Judy Montero

Backers of a new taxicab ordinance in Los Angeles are using Judy’s Hail-a-Taxi ordinance as inspiration. As reported not long ago by the Los Angeles Downtown News:

Although stepping into traffic and hailing a cab is part of the culture in urban centers such as Manhattan, Chicago and San Francisco, it remains forbidden in Los Angeles. Now, after years of quietly trying to reverse that situation, a group of Downtown leaders are speaking out.

Proponents of the so-called Hail-A-Taxi initiative have recently stepped up their efforts, meeting with Department of Transportation officials and persuading dozens of influential stakeholders to sign a letter to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa calling for the right to hail a cab.

Proponents of the plan point to a Denver ordinance as a possible model for L.A. That allows taxis to stop in traffic lanes up to 90 seconds to pick up or drop off fares.

Judy’s ordinance, you might recall, was intended in part to help handle the out-of-town crush during the Democratic National Convention later this year. The folks in L.A. have made direct contact with her, and she’s offered all the help she can. I’ll keep you posted about the outcome out there.

Big, big day tomorrow: Judy defends her title in the Tortillas for Tepeyac contest. As you no doubt recall, Judy won the Golden Rolling Pin last February, displacing reigning champion Rudolfo Cardenas, the local Univision news anchor. A host of local celebs will be gunning for her this year, including Council colleague Rick Garcia (District 1), Rocky Mountain News columnist Tina Griego, Channel 7 anchor Anne Trujillo, NEWSED president Veronica Barela, former School Board member Lucia Guzman, and Su Teatro director Tony Garcia.

It’s all for an outstanding cause — Clinica Tepeyac, the Globeville health center that provides health and dental services, pschylogical counseling, and education to uninsured children and adults. Judy is a long-time supporter and friend of the clinic, which has been in District 9 since its inception in 1995 and moved into its new, larger facility in 2006. Now located at 5075 Lincoln Street, the Clinica serves about 15,000 patients every year and is still growing.

You can purchase tickets online — $25 for an individual seat, or you can purchase a whole table for larger amounts.

. . . . and a little of that:

• A final reminder that Latina/o Advocacy Day is next Monday, February 25; if you haven’t registered yet, do it now (the deadline is today). Sunday night there will be a reception at the Adam’s Mark for Christine Chavez (Cesar Chavez’s granddaughter) and Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers. The reception’s from 5:30 to 7:30 in the Columbine Room; send RSVP to megs@gayandlesbianfund.org.
• Gang Rescue and Support (GRASP) is offering a gang-awareness training workshop for parents next Tuesday, Feb. 26, from 6 to 8 p.m. After the workshop, you can take home a copy of the Powerpoint presentation (available in both English and Spanish) to share with your neighborhood, your organization, your constituents, or anyone else who might benefit. The workshop takes place at GRASP’s headquarters, 1221 Galapagos.
• Also next Tuesday (the 26th), RTD will host a neighborhood meeting to discuss the possible placement of a rail maintenance facility in River North, along the UP tracks at the edge of the Elyria-Swansea and Globeville neighborhoods. That discussion will run from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the EXDO Event Center,  1399 35th Street.

Yesterday Judy made a cameo in the Democratic National Convention’s official blog:

In our seventh community service project in the Denver area, DNCC staff spent yesterday at Clinica Tepeyac, a community health center serving uninsured working families in Denver.  Around 20 staffers crammed around a conference table piled high with files and compiled statistical information for the clinic.  The paperwork needed to be prepared for the clinic’s application for State Primary Care Funds, which could provide Clinica Tepeyac with more than $400,000 in funding.

Joining us was Texas State Senator and Co-Chair of the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Leticia Van de Putte.  As a pharmacist for more than 28 years, Senator Van de Putte is a strong advocate for children, veterans, improved access to health care, quality education and economic development issues.  The clinic’s executive director, David Lack showed Senator Van de Putte around Clinica Tepeyac, along with DNCC CEO Leah Daughtry and 9th district City Councilwoman Judy H. Montero.

DNCC Service Days are monthly projects that focus in one of three areas: youth, greening and the combined issues of homelessness and hunger. . . . . check back soon to see video from this event.

Judy has been a friend and supporter of Clinica Tepeyac since its inception; she played an instrumental role in getting the facility funded and approved. Here’s a short profile of a Clinica Tepeyac patient; the facility is located at 3617 Kalamath Street.

The DNCC’s visit was also covered in the Denver Post.

Denver’s version of March Madness — the “Hoopin’ with Hickenlooper” citywide championship — takes place in District 9 a few weeks from now, and the sponsoring committee needs volunteers to help pull off the event. “Hoopin’ with Hickenlooper” is Denver Parks and Rec’s youth basketball program, comprising 180 teams throughout the city. The top 2 teams in each age bracket advance to the finals, which will be played on Saturday, March 8, at The Regency, 3900 Elati Street, beginning at 9 a.m. and lasting all day.

It takes a lot of logistical and setup work to stage this event. Folks are needed to do all sorts of tasks, including (but hardly limited to) such things as

• running the game clock
• cleaning the bleachers between games
• security and first-aid
• decorating the gym
• lining up sponsors
• lining up entertainment for between games
• staffing the tickets / admission table
• updating the brackets
• supplying the benches with towels / water / etc during the games

If you want to volunteer and are willing to commit a 4-hour block of time, contact John Martinez, director of Citywide Sports, at john.martinez@ci.denver.co.us.

