DENVER — On a snowy and cold Opening Day for the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field, Ballpark Ambassadors were putting their program to the test.
Since their launch last month, 16 full-time ambassadors have been patrolling more than 40 blocks around the ballpark, from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.
"All hands on deck," said Luke McCarthy, Operations Manager of the Ballpark Ambassadors Program.
The ambassadors focus on cleaning, safety and outreach.
On an average day, team members will do everything from picking up trash, pick weeds, break up fights and point visitors in the right direction.
On game day, McCarthy is getting to see his team's work in action during the neighborhood's busiest time.
"This is kind of like a coming-to-fruition moment for us," said McCarthy.
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As Rockies fans flooded the sidewalks around the stadium Friday afternoon, McCarthy showed Denver7 just some of the things ambassadors are looking out for.
"I’m looking anywhere from the gutter line up to the private property line...That could be bodily fluids, that could be somebody vomiting, that could be trash," he said.
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.
Property owners pay a fee, which is based on property value, into the GID budget each year. During a press conference in early March, 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.
McCarthy said the ambassadors keep track of their work through an app.
From March 10 through the 31st, the team made contact with nearly 150 people who are unhoused, helping connect them to services, cleaned up almost 120 biohazards, emptied more than 600 garbage cans, filled more than 300 bags of trash and cleaned up almost 50 instances of graffiti.
You can take a look at more of the Ballpark Ambassadors work here in the March 2025 Report below:
But it's not all dirty work for McCarthy and his team.
It's about building a better Ballpark atmosphere.
"I know we can’t do that on our own, it takes a community effort," said McCarthy.
No matter what happens on the field, McCarthy wants his work off the field to be a home run.
"We’re out here to make sure everyone can enjoy, work and play in the BallPark community safely," he said.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.