – bring in items to be recycled or reused
The City and County of Denver is inviting everyone to visit the 2009 Earth Day Fair on Wednesday, April 22 in Civic Center Park from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The family-friendly fair is free and open to the public, and the City is encouraging people to bring in items to be recycled or reused.

Attendees can learn about all types of sustainable and green activities going on in our communities. More than 45 exhibitors representing all types of environmental organizations will be present and displaying information on energy conservation, recycling, composting, pollution prevention, transit options, renewable energy, saving water, natural resources and much more.

Earth Day is an annual celebration to honor our planet and to raise environmental awareness. It is a day for individuals to stop and think about how their actions impact our environment and what they can do to help protect it.

REUSE & RECYCLE PROGRAM
Items will be collected at the fair and reused or recycled. Items that will be accepted at the fair will include:
•B-Logistics – Books; CDs
•Curbside HHW Collections Inc. – Cell phones
•Denver Green Team Project – Compact Fluorescent Bulbs and Batteries
•Dept. of Environmental Health – Small non-rechargeable batteries (carbon-zinc, alkaline, lithium) and small rechargeable batteries (lithium-ion, nickel-metal hydride, Ni-Cad, sealed lead-acid)
•Dex – Directories and phone books
•EcoGreen Office – Used or empty printer cartridges
•Ecologic Designs – Climbing ropes, wetsuits and neoprene booties, inner tubes from bikes (no slime or thorn-resistant tubes), vinyl banners (any usable sheeting larger than 6 sq feet)
•Goodwill – Clothing; household items
•Green Irene LLC – Sneaker and old tennis shoes
•Green Up Our Schools – Print cartridges, cell phones, iPods
•Guaranteed Recycling Xperts – Cell phones and PDA’s
•PeaceJam – Cell phones

There will be a special Earth Day Fair parking price of $3 all day at the Cultural Complex Garage (12th Ave. and Broadway, enter on 12th Ave.)

The 2009 Earth Day Fair is sponsored by the City & County of Denver in partnership with Denver Environmental Health, Denver Public Works, Facilities Management, Greenprint Denver, Office of Economic Development, Parks & Recreation and Solid Waste Management/Denver Recycles.

Go to denver.gov for the latest information and a list of vendors for the Earth Day event.

Denver Parks and Recreation announces their Dog Park Master Planning & Policy Recommendation Process

Denver— Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) is in the process of kicking off a Dog Park Master Planning & Policy Recommendation Process. The ultimate outcome of this process is intended to foster healthy relationships between dog owners, non-dog owners, and all park users. This includes improving Denver’s parks and open spaces to support and accommodate all users in a healthy, sustainable environment.

A major component of the community input process is a public survey. Citizens are asked to go to www.denvergov.org/parksandrec and complete the 15-minute dog park survey. Responses will be accepted through April 30, 2009. Space is provided within the survey for individuals to leave their contact information for future meeting notification and opportunity to be involved with various committees.

This City-wide effort will evaluate and examine Denver’s current pilot dog parks, provide design options and recommendations (site specific), as well as provide enforcement recommendations. Internal and external committees will provide recommendations and help guide the public process. Public meetings also will be held City-wide for community input. Out of this effort, we also hope to establish community involvement and on-going partnerships with off leash dog areas and dog parks.

Tentative Timeline:
March 2009— Survey released on Parks Website. This survey will allow citizens to provide insight and input on current and future off leash dog areas and dog parks in Denver.

June 2009— Public Input Meetings. Process and Document Public Input. (Meetings are not yet scheduled).

September / October 2009— Final Master Plan Development, Final Policy Development, Committee Meetings, Public Meetings of Final Recommendations.

Working together to address common issues
As a part of the City’s master planning efforts, Denver Parks and Recreation has partnered with Public Works and Environmental Health to work toward more strategic, long-term programs and policies that address several topics related to dog ownership and responsibility. Some of these topics include public outreach around dog waste, off-leash dogs, dog licensing, vaccination, and enforcement. Denver Parks and Recreation is also considering additional pilot off-leash areas while the master planning process is taking place in order to address immediate concerns of safety and well-being in some of Denver’s most dog-populated areas. We hope that by teaming up with our sister agencies, we will offer a more comprehensive plan that addresses the myriad of issues associated with dog waste, water quality and quality of life issues.

