Volunteer Happy Hour: Wed Feb 4

Neighborhood Spotlight: Elyria

Nathan Heffel wrote an article titled, "Globeville And Elyria-Swansea: Gentrification Wary, But Looking For Change", which reflects some of the challenges currently faced by residents in the Elyria neighborhood.
 

Credit: Nathan Heffel / KUNC

You’ve most likely driven through the Globeville/Elyria-Swansea neighborhoods, or more precisely, you’ve driven over them. Sitting at the junction of Interstates 70 and 25, the community of roughly 3,000 has been dissected by several elevated portions of interstate. For lifelong residents like Liliana Flores Amaro and her extended family, the gigantic gray slabs of concrete are a physical reminder of what the area has endured. “You know, it’s really funny,” muses Flores Amaro. “There’s sort of a contradiction where people in different areas of the city might not even know that we’re in Denver, right?.”

VIEW SLIDESHOW 2 of 8

Brick homes built in the 20's sit between factories and rail yards.

Nathan Heffel KUNC

With the revitalization, there’s a fear of gentrification in the neighborhood. Other renovation projects in Denver, such as the Northside and Highland neighborhoods have pushed a once largely immigrant population away as home prices have soared. “People want to be able to have amenities and services that any other neighborhood has in Denver, and still be able to afford to live there,” Flores Amaro said.



The Yards at the National Western Stock Show
Credit: National Western Stock Show

One of the most recognizable parts of the Elyria neighborhood, particularly during the month of January in Denver, is The National Western Stock Show, an integral part of the neighborhood since the early 1900’s. 

 

To read the full article, click here.

For more information, check out our website - http://www.extremecommunitymakeover.org/About/Elyria.aspx 

ECM Board Member, Judson Robertson

Board Member, Judson Robertson 

I became involved in Extreme Community Makeover because I witnessed true impact on my first day of serving. The idea of coming alongside neighbors and serving with them, instead of for them, helped bring the community together. It encourages neighbors to talk to one another and they may have never interacted before. This brings about community and truly improves the lives of the people living there. Also, ECM can be replicated in any city across the world and have direct impact on the community it serves because we are not in for one day and out. We stay for years and help the area transform. That is why I became involved.

ECM helps bring communities together and gets residents talking. The shovel and paint brush are tools to bring communities closer by working alongside one another. Our goal is to have neighbor helping neighbor and hope we can be the catalyst to bring about this conversation. Other organizations come in for a day and leave, but we are there for years at a time. This develops trust and consistency in areas where that is uncommon. Over the years, the communities change for the better because neighbors know each other and are committed to the change.

January Extreme Endeavors: Is Your Goal to Volunteer This Year?

Extreme Community Makeover Newsletter  January Extreme Endeavors January 2015

In This Issue Looking for a Place to Store Our Tools Save the Dates: Feb 4, 22, & 28 Foundation Partner: The Denver Foundation Church Partner: Restoration Community Church December Volunteers Quick Links About ECM  Contact ECM           Donate  Help ECM build stronger communities in Denver through your financial support.     Checks can be made to:   Extreme Community Makeover    and sent to:    Extreme Community Makeover PO Box 102586 Denver, CO 80250-2586 With a new year upon us, a number of possibilities exist.  Whether or not you make resolutions at the start of the year, you are probably anticipating what the year holds in some way.  I know we are excited to see what the year holds for Extreme Community Makeover at least!  If one of your goals is to volunteer or get more involved in your local community, it would be great to talk with you about how you can do just that through ECM this year.   Angela Bomgaars, Executive Director  Volunteer Snapshots Working together 2015 ECM Work Day Dates Here are the dates for Saturday Work Days in 2015:   April 11 April 25 May 2 May 16 May 30 June 13 June 27 July 11 July 25 August 8 August 22 September 12 September 26 October 3 October 17 October 31

Looking for a Place to Store Our Tools ECM has a number of tools such as brooms, rakes, shovels, a lawn mower, and a variety of other things and we are looking for a storage place where we can keep them, preferably in an easily accessible location to the neighborhoods where we work.  If you have any ideas or leads, please contact Angela to share your thoughts.  We would like to figure this out in the next month or two so that we have time to move all the tools to their new home in anticipation of projects starting up again in the spring. Save the Dates: Feb 4, 22, & 28 More details will be available next month but there are a couple events coming up in February we would like to invite you to attend.   Wednesday February 4 at 5:30 pm: This event will be the first of three volunteer happy hours to take place this year.  The goal is for you to connect with other people around Denver who are also interested in volunteering, while learning more about the ways to volunteer through ECM.  The location will be determined soon, so check our website for those details. Sunday February 22 at 5:00 pm: Cheer on the Colorado Avalanche at a game vs the Tampa Bay Lightning.  Tickets will be available on our website soon with $27 tickets in the upper level and $57 tickets in the lower level.  $5 of each ticket sold will be donated to ECM.   Saturday February 28 at 10:00 am: This ECM Work Day will look a little different than our typical yard work and painting projects.  Instead, volunteers will be following up with residents ECM assisted in 2014 to gain their feedback about the project help they received, along with asking for input about their neighborhood through one-on-one conversations.     Foundation Partner: The Denver Foundation  The Denver Foundation is a community foundation that inspires people and mobilizes resources to improve life in Metro Denver.  In 2013, the Foundation and its donors awarded more than $47 million in grants.  ECM is extremely appreciative to be one of the recent recipients of an economic opportunity grant and eagerly anticipate partnering with The Denver Foundation to improve the quality of life for many Denver residents.    Church Partner: Restoration Community Church Restoration Community Church is a group of people simply trying to follow Jesus.  From the beginning, they designed their services as a safe place for people to explore faith and grow in their relationship with God, regardless of where they are in their spiritual journey.  At Restoration you can be yourself, build life changing friendships, and make a difference in the world both locally and globally.  One of the ways Restoration is doing just that is through their partnership with ECM.  Thanks for your support both financially and with your time!   December Volunteers Thank you to Front Range Christian School for volunteering in December!

