# DowntownDenverGID.com: Proposed 120-Block Downtown Denver GID Overlay Fact Sheet

> Independent public-record briefing for Upper Downtown and LoDo condo owners, apartment renters, HOA boards, and small businesses ahead of the Downtown Denver Partnership (DDP) & Progressive Urban Management Associates (P.U.M.A.) BID/GID Open House on Tuesday, November 10, 2026 (4:00–7:00 PM at 1515 Arapahoe St., Suite 100, Denver, CO 80202).

Canonical URL: https://downtowndenvergid.com/
Parallel Golden Triangle Case Study & Parcel Calculator: https://stopthegid.com/
Last Updated: 2026-11-05

## Core Principle: Residents Shouldn't Pay Twice for Basic City Services

1. **Paying Three Times for Basic Municipal Duties**
   - Downtown condo owners and apartment renters already pay:
     1. **Citywide property and sales taxes** (General Fund 9.628 mills, 0.25% Caring for Denver crisis-response tax funding STAR, 0.25% Parks Legacy tax, GO infrastructure bonds).
     2. **Dedicated City & Downtown assessments**, including DOTI's twice-yearly **Ord. 307 Sidewalk Enterprise fee** ($150/yr + $3.50/linear ft over 230 ft) and the expanded **$570M+ Downtown Development Authority (DDA)**.
     3. **Monthly apartment rent or $450–$900/mo condo HOA dues** that already fund private snow removal, sidewalk shoveling, trash operations, tree care, and building security.
   - Under Colorado's Business Improvement District statute (**C.R.S. § 31-25-1203(2)**), residential condos and apartments are **100% exempt and pay $0** into the commercial Downtown Denver BID. Overlaying a General Improvement District (**C.R.S. § 31-25-601 et seq.**) permanently shifts commercial district costs onto Downtown housing—and under **HB25-1090** (effective Jan 1, 2026), landlords fold building-wide property tax increases into apartment Base Rent at lease renewal.

2. **"Resident-Led GID" Claim vs. Colorado Law (C.R.S. § 31-25-609 & § 31-25-611)**
   - P.U.M.A.'s official November 10, 2026 Open House flyer (*"Share Your Priorities for Downtown"*, contact `naomi@pumaworldhq.com`) invites attendees to *"Learn about efforts to modernize the Downtown Denver Business Improvement District and form a resident-led General Improvement District,"* and UpDoNA's November 3, 2026 President's Message states *"The GID would be managed by a board of those paying the assessments."*
   - **Statutory reality**: Under **C.R.S. § 31-25-609** and Slide 7 of the Denver Department of Finance's October 27, 2026 City Council presentation (*2027 Plan & Budget Approvals - GIDs, BIDs & TID*), **Denver City Council sits ex officio as the Board of Directors of every municipal GID** and approves its annual tax levy and budget (any advisory committee is Mayor-appointed, not elected by residents).
   - **Zero 10-Year Sunset**: Unlike the commercial Downtown Denver BID (which requires 10-year City Council renewal, e.g. `CB21-0657`, and allows taxpayer dissolution petitions under `C.R.S. § 31-25-1225`), **0 of Denver's 6 enacted GIDs contain a 10-year sunset**, and `C.R.S. § 31-25-611(1)(a)` grants GIDs "perpetual existence" with zero taxpayer petition right to dissolve (`C.R.S. § 31-25-625`).

3. **Certified 2026–2027 Downtown BID Budget Squeeze & 14th Street GID Misdirection**
   - **Commercial Office Revenue Drop (Legistar File 26-1593 / Clerk Filing 2003-0778-X)**: Certified City budget tables show Downtown Denver BID revenue fell **-13.9%** in 2026 Original ($11,957,306 vs. ~$13.89M in 2025 Amended) and suffered another **-5.7%** mid-year cut in 2026 Amended to **$11,280,662** (**-18.8% cumulative drop**, forcing -6.5% O&M cuts to $5,622,081 and -3.7% Safety cuts to $1,276,284 while Admin + "Other" rose +3.7% to $3,865,672). Every seat on the DDBID Board is held by commercial office landlords/managers or hotel executives (Kittredge Ventures, Gart Properties, Sage Hospitality, Brookfield Properties, JLL, Hines, Thompson Hotel).
   - **14th Street GID Comparison (Legistar File 26-1594 / Clerk Filing 2009-0629-AK)**: Proponents cite the 14th Street GID as the example—omitting that 14th Street GID levies **0.000 mills** (funded by $550,012 in non-mill corridor capital and maintenance charges) across an **83.9% commercial** property base.
   - **Parallel Denver Rollout**: P.U.M.A. is simultaneously running the Golden Triangle GID study next door (https://stopthegid.com/), where 0 mailers were sent to 6,746 homes ahead of a November 20, 2026 survey cutoff—following Cherry Creek's 2025 Phase 1 GID study, which mailed estimated cost postcards and was stopped after **65.25%** of 354 responses marked "Not Interested."

## Key November 2026 Dates

- **Monday, Nov 9, 2026**: Denver City Council First Reading on 2027 Downtown Denver BID Operating Plan & Budget (`File 26-1593`, $12,083,223 proposed expenditure).
- **Tuesday, Nov 10, 2026 (4:00–7:00 PM)**: **DDP / P.U.M.A. BID/GID Open House** at Downtown Denver Partnership (`1515 Arapahoe St., Suite 100, Denver, CO 80202`).
- **Monday, Nov 16, 2026**: Denver City Council Second Reading (`File 26-1593`) and Public Hearings sitting as ex officio GID Board of Directors (`File 26-1594` 14th St GID & Denver's other GIDs).
- **Friday, Nov 20, 2026**: Parallel Golden Triangle GID Phase 1 survey cutoff (https://stopthegid.com/).