Civic Center Park

Civic Center Park is a large and beautiful park in downtown Denver. Even though I was only in Denver for about a week during my vacation last week, it seems that there are plenty of events always going on in this park.
My husband and I were over at the Denver Art Museum and decided to check out this event that was going on and seeing if we might find something for lunch where the food trucks were at (there is a restaurant at the museum on the 1^st floor in case you rather eat there if visiting the museum).
There were plenty of vendors, friendly people and so forth.
Wished there were more trees though for shade.
If only I had traveled with my dogs, I would not hesitate to bring them here.
Definitely a cool freebie that is a must to check out if in Denver. Love how this park is in the middle of the historical attractions (The Capital, US Mint) and other must visits (The Denver Art Museum for example).
As for the parking, there are some street parking (metered) and also some lots (not free). You can also try your hand at parking in the residential area and walking over (a few blocks away, but be mindful of the parking time limits).

Civic Center Park is a great park that is nestled in the heart of Downtown Denver. Ive been to this park many times for many different events. This park connects you to many historic and popular buildings and attractions such as the state capitol building, the Denver art museum, The Denver Public Library, city county building and much more. This park has many beautiful displays of flowers, trees and fountains. Any trip to Downtown Denver should be accompanied by a visit to civic center park.

This park was nice & clean for the 3^rd of July, Independence Eve Firework show & concert.
The concert promptly started at 5:30. Ended around 6:30 and there was nothing else until after 9pm… Not good and I won’t be back for the show again.

Denver native here.
There are a few instructive tips about this park that would probably help people.
1) Unless there’s a special event going on, avoid this park and Lincoln Park across the street like the plague — and Lincoln Park in the summer is even worse.
2) Denver City Council does not allow the Denver Police to enforce loitering laws, so people can linger at will all over the place and they do so all around downtown Denver, especially at Civic Center/​Lincoln Park and sprawled on the lawns of churches all around downtown. The city is very loose with vagrancy and due to this, the entire Civic Center/​State Capitol area has been an embarrassing eyesore for as long as I can remember.
3) Be aware of your surroundings and do not take out money or a wallet out of your pocket.
4) Do not give to a panhandler or you may get robbed.
5) Be aware for discarded hypodermic needles in the grass.
6) It has nice views of the skyscrapers and plenty of nice cute begging squirrels to feed, but consider the above before indulging in these things.
7) Please do not bring children on a field trip here. It’s gross.
8) Park your car in a safe, lit location and make sure all doors are locked, windows rolled up, and no valuables visible inside.

This parties to be very scary at one time but they added about 50 surveillance cameras so going to the park at night and strolling through the park is a lot more enjoyable, Colorado’s finest are watching out for you
And I’m noticing they are scheduling a lot more events in the summer time so there’s always something going on down there right beside the McNichol center

I do not feel comfortable walking across the street from this place.
DENVER: It is not a good sign of civic responsibility, civic pride to allow what is essentially a shanty town right next to the Capitol you’re newly plating with gold.
I suggest a comprehensive renaming: Crack Court, Hooker’s Row, Lawn of Fiends, Get-​shot-​while-​watching-​a-​weed-​band Park…
Your choice of course

Great park, beautiful gardens, fantastic location! I love how clean the park always is and it’s proximity to the DAM. Sure, it’s not a quiet park that you can have to yourself at any point in the day; it captures the bustling atmosphere of one of Denver’s most densely populated neighborhoods! People are always coming and going, it’s surrounded by busy streets, and it’s definitely got some homeless residents. But the city maintains the park well and I’ve never had an issue with any of the people who frequent it.
We came here most recently for Taste of Colorado 2013 and, aside from some serious confusion about when the event actually started, the whole thing was absolutely fabulous! There is no better park for hosting events like this because of the park’s shape and layout. I hope we can come to many more in the future.

Its a very nice park. Lots of big trees for shade. Nice Grassy area. The City is always improving the flower beds. Love it when the food trucks are here or the movies. Or when they bring in the Iron Man Competitions. Theirs usually something going on including Symphony in the park.
The Problem is the Homeless people who just hang out and also the ones who sell drugs. I see the Police and the State Police Patrolling the park but they don’t do much more than that. Its annoying to see them and smell them sleeping under a tree. Come on Denver Get it together.