Who knew transit-oriented-development wonks were such party animals? All the city’s greatest TOD devotees will be gathering a week from today, February 21, at Union Station for “Hooked on TOD,” an evening of hors d’oeuvres, imbibements, and meetin’-n-greetin’. If you’re not a TOD junkie yet, no worries; come on down and get indoctrinated. The gig gets going at 5:30 p.m.; RSVPs are due by next Monday, February 18 (to RSVP, send name, organization, address, e-mail, and phone to xbelousova@nat.com).

While we’re on the subject, Teresa St. Peter — Judy’s new council aide — is becoming a first-class TOD wonk this month: She’s attending the Transit Alliance Academy, an 18-hour immersive program offered by the Transit Alliance (one of the Feb. 21 event’s sponsors). Teresa is focusing her attention on two aspects of TOD: how to engage the public in a dialogue about it, and how to incorporate work-force housing into TOD planning.

Other RSVP deadlines: Next Monday (the 18th) is the registration deadline for Latino/a Advocacy Day, to be held February 24-25 at the Adams Mark Hotel downtown. The purpose is to provide briefings on issues of importance to the Latino/a community, such as education, immigration, health care, and civil rights. The event is sponsored by the Latina Initiative.

There’s still time to get tickets for the Hispanic Annual Salute’s 28th Anniversary Awards Dinner, to be held Saturday night (Feb. 16) at the Grand Hyatt downtown. Tickets for the dinner cost $75 and are available here. The proceeds help to fund this organization’s extensive college scholarship program — in the last two years, HAS has awarded 24 scholarships of $2,500 and 6 scholarships of $8,000.

It’s also time to start thinking about nominations for the Denver Public Library Commission’s 7th Annual Latino Awards. The Lena L. Archuleta Award recognizes a Colorado Latino/a who has made an impact on the cultural life of his/her community through volunteer civic involvement. The Cesar Chavez Latino Leadership Award goes to two individuals each year (one man, one woman) who have made major achievements in Denver’s Latino community. Past winners include Ken Salazar, Federico Pena, Lucia Guzman, Rosemary Rodriguez, and Roger Cisneros. The nominations are due by next Friday, February 22.

The agencies overseeing the Union Station redevelopment (that’s CDOT, RTD, DRCOG, and the City / County of Denver) have formalized their agreement with the master developer, which will operate as the Union Station Neighborhood Company (USNC). The two sides signed a letter of intent (LOI) yesterday, an important preliminary step that allows the next steps — including financing and a final Environmental Impact Statement — to proceed to completion.

There are a couple of important public-input sessions tomorrow night, February 13. A Land Use/Urban Design Breakout Group (BOG) meeting is scheduled from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m at the Webb Building , Room 4F6/4G2. This is the second meeting to review and comment on the proposed contents of the Master Plan Update. The group will continue discussing the Update, including the revised Principles of Urban Form.  (You can see a download the exisiting Master Plan from this page; development of the update began in November.) In addition, representatives from the Downtown Denver Partnership have requested time to discuss the DDP’s letter to the Executive Oversight Committee.

Immediately after that, a Transportation Breakout Group meeting will take place in the same room from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. This meeting will focus on discussion with the Lower Downtown community to identify traffic and parking issues as they relate to DUS.

How’s the North High redesign shaping up? See for yourself at the school’s Second Annual Community Open House this Wednesday, February 13, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. You’ll be able to talk to administrators and DPS Board members about how North teachers and students are faring halfway through their first academic year under the retooled curicculum. Or, better yet, ask the teachers and students themselves — they’ll be on hand too. More than 40 student clubs, teams, and organizations will be represented. Two of the school’s four cutting-edge computer labs will be open, so you can look over students’ shoulders while they demonstrate their skills in 3-D modeling, computer animation, video production, and website design. It’s an important opportunity for the community to show its support for the pioneers who are forging North High’s future. The school’s at 2960 North Speer, just east of Federal; contact Jennifer Draper-Carson at jennifer_draper-carson@dpsk12.org for more information.

You may not have heard, by the way, that the North High Collaborative School Committee voted to adopt school uniforms for North High. The mandatory gear hasn’t been selected yet and won’t be in force until the start of the 2008-09 academic year in September.

Since District 9 hosts some of Denver’s most popular art / gallery districts (LoDo, Santa Fe Drive, Upper Larimer, etc.), Judy’s keeping an eye on bill making its way through the state legislature that pertains to the serving of alcohol in art galleries. The bill, HB08-1105, would create a special “art gallery permit” that regulates how often and under what circumstances galleries may serve beer, wine, and spirits. The bill is not expected to impose any changes on galleries but rather to legitimize the status quo; galleries that serve wine for openings and special events (such as First Friday Art Walks, for example) will generally be able to operate as they always have. They’ll just have to have the permit and abide by its conditions — e.g., a gallery can only serve alcohol for 4 hours in any given day; it can only serve alcohol on 15 days in any given year; yadda yadda.

The bill is aimed not so much at the art galleries as at non-art-related businesses that pour booze on First Fridays in an effort to lure Art Walk patrons into their shops. It’s sponsored by a couple of northwest Denver legislators (State Rep. Jerry Frangas and State Sen. Paula Sandoval) and has the City and County of Denver’s formal support. Judy supports the bill — but, again, it’s a state law so she won’t get to vote on it.