City Cast Denver

It’s time for another City Cast Denver food fight! This time, the crew chows down on fried chicken, and tries to determine who does it best. Today on the show, producer Xandra McMahon is joined by host Bree Davies, newsletter writer Peyton Garcia, and special guest Keith Garcia, artistic director of the Sie FilmCenter, for an epic poultry battle. After narrowing it down to four top fried chicken spots in the city, the team mulls over flavor profiles, grease level, crispy-ness, seasoning ratio, and more — all in full ASMR-detail. Tune in to find out if your favorite bone-in, crispy fried chicken joints made the cut! If this episode left you hungry to learn more about the Welton St. Cafe, here’s the episode we recorded with Chereka Dickerson there a few weeks ago: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3rdkWgdzdsL3FwtwM289DcLooking for cool stuff to do this weekend? Check out Peyton’s Friday event round-up in our newsletter: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Serve up your own fried chicken hot takes directly to us via Twitter: @citycastdenver

“As we are all keenly aware, our community is experiencing a disturbing rise in crime,” said Mayor Michael Hancock on February 3, as he stood alongside Police Chief Paul Pazen to unveil their new plan for public safety. Today on the show, City Cast Denver host Bree Davies sits down with Pazen to break down the plan. They discuss the role Pazen sees for harm reduction at Union Station, the logic behind DPD’s “hot spot” approach to stemming gun violence, and the human impact of the surprising recent spike in vehicle theft.We did not walk into this interview with Pazen expecting to talk about vehicle thefts, but it’s clearly top of his mind. So in our newsletter today, Producer Paul Karolyi dug into the recent spike, including the one piece of legislation Pazen said is to blame: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/If you’re a Twitter person, follow us! We love to tweet @citycastdenver

The pandemic has created a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to tackle Colorado’s housing crisis. At least, that’s according to our guest today, State Senator Julie Gonzales. She’s been leading a task force of state lawmakers to figure out how best to spend $550 million in federal pandemic relief to help get our housing market back under control. But this is a big, multi-faceted problem with tons of moving pieces and strong feelings. And isn’t housing normally a local issue? City Cast Denver host Bree Davies sat down with Gonzales to hear what her task force is recommending, why now is the time for a statewide approach to what has traditionally been a local issue, and how this unique moment has led to some surprising bipartisanship. Find the Affordable Housing Transformational Task Force’s whole report of recommendations here: https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/affordable_housing_report_final.pdfSubscribe to the CCD newsletter for more Denver news fresh every weekday in your inbox: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Show us some love on Twitter: @citycastdenver

Before comedian Josh Blue was headlining world tours and making Simon Cowell bust a gut on America’s Got Talent, he was living in Cap Hill spending every night at Denver’s legendary club — Comedy Works. It was there that he got to rub elbows with some of his heroes, and work on routines that would launch him into comedy stardom. City Cast Denver host Bree Davies chatted with Josh about his recent America’s Got Talent run, how his cerebral palsy has shaped his comedy, and why he thinks Denver is one of the best cities for this industry. More Denver happenings are just a few clicks away. Subscribe to the CCD newsletter here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Follow us on Twitter! @citycastdenver

Whether you’re spending the day in love with love or grumpy with the greeting card companies, this Valentine’s Day special episode is for you. Because we asked you for your best Denver love stories — tales about that special someone, place, or pet — and we were bowled over by all the good Denver-y vibes you shared. So join Host Bree Davies as she listens and reacts to a few of your Denver love stories. And don’t miss today’s CCD newsletter! We’ve got EVEN MORE of your Denver love stories there to share: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Which Denver love story was your favorite? We’ll tell you ours if you tell us yours on Twitter. We’re @citycastdenver. 

Even with Omicron slowly waning, Denverites are still not going downtown at a rate anywhere close to pre-pandemic levels. The lack of hustle and bustle has led the City of Denver and the Downtown Denver Partnership to propose yet another plan to “reactivate” the 16th St. Mall: rent-free pop-up shops to fill all the empty storefronts. Host Bree Davies and Producer Paul Karolyi speculate on the future of downtown with Westword editor Patty Calhoun. Then, Colorado’s own skiing sensation Mikaela Shiffrin shocked the world this week at the Beijing Olympics, prompting another round of the age-old debate: Should Denver make a bid to host the Winter Games? For more on Denver’s unique relationship with the Olympics, check out our two-parter from last summer: The Case For A Denver Olympics (with Downtown Denver Partnership board chair Robert Cohen) The Case Against A Denver Olympics (with former Colorado governor Dick Lamm)  Paul mentioned that even elephants are getting into yoga in Denver now. Here’s a gallery of photos courtesy of The Denver Gazette: https://denvergazette.com/multimedia/elephant-yoga-at-the-denver-zoo/collection_52340c18-888e-11ec-9d91-874d09fbd4e4.htmlIt’s your last chance to submit a Denver love story before Valentine’s Day on Monday! Email yours to denver@citycast.fm or leave us a voicemail: (720) 500-5418. If you don’t have plans yet, we’ve got a round-up of Valentine’s Day events in our newsletter today. You can read that and subscribe here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/What do you think about Denver hosting the Olympics? Let us know on Twitter @citycastdenver. 

