History
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Denver is in the center of the Front Range Urban Corridor, between theNeighborhoods
As of January 2013, the City and County of Denver defined 78 officialAdjacent counties, municipalities and census-designated places
Major highways
*Climate
Denver features aDemographics
As of the 2020 census, the population of the City and County of Denver was 715,522, making it the list of United States cities by population, 19th most populous U.S. city. The Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an estimated 2013 population of 2,697,476 and ranked as the List of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, 21st most populous U.S. metropolitan statistical area, and the larger Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area had an estimated 2013 population of 3,277,309 and ranked as the List of Combined Statistical Areas, 18th most populous U.S. metropolitan area. Denver is the most populous city within a radius centered in the city and of magnitude. Denverites is a term used for residents of Denver. According to the 2020 census, the City and County of Denver contained 715,522 people and 301,501 households. The population density was 3,922.6 inhabitants per square mile (6,312/km2) including the airport. There were 338.341 housing units at an average density of 1,751 per square mile (676/km2). However, the average density throughout most Denver neighborhoods tends to be higher. Without the 80249 zip code (47.3 sq mi, 8,407 residents) near the airport, the average density increases to around 5,470 per square mile. Denver, Colorado, is at the top of the list of 2017 Best Places to Live, according to ''U.S. News & World Report'', landing a place in the top two in terms of affordability and quality of lifestyle. According to theLanguages
, 72.28% (386,815) of Denver residents aged five and older spoke only English at home, while 21.42% (114,635) spoke Spanish, 0.85% (4,550) Vietnamese, 0.57% (3,073) African languages, 0.53% (2,845) Russian, 0.50% (2,681) Chinese, 0.47% (2,527) French, and 0.46% (2,465) German. In total, 27.72% (148,335) of Denver's population aged five and older spoke a language other than English.Longevity
According to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, residents of Denver had a 2014 life expectancy of 80.02 years.Economy
The Denver Metropolitan statistical area, MSA has a gross metropolitan product of $157.6 billion in 2010, making it the 18th largest metro economy in the United States. Denver's economy is based partially on its geographic position and its connection to some of the country's major transportation systems. Because Denver is the largest city within , it has become a natural location for storage and distribution of goods and services to the Mountain States, Southwestern United States, Southwest states, as well as all Western United States, western states. Another benefit for distribution is that Denver is nearly equidistant from large cities of the Midwestern United States, Midwest, such as Chicago and St. Louis and some large cities of the West Coast of the United States, West Coast, such as Los Angeles and San Francisco. Over the years, the city has been home to other large corporations in the central United States, making Denver a key trade point for the country. Several well-known companies originated in or have relocated to Denver. William Ainsworth opened the Denver Instrument Company in 1895 to make analytical balances for gold assayers. Its factory is now in Arvada, Colorado, Arvada. AIMCO (NYSE: AIV)—the largest owner and operator of apartment communities in the United States, with approximately 870 communities comprising nearly 136,000 units in 44 states—is headquartered in Denver, employing approximately 3,500 people. Also, Samsonite Corp., the world's largest luggage manufacturer, began in Denver in 1910 as Shwayder Trunk Manufacturing Company, but Samsonite closed its NE Denver factory in 2001, and moved its headquarters to Massachusetts after a change of ownership in 2006. The Qwest Corporation, Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Company, founded in Denver in 1911, is now a part of telecommunications giant Lumen Technologies (previously CenturyLink). On October 31, 1937, Continental Airlines, now United Airlines, moved its headquarters to Stapleton Airport in Denver, Colorado (before United Airlines later moved to its current home in Chicago). Robert F. Six arranged to have the headquarters moved to Denver from El Paso, Texas because Six believed that the airline should have its headquarters in a large city with a potential base of customers. Continental later moved to Houston from Denver, but merged with United Airlines in 2013. Throughout all that time, the company held a large employee base in the Denver area, which is currently home to the United Airlines Flight Training Center in the Central Park, Denver, Central Park neighborhood. MediaNews Group purchased the ''Denver Post'' in 1987; the company is based in Denver. The Gates Corporation, the world's largest producer of automotive belts and hoses, was established in S. Denver in 1919. Russell Stover Candies made its first chocolate candy in Denver in 1923, but moved to Kansas City in 1969. The Wright & McGill Company has been making its Eagle Claw brand of fishing gear in NE Denver since 1925. The original Frontier Airlines (1950–1986), Frontier Airlines began operations at Denver's oldCulture
