By | JULY 9, 2019 | Westword
A deal set to close on Thursday will put 155 acres of open space in the heart of northeast Denver — currently the Park Hill Golf Club — into the hands of developer Westside Investment Partners. The deal is the latest episode in a contentious and lawsuit-ridden negotiation between the city, current owner Clayton Early Learning, and locals who don’t want to see the land built up.
One of the loudest recent voices in the fight is former mayor Wellington Webb, who thought that his administration had protected the land permanently over twenty years ago. “The goal was to save the land as open space,” says Webb, who had no intention of being a stalwart on this issue — “I hoped somebody else would do it. I’m semi-retired!” — but now feels compelled to speak out.
“[Open space] is what makes cities unique,” he says. “Cities without open space, they tend to [have] too much density, too many crowds…just a terrible way for a city to live.”