The King Soopers strike last month showed Coloradans what organized labor can accomplish to improve working conditions… but what about public workers, who don’t currently have the right to collective bargaining under state law? That’s where the Communication Workers of America (CWA) 7799 comes in. They’re a coalition of workers at Denver Public Library, the University of Colorado, Denver Health and UC Health who are working with state lawmakers to beef up Colorado’s labor laws and, they say, strengthen our public institutions in the process. Adjunct professor Alex Wolf-Root and library worker Liana Kiddy-Gan join host Bree Davies to talk about why collective bargaining is so important for public workers like themselves.To find out more about CWA 7799 and ways to get involved in the fight for collective bargaining rights, visit their website: www.cwa7799.org Wolf-Root mentioned that collective bargaining tends to help close race and gender gaps in the workplace. A true academic, he passed along a few links to relevant research after the interview: “How today’s unions help working people” and “The Union Advantage for Women.” Colorado House Majority Leader Daneya Esgar explains her support for their campaign in this editorial for The Gazette: https://gazette.com/denver-gazette/we-owe-public-employees-collective-bargainingAnd here’s your reminder to send us your Denver love stories by this weekend, for inclusion in our special Valentine’s Day episode! Leave us a voicemail at 720-500-5418, or email us at denver@citycast.fmGet your Denver food news fix in today’s newsletter! You can read it and sign up at https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/And join the conversation on Twitter! @citycastdenver

There are so many people experiencing homelessness in Denver. And in some ways, Colorado’s problem is bigger than any other state’s — according to a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development study, Colorado’s “chronically sheltered” population has grown more than 250% in the last 14 years. Recently, two 9News reporters discovered that this uptick in folks looking for shelter has led them to places they’ve not typically gone before — like the airport. Jeremy Jojola and Zack Newman are back on the show to discuss their latest investigation into why arrests have tripled at the airport in the last few years, and how it’s all connected to Denver’s greater housing crisis. Definitely check out Jeremy and Zack’s original report: https://www.9news.com/article/news/investigations/homeless-crisis-denver-airport/73-096826a3-658f-4036-a3d3-83bba7fda134And keep sending us your Denver love stories! Call us at 720-500-5418, or send us an email at denver@citycast.fm, and tell us about that special person, place, or pet. For more Denver news fresh in your inbox every weekday morning, subscribe to the CCD newsletter: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Follow us on Twitter @citycastdenver

One day in 1925, Kate Slaughterback and her adopted son Ernie were riding horses near Hudson, Colorado, when they were beset by rattlesnakes. Being no ordinary frontierswoman, Kate shot and clubbed 140 of them to death, earning her the nickname Rattlesnake Kate. Nearly 100 years later, another extraordinary Colorado woman stumbled across a dress made entirely out of rattlesnake skins and found herself beset by inspiration. A former member of The Lumineers, Neyla Pekarek wrote and recorded her first solo album based on Kate’s story a few years ago, and now, with help from the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, she’s adapted it into a full-blown musical. Host Bree Davies sits down with Pekarek to talk about what she saw in the little-known story of Rattlesnake Kate and why she deserves her place in the history of the Old West. “Rattlesnake Kate” is in previews this week ahead of the big opening this Friday. You can learn more about it and find tickets here: https://www.denvercenter.org/tickets-events/rattlesnake-kate/Plus, after hearing about the upheaval in the Douglas County School District yesterday, we checked in with parents Nara Altmann and Ishmeet Kalra. They helped create DougCo Schools’ equity policy in 2020, which the new conservative board majority has been dismantling alongside their efforts to oust former superintendent Corey Wise and cancel mask mandates. Catch our episode with Altmann and Kalra from last August about the equity policy here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ksJbnJksbUQdvIyVBjcK1At the end of last week, Mayor Michael Hancock announced a series of new public safety programs and policies. Peyton’s got a full rundown in today’s newsletter, which you can read and subscribe to right here: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Are you excited to see Rattlesnake Kate: The Musical? Let us know on Twitter: @citycastdenver

In a private (and allegedly illegal) meeting last week, two conservative members of the Douglas County School Board issued Superintendent Cory Wise an ultimatum: resign or be fired. It was the latest in months of drama between students, teachers, parents, administration, and the newly elected, now-majority conservative board. Colorado Newsline reporter Chase Woodruff was on the ground in Castle Rock when thousands of protesters were gathering outside district offices last week, and he joins host Bree Davies to explain what’s been happening in DougCo’s contentious school district and why it all went off the rails at Friday night’s impromptu board meeting. You can read Woodruff’s latest piece on the situation in DougCo, which was published before Wise’s firing, here: https://coloradonewsline.com/2022/02/04/protest-douglas-county-school-board-oust-superintendent/Check out our daily newsletter for an even deeper dive on the DougCo drama: https://denver.citycast.fm/newsletter/Chat with us on Twitter: @citycastdenver