Apollo Hall opened soon after the city's founding in 1859 and staged many plays for eager settlers. In the 1880sSports
Denver is home to a variety of sports teams and is one of 13 U.S. cities with teams from four major league sports (the Denver metro area is the smallest metropolitan area in the country to have a team in all four major sports leagues). Including MLS soccer, it is also one of 10 U.S. cities to have five major sports teams. The Denver Broncos of the National Football League have drawn crowds of over 70,000 since their origins in the early 1960s, and continue to draw fans today to their current home Empower Field at Mile High. The Broncos have sold out every home game (except for strike-replacement games) since 1970. The Broncos have advanced to eight Super Bowls and won back-to-back titles in 1997 and 1998, and won again in 2015. The Colorado Rockies were created as an expansion franchise in 1993 and Coors Field opened in 1995. The Rockies advanced to the playoffs that year but were eliminated in the first round. In 2007, they advanced to the playoffs as a wild-card entrant, won the NL Championship Series, and brought the World Series to Denver for the first time but were swept in four games by the Boston Red Sox. Denver has been home to two National Hockey League teams. The Colorado Rockies (NHL), Colorado Rockies played from 1976 to 1982, but later became moved to the New York metropolitan area to become the New Jersey Devils. The Colorado Avalanche joined in 1995, after relocating from Quebec City. While in Denver, they have won three Stanley Cups in 1996, 2001, and 2022. The Denver Nuggets joined the American Basketball Association in 1967 and the National Basketball Association in 1976. The Avalanche and Nuggets have both played at Ball Arena (formerly known as Pepsi Center) since 1999. The Major League Soccer team Colorado Rapids play in Dick's Sporting Goods Park, an 18,000-seat soccer-specific stadium opened for the 2007 MLS season in the Denver suburb of Commerce City. The Rapids won the MLS Cup in 2010. Denver has several additional professional teams. In 2006, Denver established a Major League Lacrosse team, the Denver Outlaws. They play in Empower Field at Mile High. In 2006, the Denver Outlaws won the Western Conference Championship and then won their first championship in 2014 eight years later. They also won in 2016 and 2018 and would fold in 2020 with the MLL-PLL merger. The Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League play at Ball Arena. They won championships in 2006 and 2022. In 2018, the Denver Bandits were established as the first professional football team for women in Colorado and will be a part of the initial season for the Women's National Football Conference (WNFC) in 2019. Denver submitted the winning bid to host theParks and recreation
, Denver had over 200 parks, from small mini-parks all over the city to the giant City Park, Denver, City Park. Denver also has 29 recreation centers providing places and programming for resident's recreation and relaxation. Many of Denver's parks were acquired from state lands in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This coincided with the City Beautiful movement, and Denver mayor Robert W. Speer, Robert Speer (1904–12 and 1916–18) set out to expand and beautify the city's parks. Reinhard Schuetze was the city's first landscape architect, and he brought his German-educated landscaping genius to Washington Park, Denver, Washington Park, Cheesman Park, Denver, Cheesman Park, and City Park, Denver, City Park among others. Speer used Schuetze as well as other landscape architects such as Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and Saco Rienk DeBoer to design not only parks such as Civic Center, Denver, Civic Center Park, but many city parkways and tree-lawns. Cheesman Park neighbor the Denver Botanic Gardens displays the beauty and versatility of micro-climates within the semi-arid Denver Basin. All of these parks were fed withGovernment
Denver is a consolidated city-county with a mayor elected on a nonpartisan ballot, a 13-member city council and an auditor. The Denver City Council is elected from 11 districts with two at-large council members and is responsible for passing and changing all laws, resolutions, and ordinances, usually after a public hearing, and can also call for misconduct investigations of Denver's departmental officials. All elected officials have four-year terms, with a maximum of three terms. The current mayor is Michael Hancock (Colorado politician), Michael Hancock. Denver has a strong mayor/weak city council government. The mayor can approve or veto any ordinances or resolution (law), resolutions approved by the council, makes sure all contracts with the city are kept and performed, signs all bonds and contracts, is responsible for the city budget, and can appoint people to various city departments, organizations, and commissions. However, the council can override the mayor's veto with a nine out of thirteen member vote, and the city budget must be approved and can be changed by a simple majority vote of the council. The auditor checks all expenditures and may refuse to allow specific ones, usually based on financial reasons. The Denver Department of Safety oversees three branches: the Denver Police Department, Denver Fire Department, and Denver Sheriff Department. The Denver County Court is an integrated Colorado County Courts, Colorado County Court and Municipal Court and is managed by Denver instead of the state.Politics
