City Cast Denver

We are smack in the middle of Great Outdoors Season, and it might be a good time to remind you that no, you should not touch that cute baby animal. City Cast Denver Producer Paul Karolyi sits down with Jason Clay of Colorado Parks and Wildlife to talk this year’s wildlife trends. Plus, a new VOICE on the Street! This time, Denver VOICE vendor Raelene Johnson shares a poem she wrote about gun violence. The Denver VOICE provides opportunities to Denverites experiencing homelessness and other forms of economic inequity. If you’d like to support VOICE vendors like Raelene, head over to denvervoice.org/donate. They even have Venmo, so if you want to get a little help directly to Raelene, follow this link and add her name to the note attached to your transfer.Subscribe to the newsletter: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Feast your eyes on the tweets: @CityCastDenverHey, do you think some of your friends or family members would enjoy the podcast and our stellar newsletter? Refer them with this link: https://denver.citycast.fm/referrals/ and get hooked up with swag!

Lisa Calderón is one of those people in Denver politics that everybody knows. Whether she’s running to be Denver’s first female mayor or making change by working as Chief of Staff for her friend, Councilperson Candi CdeBaca, she’s built power around her name. And now she’s taking that power and reputation to Emerge Colorado — an organization that trains Democratic women on how to run for office. City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi sits down with Lisa to chat about her plans as the organization’s new executive director and why, in 2021, women still aren’t equitably represented in politics. Get the newsletter: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Get the tweets: @CityCastDenver

Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of moths? We know.It’s that time of year, when the miller moths complete their annual migration from the plains to the mountains, wreaking havoc on Coloradans along the way. This year, we caught it all on mic … except, not really. Enjoy this dramatic audio presentation from the City Cast Denver crew, which is a loose adaptation of Orson Welles’s War of the Worlds.For moth removal tips, check out this article. To learn more about the miller moths in particular, this CSU fact sheet should answer all your questions. Looking for some fun stuff to spice up your summer? Sign up for our new perks program and get personal summer recs from the City Cast Denver crew if JUST ONE of your friends subscribes with your referral link. Get your link here, and start sharing now! Learn more and get started: https://denver.citycast.fm/referrals/The tweets! Won’t someone please think of the tweets!? @citycastdenver

When longtime CEO of Denver International Airport Kim Day announced her retirement back in May, Mayor Michael Hancock called up an old friend and colleague to see if he wanted the job. That friend, former RTD CEO Phil Washington, jumped at the chance to move back from Los Angeles — can you blame him? But now that some pretty serious allegations about his time with LA Metro have come to light, Phil has got some explaining to do. Axios Denver’s Alayna Alvarez has been covering the allegations, and she chats with City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi to break it down. Plus, producer Xandra McMahon was there yesterday when City Council members questioned Phil Washington on his record, the allegations, and his plans for the future of the airport. For more on Phil Washington’s record with RTD and LA Metro, past and future City Cast Denver guest Jon Murray has the story for the Denver Post.Want to get your hands on some ferociously cool City Cast Denver swag? Sign up for our new perks program. Get your personal referral link here, and start sharing with friends you think would appreciate a little more Denver in their days. If just one person uses your link to sign up, we’ll send you our personal recommendations for summer fun in Denver. Learn more and get started: https://denver.citycast.fm/referrals/And if you’re not already getting the City Cast Denver newsletter, you can subscribe right here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/

Two years ago, Kayvan Khalatbari was running to be mayor of Denver. He had started a chain of pizza shops, helped legalize cannabis, supported numerous arts organizations, and he had big plans for managing Denver’s growth. Now he’s the ringleader of a growing group of progressive-minded Denverites decamping for Trinidad, Colorado, a small rundown town on the New Mexico border. Mutiny Information Cafe is opening an outpost down there this summer. So are the owners of Grandma’s House Brewery and the Hi-Dive. City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi sits down with Kayvan to talk about what he sees in Trinidad that he no longer sees in Denver. Plus, we’ll hear from another Trinidad booster, Denver’s iconic historical preservationist, Dana Crawford. Don’t miss another morning with the City Cast Denver newsletter! Subscribe here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Get the tweets @citycastdenver