Absolutely a disgrace. Dirty, filthy and completely run by homeless vagrants. I’m embarrassed to think of what tourists coming to Denver think of our capital. I am not an unfeeling person, but something has simply got to be done. Civic Center Park should be the jewel of Denver; a showpiece. Instead it is a shameful mess. One idea i think could help would be to run Broadway and Lincoln under ground in front of the Capitol so that it was a completely uninterrupted park and not bus stops. Run the homeless out. Seriously, they won’t care. They will just find somewhere else to congregate. I’m going to join the Civic Center Park Conservancy and see if I can’t help change things.

I’m going to try and do this the best way that I can.
The good: This park is architecturally amazing. It is a period piece, no doubt, but it really has some pretty amazing little details and it is amazing how much time and effort that the original builders really put into the layout and construction of the park. Denver really is lucky to have a public space like this. You can count on the people’s fair and the Taste of Colorado and so many of Colorado’s great moments have happened on the west steps of the State Capital that face this park.
The bad: No matter what anyone wants to say, you don’t have a right to camp in public parks without a permit. Just because you are addicted to drugs and/​or mentally ill that doesn’t give you a right. That said, the homeless here suck. We have some aggressive homeless in Denver. Do everyone a favor, don’t give them any money, ever. They ruin the park. My vote is to buy each of them a bus ticket to Phoenix.
The ugly: Parking. This is an urban jewel, don’t drive down here. I have a tiny little car and I still choose to ride my bike or taxi cab it down here. I will say this, to those of you with giant extended cab pickups, it is super entertaining trying to watch you slide into parking spots intended for normal cars, not your miniature semi-​trucks.
Overall, a really great public space where some pretty rad events happen every year. Just full of crappy homeless people, but you can pretend that they are really train riding hobos, so then they are at least entertaining instead of sad and smelly.

An amazing open area smack in the middle of downtown!
This park is the front yard of all true Denverites! It was built in 1919 and is always beautiful, whether filled with those who actually live here or slam packed with festival goers.
The design: The almost symmetrical layout sits between the Capitol and the City and County building as well as the Denver Public Library, The Art Museum, and Civic Center Plaza (right by the East end of the 16^th Street Mall). There are multiple levels and ramps for accessibility. There are two Greek columned areas, an amphitheater on the South and a waterless ‘water’ feature on the North. There is excellent landscaping when the weather allows and when the C & C building is lit up, as it is many times a year, it serves as a beacon with the park in the foreground. There is also a hidden building with the most amazing foliage in autumn!
The people: Yes, there are people who live here. Currently, the Occupy Denver folks are camping on the sidewalk and in the center. Now, I am a female who walks by this park damn near every day, and since I am slightly street smart, I have never had any issues whatsoever. I don’t recommend girls jog around this park, but I do recommend using it as a thoroughfare to get to downtown or the golden triangle area. I frequently see field trips and tour buses come to this hot spot and go camera crazy all the time.
The action: Soooo many festivals and happenings occur here! The food trucks during the summers, the pro-​cannabis gathering, Cinco-​de-​Mayo, the Peoples Fair, the Taste of Colorado, Pride, the Parade of Lights & More! Each event is different and awesome. I have been attending them all regularly since birth & recommend ALL of them. But, again there are insane amounts of people so be prepared. I have seen amazing free concerts, air jumpers, drag shows, ethnic dance, street performers, and so much more!
Thank goodness Libeskind (new art museum) didn’t destroy this elegant design as he intended to. This park serves as a true reflection of our city, I hope the urban planners leave it as is since it is working quite well in my humble opinion. Viva CCP!

I love Civic Center Park and I don’t care who knows! Its gardens are beautiful, its columns are regal and it is just so bright and open and airy. A truly lovely piece of work, nestled into the intersection of the three busiest streets in Denver.
Are there hobos? Yes. Are there alcoholics and drug addcits? Yes. Do they pretty much keep to themselves? Yes. It’s the middle of a large city, folks. You don’t get to have nice things without a a few bums attached.
But honestly, I barely even notice them once I set foot in the coliseum area. The scale is somehow both grand and personal at the same time. Plus, the city just got a huge grant to make a lot of improvements to the park, so I bet we’ll be seeing a lot more beauty from Civic Center Park in the coming years.

