DENVER — Denver Mayor Mike Johnston’s decision to reduce hours at city recreation centers is not going over well with community leaders.
The mayor said the reduction is needed to help the city deal with the ongoing migrant crisis. But some are worried the move will have negative consequences for Denver’s youth.
In January, Johnston asked every city department to look at potential cuts to help the city address the migrant crisis. The mayor said the city could spend up to $180 million supporting migrants this year.
“Everything is on the table for us,” Johnston said. “We’ll have to look at how we continue to reduce the number of people that we serve. We’ll have to look at what changes we make to the types of services we provide.”
On Friday, Johnston announced the city had identified about $5 million in cuts. Much of that is coming from the Parks and Recreation Department.
All 30 rec centers in Denver will reduce their hours beginning Feb. 20. Regional rec centers, which are currently open seven days a week, will now only open for six days. Summer programming will be reduced by 25 percent.