While Denver elections are non-partisan, Democratic Party (United States), Democrats have long dominated the city's politics; most citywide officials are known to be registered with the Democratic party. The mayor's office has been occupied by a Democrat since the 1963 municipal election. All of the city's seats in the state legislature are held by Democrats. In statewide elections, the city also tends to favor Democrats, though Republicans were occasionally competitive until the turn of the millennium. The last Republican to win Denver in a gubernatorial election was John A. Love in 1970 Colorado gubernatorial election, 1970 by a narrow majority. Bill Owens (Colorado politician), Bill Owens in 2002 Colorado gubernatorial election, 2002 remains the last Republican governor to receive at least 40% of Denver's vote. The last Republican Senator to carry Denver was William L. Armstrong during his 1984 United States Senate election in Colorado, 1984 landslide. The last statewide Republican officeholder to carry Denver was Secretary of State of Colorado, Secretary of State Victoria Buckley in 1994 by 1.2% margin, who was at the time the highest ranking African-American Republican woman in the United States. In federal elections, Denver is a Democratic stronghold. It has supported a Democrat for president in every election since 1960, excluding 1972 and 1980. The city has swung heavily to the Democrats since the 1980s; Ronald Reagan is the last Republican to garner even 40 percent of the city's vote. At the federal level, Denver is the heart of , which includes all of Denver and parts ofTaxes
The City and County of Denver levies an occupational privilege tax (OPT or head tax) on employers and employees. *If any employee performs work in the city limits and is paid over $500 for that work in a single month, the employee and employer are both liable for the OPT regardless of where the main business office is located or headquartered. *The employer is liable for $4 per employee per month and the employee is liable for $5.75 per month. *It is the employer's responsibility to withhold, remit, and file the OPT returns. If an employer does not comply, the employer can be held liable for both portions of the OPT as well as penalties and interest.Education
Denver Public Schools (DPS) is the public school system in all of Denver. It educates approximately 92,000 students in 92 elementary schools, 44 K-8 schools, 34 secondary school, middle schools, 18 high schools, and 19 charter schools. The first school of what is now DPS was a log cabin that opened in 1859, which later became East High School (Denver, Colorado), East High School. East High School (Denver, Colorado), East High School, along with the other three directional high schools (West High School (Denver, Colorado), West, North High School (Denver, Colorado), North, and South High School (Denver, Colorado), South), made up the first four high schools in Denver. The district boundaries are coextensive with the city limits.School District Reference Map (2010 Census): Denver County, COMedia
The Denver Metropolitan Area is served by a variety of media outlets in print, radio, television, and the Internet.Television stations
Denver is the 16th-largest market in the country for television, according to the 2009–201Radio stations
Denver is also served by over 40 AM and FM radio stations, covering a wide variety of formats and styles. Denver-Boulder radio is the No. 19 market in the United States, according to the Spring 201Transportation
City streets
Most of Denver has a straightforward street grid oriented to the four cardinal directions. Blocks are usually identified in hundreds from the median streets, identified as "00", which are Broadway (the east–west median, running north–south) and Ellsworth Avenue (the north–south median, running east–west). Colfax Avenue, a major east–west artery through Denver, is 15 blocks (1500) north of the median. Avenues north of Ellsworth are numbered (with the exception of Colfax Avenue and several others, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd and Montview Blvd.), while avenues south of Ellsworth are named. There is also an older downtown grid system that was designed to be parallel to the confluence of theCycling
The League of American Bicyclists rated Colorado as the sixth most bicycle-friendly state in the nation for 2014. This is due in large part to Front Range cities like Boulder, Fort Collins and Denver placing an emphasis on legislation, programs and infrastructure developments that promote cycling as a mode of transportation. Walk Score has rated Denver as the fourth most bicycle-friendly large city in the United States. According to data from the 2011 American Community Survey, Denver ranks 6th among US cities with populations over 400,000 in terms of the percentage of List of U.S. cities with most bicycle commuters, workers who commute by bicycle at 2.2% of commuters. B-Cycle – Denver's citywide bicycle sharing program – was the largest in the United States at the time of its launch in 2010, boasting 400 bicycles. B-Cycle ridership peaked in 2014, then steadily declined. The program announced it would cease operations at the end of January 2020. The city announced plans to seek one or more new contractors to run a bike-share program starting mid-2020.Electric rental scooters
