DENVER — Mayor Michael Hancock (D-Denver) said he expects downtown to be completely open and a full-capacity crowd at the 2021 Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Game at Coors Field on July 13.
"We believe we'll be back to full pedestrian counts and we'll have a vibrant, full downtown," Hancock said. "I just left a meeting with Major League Baseball that's in town preparing for the game, and we reiterated that commitment."
Hancock shared his outlook while launching a campaign with city leaders on Wednesday to help revive downtown and its businesses from the pandemic.
The Denver's Ready campaign aims to help employers bring their employees back to Denver offices responsibly and "re-energize our businesses and center city," according to joint news release from the Downtown Denver Partnership, Gary Community Investments, COVID Check Colorado and the Regional Transportation District (RTD).
"Partners with the Denver's Ready campaign have been working to diligently ensure a safe, welcoming downtown for employees to return, residents to enjoy and visitors to partake in all that we have to offer," said Tami Door, president and CEO of Downtown Denver Partnership.
Door urged business leaders to reopen their offices and bring back employees, saying that is an essential step toward revitalizing downtown Denver.
Mike Johnston, CEO of Gary Community Investments and chair of COVID Check Colorado, said that access to testing and vaccines are crucial to ensuring a safe return.
Johnston said efforts will include walk-up testing and easy access to vaccines throughout the downtown area.
He also encouraged business that want to require employees to get tested in certain situations and get vaccinated, as long as there are exemptions for certain health and religious reasons.
RTD General Manager Debra Johnson said it has implemented mask requirements, daily cleaning and sanitizing of buses, rail cars and facilities to keep those spaces safe and encourage use of all public transportation options.
Last week, Hancock and city officials rolled out strategies to drive Denver’s recovery forward from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hancock said the goal is to build back in a way that creates a broader foundation for more people to prosper and seize opportunities in the city. He stressed the importance in investing in infrastructure that will help create jobs and local businesses regain ground lost during the pandemic.
In an effort to help restaurants struggling during the pandemic, Denver’s outdoor patio program will be expanded through October 2022.
Denver will host the 2021 Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Coors Field.
"It's been a long year, and I can think of nothing more energizing to help advance our recovery and to boost our economy than by bringing the 2021 midsummer classic back to the Mile High City," Hancock said during an official announcement in April.
The July 13 game was set to be played in Atlanta, but MLB pulled out after a new voting law was enacted in the state.
The last time the game was played in Colorado was in 1998, but the city had been in talks with MLB to host a future game and submitted a bid for 2024. The Rockies had supplied a detailed plan for hotel, event space and security that took months to assemble, and MLB staff had already made several site visits to Denver.
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