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Neighborhood Life
N e i g h b orh o o d L i f e • F E B R U A RY 2 0 1 5
City Park West • Whittier • San Rafael • Uptown • Curtis Park • Five Points
F E B R UA R Y 2 0 1 5
Restaurant Week simplifies things One week with multi-course meals for $30 per person By Jason McKinney
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he 11th annual Denver Restaurant Week will take place Feb. 20-March 1. Last year the event was split between two weeks, one in February and another in August. This year, things are going back to how they were previously. There will be one week with multi-course meals, offered at $30 per person, which is the same price that was featured last year. In the past, prices have continued to go up, so this is good news for diners. Denver Restaurant Week pricing is in line with similar events in other cities across the country. “We talked to restaurant owners and employees, diners, sponsors and restaurant week fans, and the consensus was that seven Restaurants offer a days was too short, but 14 consecutive days was too long,” said multi-course dinner for Justin Bresler, vice president of the fixed price of $60 marketing for VISIT DENVER. “The perfect ‘best of both for two, or $30 for one. worlds’ compromise appears to be to run it for ten days, encompassing two complete weekends in the traditional slow period of February.” Restaurant participation dropped by 100 eateries during last year’s August period because of the large amount of conventions that are in Denver during late summer. The menus for 2015 (which feature over 300+ restaurants) are currently available online at denverrestaurantweek.com. Diners can search by cuisine, gluten-free and vegan options, and neighborhood, including eateries in Highlands Ranch, Westminster, Castle Rock, Lone Tree and other Denver suburbs. For the price of $30 per person, diners will receive a three-course meal that typically includes a starter, entree, and dessert. Certain participating restaurants will also feature drink specials and meal add-ons.
Metro CareRing to open new facility
PHOTO BY JEFF HERSCH
NEITHER RAIN NOR... kept Maria from her appointed rounds last month.
Colorado Bike Summit 2015: Connecting Communities By Christa T. Palmer
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he Colorado Bike Summit will be held Feb. 9-10 at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 1420 Stout. The Summit is a two-day program geared to educate and empower attendees, and identify common bicycling issues and solutions in local communities. The event is also geared to dem-
onstrate the power of a unified voice to the state legislature and set priorities for improving the future of bicycling in Colorado. The Summit features two days of breakout sessions focusing on bike lanes, women and biking, moving biking forward and communities and related topics. Gabe Klein, commissioner of the Chicago Department of
Transportation and a visionary in the US transportation scene, will be the keynote speaker. The event is sold out for 2015 but sponsorships and donations are still needed. For information about the Summit, including sponsorships, contact Amy Morfas, the Bicycle Colorado Deputy Director at amy@bicyclecolorado.org or call 303-417-1544 ext. 15.
Hunger relief & prevention organization moves to 18th & Downing By Dina Berta
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onstruction on a new facility for hunger relief organization Metro CareRing is nearing completion at 18th & Downing and should open in early March, said Executive Director Lynne Butler. “We are excited to be staying in this community as a hunger relief and prevention organization offering one-stop shopping for free, fresh foods as well as education and training,” Butler said. Metro CareRing broke ground last May on its 16,000 sf Hunger Relief Center at 1100 E. 18th. Founded in 1974, the program is currently housed in a 4,500sf facility at 16th & Ogden. Metro CareRing staff and volunteers will begin moving in later this month. Butler noted that the new center is ideally located on Denver’s health corridor, which is lined by Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente and the new St. Joseph’s hospital. “It’s on four bus lines,” she said. “People can access us. The neighbors also have been wonderful and supportive.” Metro CareRing’s mission is to provide nutritious food to hungry families and individuals while promoting self-sufficiency. The non-profit fed nearly 18,000 hungry families during its 2013 fiscal year and distributed more than 1.8 million pounds of food. Local businesses, grocery stores, churches, organizations and individuals donate up to 99% of the food to Metro CareRing. The organization also assists program participants with paying their utility bills, applying for public benefits, obtaining bus passes and acquiring employment readiness training. The new center will include a south-facing greenhouse donated by See METRO CARERING on page 15
PHOTO BY JEFF HERSCH
METRO CARERING’S NEW HUNGER RELIEF CENTER at 1100 E. 18th
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