DENVER — Monday felt like a spring day in Denver: 70 degrees and sunny.
Opening Day for the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field is still more than three weeks away, but Monday was opening day for about 18 new ambassadors that will patrol 40 blocks around the ballpark, from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.
Last fall, businesses and residents in the Ballpark District decided to create a General Improvement District (GID) for the neighborhood. The Rockies and other organizations support the GID.
“They came together because they wanted to make a difference in their district,” said Luke McCarthy, operations manager for the Ballpark Ambassadors. “They wanted to see a change.”
Property owners pay a fee, which is based on property value, into the GID budget each year. During a press conference last week, representatives from the GID said that equates to $1.3 million for the 2025 budget, with the district anticipating that number to be closer to $2 million after outreach to other funding sources.
That funding will go toward the Ballpark Ambassadors, with the stated goals of safety and security, cleaning and maintenance, outreach and navigation for people experiencing homelessness, and overall hospitality.
“We’re the eyes and ears on the street for the emergency services,” McCarthy explained. “So we're the first first responders before we can get the people the help they need.”
That includes people living on the street.
McCarthy said ambassadors train with “outreach specialists” with the Denver Police Department “on how to handle maybe an aggressive, unhoused situation.” He added that the ambassadors’ company, Block by Block, provides de-escalation training for speaking with the unhoused. Block by Block serves similar street outreach programs across the country.
“No one is armed, no one is to cause conflict or any confrontation on the street in public space,” said McCarthy. “We build profiles on these [unhoused] individuals to be able to see exactly what resources they need and get them long-term assistance to get off the street.”
The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless was part of the early conversations surrounding the GID. Cathy Alderman, chief communications and public policy officer for the coalition, said those conversations were “very productive,” despite the organization having some hesitations.
“Operating in the downtown Denver area, we've seen different attempts at privatizing security, and sometimes that does lead to harassment or, you know, an air of enforcement against people experiencing homelessness,” she explained. “We just wanted to make sure that if folks are, you know, approaching people that are living outside, or who are forced to wait outside until a shelter opens, that they're doing it compassionately and with the goal of maybe resolving some of their issues, instead of just trying to get them to move out of sight.”
Alderman said like any program of this nature, there will likely be adjustments needed and “the devil’s in the details,” but she is optimistic that the program will make progress.
“Anytime you have a diverse group of business owners and a particular neighborhood that come together to create, you know, a better environment for everybody, that it sparks collaboration, and you start to get to know your neighbors better,” she said.
The General Improvement District is hiring an executive director, while the ambassadors program is also hiring.
“A lot of the ambassadors are your Denver locals,” McCarthy told Denver7. “They live around this neighborhood. They come and were born [and] raised here. They really want to see the improvements themselves. And it's time they rolled up their sleeves and got to work.”
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