Regarding dog waste, Denver Parks and Recreation spent more than $35,000 on dog waste bags in 2008. It has been decided that the City forgo the old dog waste stations and provide new self-service stations that require citizens to re-stock bags with their own. Providing such standards will preserve tax payer money. The self-service dispensers have been used in various locations throughout the City successfully and are regularly full. We also will be rolling out a pilot project in early summer with a company that will install and maintain dog waste stations in 5-10 parks at no cost to the City. If this pilot project is successful, we hope to roll it out system-wide to help with our overall dog waste management goals.

Many other strategies are being considered for implementation, including enforcement of City ordinances and community outreach efforts. Angela Casias has been designated as the point person for all dog issues. She may be reached at angela.casias@denvergov.org or 720-913-0741.

Call for volunteers: Create Denver Expo

Saturday, March 21
9:00am – 4:00pm
Wellington E. Webb Municipal Office Building
201 W. Colfax Ave.

To All City and County of Denver Employees: We Need Your Help! The Denver Office of Cultural Affairs (DOCA) will host the 4th annual Create Denver Expo on Saturday, March 21, from 9:00am – 4:00pm in the Webb Building. The program is designed to give artists and creative entrepreneurs the tools necessary to build better business tactics and best practices.
Thirty (30) exhibitors, including City departments, nonprofit organizations, associations and creative business owners, will host booths in the Atrium and present 40 workshops in classrooms on the Second and Fourth Floors.

Volunteers are needed in the following roles and shifts:
• Set-up Support (7:30am – 9:30am)
•Exhibitor/Presenter Check-in Table (8:30am - 12:00pm)
•Workshop Registration Table (2 shifts: 7:45am – 11:30am & 11:30am -3:00pm)
•Workshop Room Managers (2 shifts: 8:30am - 12:00pm & 12:00pm - 4:00pm)
•Tear-down Support (3:00pm – 4:30pm)

Volunteers will be asked to:
•Wear a volunteer T-shirt (provided by DOCA)
•Attend a brief training session on Friday, March 13, from noon – 1pm in Room 1D1 of the Webb Building
•Wear a watch
•Utilize your cell phone for communication between floors

Volunteers will be provided:
•Free breakfast including coffee from Coffee Etcetera Espresso Bar
•Free lunch catered by Qdoba
•Free parking in the Cultural Complex Garage for those who do not already park in the Webb Building. Passes are limited and will be distributed first to those who volunteer for two shifts
•A great opportunity to get to know other City employees and folks from the larger community
•DOCA’s undying gratitude!

Sign Up to Volunteer!
For more information and to sign up to volunteer, please e-mail or call Tyler Neufeld at tyler.neufeld@denvergov.org or 720-865-4303.

For more information about the event, please visit www.denvergov.org/CreateDenver.

Recreation Task Force Recommendations

After 16 community meetings and reviewing the community's priorities for the recreation system, the Recreation Center Task Force is ready to present their Draft Recommendations at five Community meetings. The Task Force members, facilitated by GreenPlay, LLC and the National Civic League, will present these recommendations and solicit feedback. After all of the community meetings, the Task Force will reconvene to submit final recommendations to Kevin Patterson, Manager of the Parks and Recreation Department.

The five community meetings will be held from 7:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. at the following locations and dates:
-Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009
ML King Recreation Center, 3880 Newport St.
-Wednesday, February 4th, 2009
East High School Cafeteria, 1545 Detroit St.
-Thursday, February 5th, 2009
Swansea Recreation Center, 2650 E. 49th Ave.
-Tuesday, February 10th, 2009
Harvard Gulch Recreation Center, 550 E. Iliff Ave.
-Wednesday, February 11th, 2009
Barnum Recreation Center, 360 Hooker St.

Supporting neighborhood businesses

We are already starting to see the fallout from bad economic times along The FAX.  We have lost two restaurants recently along The FAX – Spin-n-Chicken and more recently Bruno's Saloon. We can expect to see more vacant spaces in the coming year so we need to do everything we can to encourage residents to shop locally, especially along The FAX.  The more we can bring residents and business owners together so folks begin to think about using businesses along The FAX, the better off we will be. 

This brings to mind the importance of the First Tuesday on The FAX program. Plus it is just downright fun to meet with folks with a common interest in our part of town.

Remember to attend the next 1st Tuesday event at the 9th Ave Grill @ 9th Avenue and Jersey Street on February 3rd.  

Mayfair Neighborhood Association President Scott Babcock frequently posts news relevant to Mayfair at this site. Bookmark it and visit often to find out what’s going on in the President’s head!