Denver voters on Tuesday night will determine the fate of the $950 million Vibrant Denver bond proposal put on the ballot by Mayor Mike Johnston and the City Council.
The bond package, broken into five categories on voters’ ballots, would finance about 60 capital projects across the city over the next six years.
Ballot Issues 2A through 2E cover transportation, city facilities, parks, housing, and health and human services. If voters approve all of them, the city will sell $950 million in bonds to pay for a list of projects in each category. The city would then pay bondholders back over time using property taxes. The proposal wouldn’t raise taxes because it would use part of the existing rate to repay the debt.
Voters were asked to decide on the project categories individually, meaning each could pass or fail on its own.
About half of the proposed bond dollars would go toward transportation projects, which includes street and bridge repairs and improvements. The other half was split between projects to improve libraries, cultural facilities, parks and recreation centers, and other city buildings.
Johnston announced the latest bond proposal in February. His administration then led a series of community meetings asking for input on which projects should benefit from the bond.
Category-specific bond committees whittled down the list and made recommendations, followed by a review by an executive committee that made further suggestions to the mayor’s office. Johnston’s team ultimately made the final choices for which projects would be included.
After a series of frustrated negotiations over the project list, the council approved the final project list in August.
The most costly proposals in the package include $89 million for improvements to the West Eighth Avenue viaduct, $75 million for construction of a new combined facility for first responder training and $70 million for the buildout of Park Hill Park. There are also dozens of projects that would receive relatively smaller contributions if the package is approved.
Johnston said the bond was a necessary step to improve life in Denver. He pointed to the fact that the package wouldn’t raise taxes as a major selling point.
But opponents of the bond said it was fiscally irresponsible for the city to take on more debt rather than pay for projects up front.
Supporters have far outraised opponents of the bond. As of Friday, the Vibrant Denver Bond committee reported raising more than $1.9 million. The top contributors have been former DaVita CEO Kent Thiry, who’s given $100,000; Gary Advocacy LLC, which has given $75,000 and is associated with Gary Community Ventures, formerly led by Johnston; and Jacobs Engineering Group, which has also contributed $75,000.
The opposition group “Citizens for NO New Debt” reported raising about $8,000.
Denver voters typically approve bond packages. Much of the most recent bond package passed in 2021, with just one of the five ballot questions failing.
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