I love this park. It’s big. It’s beautiful. It’s close to my house. And they are doing so many cool things here. Things like Civic Center Eats and bike-​in movies on a regular basis, not to mention that so many of our annual festival take place in and around the park, too. I love all the pretty, pretty flowers and the lovely expansions of green, green grass everywhere. I enjoy the fact that it’s sandwich between two very stately buildings.
This isn’t like Wash Park — that’s a suburb-​in-​a-​city park where you can play volleyball, ride bikes around the outside, and cook a BBQ. This is an urban center that has grass and feels the heartbeat of the insides of a city. So you should come here to enjoy the activities they put on, the sun, or the benches by the flowers. Make it a day and head over to the beautiful library or check out the DAM even.
And as for safety, I wouldn’t hang out here alone after midnight, but I’m a firm believer nothing good happens after midnight anyway so use your common sense no matter where you are when it’s later at night.

City park just have to be great — cause it is free green space for the people! Woot!
This park can be a bit sketchy close to sun down, but during people’s fair, the taste, bike to work day — it’s a great place to hang out and have the people gather.
Recently they started the movies in the park — and that is fun and cool — the police presence does keep the hobos are bay for that.
I like that is is surrounded by the library and the art museum is near by! If only there was better parking, but luckily i can bike there!

OK I normally do not like the civic center park it’s pretty but a lot of people who are there are sketch.
NOW on Tuesday & Thursday’s during the summer the food trucks park there… oh what a wonderful thing you can get a ton of different foods all in the same place! I adore the food trucks and what they bring. All the business people come out and you can people watch as you enjoy your food

My Dad was visiting and we went to the Civic Center for the July 3^rd fireworks on Sunday night. Huge crowds, I have never seen the place so crowded. I have also been here for the Taste of Colorado and the People’s Fair.
I understand the previous reviews about the homeless and possible drugs. Can y’all remember that this is in downtown and some of that is understood. This park is amazing with the amount of space offered and the number of events it holds day to day. It can host the Taste of Colorado, the Peoples Fair… the Fourth of July fireworks. How many other big cities do you know that have a park this size at the end of a free mall ride that hosts this many events.
This is a very nice park. I will definitely come back to experience more Denver events as they come up.

Normally, I would say the park is a 2 stars type of place (on a good day), mostly based on the less than savory folks who hang out here.
However since the city, in its infinite wisdom, decided to let the food trucks park it every Tues & Thurs in the summer time the park is looking up. In addition, they have been planting sod and generally sprucing up the joint. Sure, at the wrong time of day it is a less than savory place, however it has its moments. The fountain is beautiful and the grounds are starting to look better. Here is hoping a little commerce will help it out!

This park is one of the things that I love about Denver. During any event in the park, you see your more affluent mixing with your very very less affluent.
Of course when there’s not an event in the park, it’s best to be out by dusk.
The park could use some work, and I suspect all our parks are in the state they are because we have so many of them. A blessing and a curse to be sure.
Could the park be cleaner and have fewer hobos, sure. But so could the entire city. Go to the suburbs if you want manicured hedges and nothing but (clean) white faces. :D

As of this writing, avoid this park at all costs. The expression of the Japanese tourist who wandered here with map in hand said it all «shock and awe» and not in a good way. Embarrassing.
Here are the low-​lights:
–Its late April, nothing is in bloom, not a flower to be seen, but big ugly sand pits where flowers once were planted. Hickenlooper, how about one damn daffodil?
–Huge sections are fenced off and torn up. Zero usable grass in the whole park.
–The Greek Amphateater is being homesteaded by creeps, vagabonds, dealers and 18 year old gangsters, both real and posers.
–Its noisy, with busy streets and buses in all directions.
–Its filthy. Trash and debris from past events. Gum stuck to the Roman columns.
Its a sad sad place, my friends. And its in the center of our fine city. That’s not good.

I understand that it’s hard to review a park without noticing the homeless problem, but I’m going to do it anyway. On a complete aesthetic and cultural level, Civic Center Park is one of the most beautiful anywhere. And with the recent renovations, the park is looking better than ever.
But yes there are homeless people around and there are those who want to sell you drugs and sometimes even their bodies. I ignore those people and once you do they almost always stop bothering you. If they don’t then you need to do everyone a favor and call the police.
To me this park is almost inspiring in its beauty. I love the symmetry, the gardens, the subtle details like the elephant fountains and the Allen True murals. I love reading a book on a park bench and using the backdrop of Civic Center to imagine anything from a Roman coliseum to medieval European forest or a bustling cityscape. Civic Center Park is a magical place that should be treasured by Denverites.
I don’t think anyone has a good «answer» to the problem of undesirable people in Civic Center Park. But the solution cannot be to abandon it. Instead, the park will thrive when people enjoy and use the park for what it is.