DENVER — A local group has filed a new lawsuit to try to stop Denver from redeveloping the old Park Hill Golf Course.
There is currently a conservation easement on the property. The decision on whether to remove the easement or not will ultimately be left up to Denver voters in April.
The most recent plan approved by the city would turn the 155-acre space into affordable housing, grocery stores and park space with trails.
On Friday, 'Save Open Space Denver' and other residents, including former lawmakers and business owners, filed a lawsuit against the City of Denver.
"The lawsuit is prompted by the fact that the Hancock administration and the city council are showing that they're hell-bent on supporting the developer," said Woody Garnsey, a North Park Hill resident for the last 50 years.
The group claims rezoning the land from the prior conservation easement was done illegally. One of their concerns is the rejection of a petition that would have required the council to use a super-majority vote to rezone the area.
"There are requirements under the state statute for how a conservation easement can be terminated. Some of the claims that we're making in the lawsuit are that the city, both the city administration and city council are ignoring the state statute," said Garnsey.
Denver7 reached out to the City of Denver's attorney's office for a comment on this lawsuit but hasn't heard back as of Saturday night.
According to their website for the project, they say the decisions by the city council align with the community vision for the area and were the results of extensive community outreach.
"We as taxpayers and citizens, who care about the environment, and who care about the future of the city, and who are concerned about the fact that our population in the last 20 years has more than doubled, and we're losing open space. And once it's gone, it's gone forever," said Garnsey.