In 2018, Motorized scooter, electric scooter services began to place scooters in Denver. Hundreds of unsanctioned LimeBike and Bird electric scooters appeared on Denver streets in May, causing an uproar. In June, the city ordered the companies to remove them and acted quickly to create an official program, including a requirement that scooters be left at RTD stops and out of the public right-of-way. Lime and Bird scooters then reappeared in late July, with limited compliance. Uber's Jump e-bikes arrived in late August, followed by Lyft's nationwide electric scooter launch in early September. Lyft says that it will, each night, take the scooters to the warehouse for safety checks, maintenance and charging. Additionally, Spin and Razor each were permitted to add 350 scooters.Walkability
2017 rankings by Walk Score placed Denver twenty-sixth among 108 U.S. cities with a population of 200,000 or greater. City leaders have acknowledged the concerns of walkability advocates that Denver has serious gaps in its sidewalk network. The 2019 "Denver Moves: Pedestrians" plan outlines a need for approximate $1.3 billion in sidewalk funding, plus $400 million for trails. Denver does not currently have resources to fully fund this plan.Modal characteristics
In 2015, 9.6 percent of Denver households lacked a car, and in 2016, this was virtually unchanged (9.4 percent). The national average was 8.7 percent in 2016. Denver averaged 1.62 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8.Freeways and highways
Denver is primarily served by the interstate freeways Interstate 25 (Colorado), I-25 and Interstate 70 (Colorado), I-70. The problematic intersection of the two interstates is referred to locally as "Mousetrap (Denver), the mousetrap" because, when viewed from the air, the junction (and subsequent vehicles) resemble mice in a large trap. *Mass transportation
Public transport, Mass transportation throughout the Denver metropolitan area is managed and coordinated by the Regional Transportation District (RTD). RTD operates more than 1,000 buses serving over 10,000 bus stops in 38 municipal jurisdictions in eight counties around the Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area, Denver and Boulder metropolitan areas. Additionally, RTD operates nine RTD Bus & Rail, rail lines, the A, B, D, E, G, H, L, N, R, and W, with a total of of track, serving 44 stations. The D, E, H, L, R, and W lines are light rail while the A Line (RTD), A Line, B Line (RTD), B Line, G Line (RTD), G Line and N Line (RTD), N Line are commuter rail. FasTracks is a commuter rail, light rail, and bus expansion project approved by voters in 2004, which will serve neighboring suburbs and communities. The W Line (RTD), W Line, or West line, opened in April 2013 serving Golden/Federal Center. The commuter rail A Line from Denver Union Station to Denver International Airport opened in April 2016 with ridership exceeding RTD's early expectations. The light rail R Line (RTD), R Line through Aurora opened in February 2017. The G Line (RTD), G Line to the suburb of Arvada (originally planned to open in the Fall of 2016) opened on April 26, 2019. The N Line (RTD), N Line to Commerce City and Thornton opened on September 21, 2020. An express bus service, known as the Flatiron Flyer, serves to connect Boulder and Denver. The service, billed as bus rapid transit, has been accused of bus rapid transit creep for failing to meet the majority of BRT requirements, including level boarding and all-door entry. A commuter rail connection to Boulder and its suburb of Longmont, also part of the FasTracks ballot initiative and an extension of the B Line (RTD), B Line, is planned to be finished by RTD, but no construction funds have yet been identified prior to 2040. RTD is currently considering an interim commuter service which would run rush-hour trains from Longmont to Denver. The Colorado Department of Transportation runs Bustang, a bus system that offers weekday and weekend service connecting Denver with Grand Junction, Colorado, Grand Junction, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Gunnison, Colorado, Gunnison. Greyhound Lines, the intercity bus operator, has a major hub in Denver, with routes to New York City, Portland, Oregon, Portland, Reno, Nevada, Reno, Las Vegas, and their headquarters, Dallas. Subsidiary Autobuses Americanos provides service to El Paso. Allied bus operators Black Hills Trailways, and Burlington Trailways provide service to Billings, Montana, Billings, Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha, Indianapolis, and Alamosa, Colorado, Alamosa. Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Denver, operating its ''California Zephyr'' daily in both directions between Union Station (Chicago), Chicago and Emeryville, California, across the bay from San Francisco. Amtrak Thruway service operated by private bus companies links the Denver station with Rocky Mountain points. In 2017 the Colorado legislature reinvigorated studies of passenger rail service along the Front Range, potentially connecting Denver to Fort Collins and Pueblo, Colorado, Pueblo, or further to Amtrak connections in Cheyenne, Wyoming and Trinidad, Colorado, Trinidad. At Albuquerque, New Mexico, Denver Thruway connections are made daily with the Amtrak ''Southwest Chief''. Additionally, the Ski Train operated on the former Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, which took passengers between Denver and the Winter Park, Colorado, Winter Park Ski Resort, but it is no longer in service. The Ski Train made its final run to Winter Park on March 29, 2009. The service was revived on a trial basis in 2016 with a great amount of local fanfare. Further development of a mountain corridor rail option, though publicly popular, has been met with resistance from politicians, namely the director of Colorado Department of Transportation. The Ski Train did return to service under Amtrak with the name "Ski Train, Winter Park Express" in 2017, and currently runs only on Saturdays, Sundays, and major holidays during the winter ski seasons. Denver's early years as a major train hub of the west are still very visible today. Trains stop in Denver at historic Union Station (Denver), Union Station, where travelers can access RTD's 16th Street Free MallRide or use light rail to tour the city. Union Station (Denver), Union Station will also serve as the main juncture for rail travel in the metro area, at the completion of FasTracks. The city also plans to invest billions to bringing frequent public transit within one-fourth of a mile of most of its residents.Denver public transportation statistics
The average amount of time people spend commuting on public transit in Denver and Boulder, Colorado—for example, to and from work, on a weekday—is 77 minutes; 31% of public transit riders ride for more than two hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 14 minutes, while 25% of riders wait for over 20 minutes, on average, every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is , while 31% travel over in a single direction.Airports
Denver International Airport (IATA: DEN, ICAO: KDEN), commonly known as DIA, serves as the primary airport for the Front Range Urban Corridor surrounding Denver. DIA is east-northeast of the Colorado State Capitol and opened in 1995. DIA is the 3rd busiest airport in the world with 58.8 million passengers in 2021; it had the 5th highest number of passengers in the U.S., 61 million, in the pre-pandemic year 2019. It covers more than , making it the largest airport by land area in the United States and larger than the island of Manhattan. DIA serves as a major hub for United Airlines, is the headquarters and primary hub for Frontier Airlines, and is a major focus city and the fastest-growing market for Southwest Airlines. In 2017, Denver International Airport was rated by Skytrax as the 28th-best airport in the world, falling to second place in the United States behind Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Skytrax also named DIA as the second-best regional airport in North America for 2017, and the fourth-best regional airport in the world. Three general aviation airports serve the Denver area. Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (KBJC) is north-northwest, Centennial Airport (KAPA) is south-southeast, and Colorado Air and Space Port (KCFO), formerly Front Range Airport, is east of the state capitol. Centennial Airport also offers limited commercial airline service, on two cargo airlines. In the past, Denver has been home to several other airports that are no longer operational.Notable people
Twin towns – sister cities
Denver's relationship with Brest, France, began in 1948, making it the second-oldest sister city in the United States. In 1947, Amanda Knecht, a teacher at East High School, visited World War II–ravaged Brest. When she returned, she shared her experiences in the city with her students, and her class raised $32,000 to help rebuild the children's wing of Brest's hospital. The gift led to the development of the sister city program with Brest. There were serious efforts in the early 2000s, in both Denver and Sochi, Russian Federation, to establish sister-city ties, but the negotiations did not come to fruition. Since then, Denver has established relationships with additional sister cities: * Brest, France, Brest, France (1948) * Takayama, Gifu, Takayama, Japan (1960) * Nairobi, Kenya (1975) * Karmiel, Israel (1977) * Cuernavaca, Mexico (1983) * Potenza, Italy (1983) * Chennai, India (1984) * Kunming, China (1985) * Axum, Ethiopia (1995) * Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (2001)See also
* Colorado ** Bibliography of Colorado ** Index of Colorado-related articles ** Outline of Colorado * List of counties in Colorado * List of municipalities in Colorado * List of places in Colorado * List of statistical areas in Colorado ** Front Range Urban Corridor ** North Central Colorado Urban Area ** Denver-Aurora, CO Combined Statistical Area ** Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical AreaExplanatory notes
References
External links