Kudos to Denver for closing 4 sections of city streets to through vehicular traffic, making them temporarily available for safe human use during the pandemic. Denver may be coming to the game late & timidly, but let's call it a "good start." 1/ https://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/city-of-denver-home/news/2020/denver-to-temporarily-close-select-roads-to-thru-traffic-amid-co.html

The 4 closures are oriented toward 3 city parks: City Park, Cheesman & Sloans Lake, benefiting a small number of neighborhoods. With such limited availability, we should expect people to drive from other areas of the city to these locations, parking along neighborhood streets. 2/

The 2 closures along Sloans Lake Park (Bryon Place and Stuart) are obvious & clearly needed. The long 16th Ave access to City Park from the west is a brilliant move and will be hugely beneficial for a large number of residents. The 11th Ave access to Cheesman is also smart. 3/

But many Denver residents live far from these 4 sites. Nothing east of University Ave? South of 8th Ave? North Denver? Southwest Denver? There are prominent city parks in these areas with access & peripheral streets that would be logical choices for additional closures. 4/

Suggestions: Marion Parkway from Speer/Cherry Creek to Wash Park & peripheral streets around Wash Park; roads in Ruby Hill Park; E Wesley & S Emerson approaching Harvard Gulch Park; Tennyson & 46th Ave approaching & along Berkeley Lake Park; 46th along Rocky Mtn Lake Park. /5

We have collectively made many mistakes in responding to this pandemic. One has been to treat general public health & the virus contagion as separate issues. They are not. Opening streets to safe human use offers potential for urgently-needed mental & physical health benefits. 6/

One damaging effect of the way we have allowed our city to be ruled by speeding motor vehicles has been the resulting separations between us. Generous public space for use by all of us walking, skating, bicycling, etc. can build connection & mutual awareness - social capital. 7/

We don't emerge from momentous world events - wars, pandemics - with the same economies & societies we had going in. Closing streets to vehicles should be seen not as a temporary measure but as an opportunity to experiment & to learn. Let's use this to make Denver better. 8/