Free love, psychedelic drugs, and the Grateful Dead: These are the tenets of Denver’s thriving jam band scene. But for decades, jam musicians say they’ve been dealing with a gatekeeper who projects a positive image while walking all over them. After some much more serious allegations against Denver’s ‘Grandfather of Jam Music’ came to light in March, some of those frustrated musicians are taking a stand. Two of the organizers behind the new Colorado Musicians Union, Aidan Pagnani and Sarah Mount, are on the show today to talk about Jay Bianchi’s role in the scene, their boycott campaign, and their plan for a more equitable local music community. Plus, one of the women accusing Jay Bianchi of sexual assault shares her story. Past (and future) City Cast Denver guest John Wenzel has been covering the allegations against Jay Bianchi for the Denver Post. Click here to read Jay’s response and more about the case.The Colorado Musicians Union is organizing a picket/protest outside So Many Roads Brewery at 5:30pm on July 1. More details are available on their Facebook page. Craving a little more Denver in your day? Subscribe to the City Cast Denver newsletter here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/And get the tweets @citycastdenver 

It’s beach-reading season, people. And one of Denver’s best novelists is back with an absolute corker of a mystery. Since he left a career in criminal justice, Manuel Ramos has published 11 novels and one short story collection — all revolving around Denver and specifically the Chicano community Manuel knows so well. His latest is Angels in the Wind: A Mile High Noir. It follows ex-con private investigator Gus Corral out of his native Northside and onto the Eastern Plains for a story rooted in family and the urban-rural divide. City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi sits down with Manuel to talk about Chicano Noir and how the genre allows him space to explore some of the darker aspects of life in Colorado.In addition to his many novels and short stories, which you can find here, Manuel is also co-founder and a regular contributor to La Bloga, the award-winning Chicana Chicano, Latina Latino literary blog.For more local authors of color, Manuel recommends checking out Mario Acevedo, who writes mysteries and thrillers with a supernatural twist; Rudy Garcia, who writes supernatural fiction geared toward young adults and children; and David Heska Wanbli Weiden, an indigenous author whose book Winter Counts was nominated for the 2021 Edgar Award for Best First Novel.The 2021 Colorado Book Awards were awarded this past Saturday. For a full breakdown of nominees and winners, click here.Looking for a little more Denver news and culture in your life? Subscribe to the City Cast Denver newsletter: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/And get the tweets @citycastdenver

We’re doing things a little bit differently today. It’s Friday and it’s Pride weekend, so City Cast Denver producer Xandra McMahon invited her friend and fellow journalist Danika Worthington to hang out and talk all things Denver Pride at the city’s last lesbian bar, Blush & Blu, which also happens to be one of the last lesbian bars in the whole country. Xandra and Danika talk about what Blush & Blu means to them, why they think lesbian bars are going away, and how they’re planning to celebrate Pride this weekend.If you haven’t heard our episode with Rex Fuller, CEO of The Center on Colfax, about his organization’s tough decision to block the police from formally participating in Pride this year, definitely go back and listen to that one this weekend. For more on Blush & Blu, here’s Danika’s profile of the place from the Denver Post back in 2017.If you’re still planning your Pride weekend, here’s a few helpful guides: How to Celebrate Pride in Denver This Week [Westword]Yes, there are in-person Denver PrideFest events this year. Here’s what you need to know. [Denver Post]Denver Pride [The Center on Colfax]Subscribe to the City Cast Denver newsletter here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Get the tweets @citycastdenver 

In the world of single-use plastics and Styrofoam, big changes are on the horizon for Coloradans … eventually. While Denverites will have to start paying for plastic and paper bags in July, the rest of Colorado won’t see the effects of a new bill until 2023 (if Polis signs it, of course). CPR News reporter Miguel Otárola has been following this potential plastics ban as it’s progressed through the legislature, and now that it’s poised to become law, he sat down with City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi to talk about what exactly is — and isn’t — in the bill, who opposed it, and what it means for restaurants, grocery stores, and the health of our planet.Subscribe to the City Cast Denver newsletter here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/And get the tweets @citycastdenver 

The economic recession caused by the pandemic is driving a wedge through Denver — and all of America. While many people have lost jobs or worked in dangerous conditions, many others have seen their lots in life improve, leading to explosive growth in the real estate, car, and furniture markets. It’s not an easy thing to talk about, and it’s way harder to do anything about it. That’s where Resource Generation comes in. It’s a nonprofit that helps young people with access to wealth and/or class privilege equitably redistribute money, land, and power. City Cast Denver producer Paul Karolyi chats with two members of Resource Generation’s Colorado chapter who are each an heir to a family fortune. They talk about why they’re sharing their stories now, what they plan to do with that money, and how concentrated wealth can shape our city. Craving a little more Denver in your day? Subscribe to the City Cast Denver newsletter here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/And get the tweets @citycastdenver