Thank you for partnering with ECM to make a difference in Denver neighborhoods!       Sincerely,   Extreme Community Makeover

Neighborhood Spotlight: La Alma/Lincoln Park

Chosen by the American Planning Association as one of the nation’s great American neighborhoods in 2014, La Alma/Lincoln Park is also one of Denver’s oldest neighborhoods.  ECM has been working in this neighborhood since 2009, working with hundreds of residents to complete projects, along with hosting our annual "Art is in the Air" event at an art gallery in the Art District on Santa Fe, located in the heart of this neighborhood.

URBAN   La Alma-Lincoln Park is a vibrant, mixed-use, urban community with parks, major health services, an arts district and cultural facilities, a major grocery store, and proximity to downtown and multiple institutes for higher education, arts, and culture.

TRANSIT-ORIENTED  It is well-served by a variety of transportation options, including good light rail and bus service, bike routes and B-Cycle stations, and a rotating inventory of car2go vehicles. With all of the options in place, residents here can feel free to walk, too.

CULTURED  It is a diverse neighborhood that maintains its Latino cultural identity, is home to the Santa Fe Arts District and Colorado Ballet, and provides easy access to Denver’s theater district, museum district, and major sports and concert venues.
 

HISTORIC It is also one of Denver’s oldest neighborhoods; 93% of its residential blocks were half or more developed before 1900 and the remaining 7% developed between 1900 and 1914. Seven locations are on the National Register of Historic Places, four are Denver Historic Landmarks, and 20 qualify for historic preservation under Chapter 30 of the Denver Revised Code.

COMMUNITY  The neighborhood provides homes, jobs, and services for a wide variety of ages, lifestyles, economic circumstances, ethnic groups, and family types. Most housing is affordable at a variety of levels ranging from subsidized housing to middle-level market rate. There is a mix of small-lot single-family units, duplexes, row houses, and low-, mid-, and high-rise apartment buildings. The neighborhood is currently growing and enjoying both public and private economic reinvestment.

For more information, check out our website - http://www.extremecommunitymakeover.org/About/LaAlmaLincolnPark.aspx.

Go Green and Recycle

Go Green and Recycle 

Recycling your Christmas tree is as easy as 1, 2, 3 with Denver Recycles/Solid Waste Management’s annual Treecycle program, which runs January 5 through January 16, 2015.

By recycling your tree through the Treeycycle program, you can help keep trees out of the landfill, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help create mulch that is available to Denver residents for free at the annual Mulch Giveaway in the spring.

Here’s how to recycle your Christmas tree:

1.   Remove all decorations and the tree stand. NO artificial or flocked trees. Real evergreen trees only!

2.   Set your tree out for collection during the first two full weeks of January. Your tree will get picked up by a special tree collection truck for recycling.

3.   Reclaim free mulch made from your tree at the Treecycle Mulch Giveaway and LeafDrop Compost Sale on Saturday, May 2, 2015.

Please note, collection days and set-out locations depend on your trash service type. Manual & Cart customers should set trees out at their trash set-out locations by 7 a.m. on their trash collection day during the week of January 5 or the week of January 12. Dumpster customers should set trees in the alley by 7 a.m. on either Monday, January 5 OR Monday, January 12 for collection sometime during the respective week.

Do not place trees in carts or dumpsters. Trees placed in dumpsters are mixed in with other trash and do not get recycled. Instead, trees should be placed at least 2 feet away from dumpsters and other obstacles for collection by the special tree-only collection truck.

Last year, Denver residents recycled more than 20,000 trees. 

For more information about Treecycle, the Treecycle Mulch Giveaway and LeafDrop Compost Sale, or other Denver Recycles programs call 311 (720-913-1311) or visit DenverGov.org/DenverRecycles.

By Photo and tree by Magnus Manske (From wiki en: Christmas_tree.jpg) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

Foundation Partner: The Denver Foundation

The Denver Foundation is a community foundation that inspires people and mobilizes resources to improve life in Metro Denver.  The mission of The Denver Foundation is to inspire people and mobilize resources to strengthen our community.  Since 1925, The Denver Foundation has helped generous people be catalysts for good by building charitable legacies.

As Colorado's oldest and largest community foundation, they help people give back to Metro Denver in ways that are meaningful -- to them and to the community.  In 2013, the Foundation and its donors awarded more than $47 million in grants.  ECM is extremely appreciative to be one of the recent recipients of an economic opportunity grant and eagerly anticipate partnering with The Denver Foundation to improve the quality of life for many Denver residents. Thank you for your support!