City Cast Denver

Tens of thousands of Coloradans have protested at anti-Trump rallies this year, and while most of these gatherings have been peaceful, political violence has been on the rise. KNUS conservative radio host Jeff Hunt attended many of these demonstrations throughout 2025, where he recorded self-described “gotcha”-style videos. At an anti-ICE protest in June, he was kicked in the back while recording, on a day that also saw the arrests of 18 protesters. Host Bree Davies spoke with Jeff about his experience, how he approaches political debates, and the question of violence and safety in Denver. On the other side of a tumultuous year, we’re bringing back this conversation for a closer look at how national political tensions have played out in the Mile High.

You can find a rough transcript of this conversation here.

Check out Jeff Hunt’s protest videos for yourself:

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Did Illegal Pete’s bite off more than it could chew by opening three new locations last year? Were the restaurants just hit especially hard by COVID? Or is something else to blame for the way some Denverites have turned on the local restaurant chain? It all started earlier this year, when Reddit was ablaze with stories of food poisonings, cuts to worker benefits, and less-than-awesome queso. So, executive producer Paul Karolyi sat down with founder and CEO Pete Turner to see what he had to say about these claims. We’re revisiting this conversation today, plus some additional developments in the Illegal Pete’s saga — especially since the complaints haven’t stopped.  

Paul mentioned the letter that Turner and some other downtown restaurant owners sent to Mayor Mike Johnston complaining about how slow downtown’s economic recovery has been. He also recommends this fun queso taste test that Westword’s food editor and friend of the show Molly Martin did last year. 

What do you think about Illegal Pete’s? Have you noticed anything different this year? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: (720) 500-5418

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Anti-Palantir protesters gathered outside the AI surveillance giant’s new headquarters in Cherry Creek on Sunday, while the company’s billionaire CEO, Alex Karp, reportedly just bought a massive monastery outside Aspen. So, is Gov. Jared Polis having second thoughts about inviting Palantir to Colorado? Westword editor Patty Calhoun joins host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi to talk through the latest on Palantir, as well as the news that Your Mom’s House wasn’t paying its taxes. Plus, we hear from a listener about the allegations of a toxic workplace at the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce and pick our biggest fails of the year. 

Patty talked about this 2024 profile of Bowen Yang in The New Yorker. 

What do you think is the biggest fail of the year? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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City Cast Denver listeners nominated Denver’s new NWSL franchise, Denver Summit FC, as one of the biggest wins of the year at our Denver-est Denver Awards last week, and the city is undeniably abuzz with excitement over the prospect of a professional womens soccer team. But how much public money should the City of Denver put up to support the team? City Council is voting tonight on the proposal to spend $50 million to buy land and build support infrastructure for a new stadium, so we’re revisiting a conversation host Bree Davies had earlier this year with one of the country’s foremost experts on the politics of stadiums, CU Denver’s own Dr. Geoff Propheter. 

Denverite reported on the details of the community benefits agreement that Denver Summit FC reached with neighbors of the proposed stadium site. 

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What do you think about public funding to support a new soccer stadium? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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More than 100,000 Coloradans were left without electricity this week as Xcel Energy preemptively shut down power lines to mitigate the risk of wildfire — just like they did last April. But the controversy is way different this time. Comedian and longtime friend of the show JD Lopez returns with producers Olivia Jewell Love and Paul Karolyi to parse the politics of power. Plus, we discuss Denverite’s investigation into allegations of toxic work culture at the Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, pick Denver’s Word of the Year 2025, and share our wins and fails of the week.

Paul mentioned the podcast he and JD host, “Hold on to Your Butts: A Podcast About Great Franchises that Uhhhhh Lost their Way.” He also talked about the “gonzo lawyer,” the decline of the “slop bowl,” the Broncos’ new anime connection, and this reddit thread he posted about Denver’s word of the year. Olivia talked about zebra mussels. JD sang “Colorado Christmas” by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. 

What do you think should be Denver’s word of the year? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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Denverites were going at each other this year, with some juicy fights on and off social media. From politics to restaurants to pop culture, host Bree Davies sits down with producer Paul Karolyi and resident Denver gossip Adrian Felix to hash out the biggest beefs of 2025, and decide who came out on top. 

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What do you think was this year’s “Biggest Beef”? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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Neighbors in West Wash Park have now gathered more than 1,000 signatures calling for Mayor Johnston to reverse the city’s plan for traffic calming on Alameda Ave. to the original, three-lane proposal. They argue that there’s no way the new four-lane plan is just as safe, as DOTI head Amy Ford has argued. But could that possibly be true? CU Denver civil engineering professor Wes Marshall has been watching the debate play out, and he’s on today to help cut through the noise — and answer the bigger question: Is Mayor Johnston making Denver streets less safe?

Do you think Mayor Johnston is making Denver streets less safe? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

Wes Marshall is also the author of “Killed by a Traffic Engineer: Shattering the Delusion that Science Underlies our Transportation System.” Bree quoted a recent Denver Post op-ed by the co-chairs of the DOTI advisory board Aylene McCallum and Allen Cowgill: “The previous administration made great progress in achieving these visions [for a connected Denver], but today, under Mayor Johnston’s leadership, that progress has stalled and, in specific instances, has even been reversed.”

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If you enjoyed this interview with Janessa White, the Director & General Manager of Simply Eloped, learn more here. 

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It’s been an unseasonably warm December, and that means the risk of wildfires is relatively high. So, producer Olivia Jewell Love and producer Paul Karolyi discuss how Xcel Energy is preparing for a possible pre-emptive power shutdown this week. Plus, we unravel the mystery of the street safety signs that were hacked last Friday to read “Cars Ruin Cities” and respond to listener questions about movie theaters, tipping, and South Park’s latest take on Denver.  

Paul talked about the controversy around Xcel’s unannounced pre-emptive power shutdowns last year. 

What do you think about all these hacked street signs? What would you put on one? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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Coloradans are increasingly disillusioned with traditional political institutions, including the Democratic Party, which polled at 68% unfavorable in a recent Magellan Strategies survey. So why did current State Senator Julie Gonzales, once a darling of the Democratic Socialists of America, decide to run for the U.S. Senate as a Democrat? Gonzales joins host Bree Davies to discuss her relationship with her party, where she sees opportunities to work with Trump, and how her approach would differ from her opponent, incumbent Sen. John Hickenlooper.

We’ve invited Hickenlooper to come on the pod to discuss his campaign soon. What should we ask him about? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

Today is the last day to vote for the finalists of the Denver-est Denver Awards! Your vote will determine the winners of Best Artist, Best Small Business, Biggest Win, and more. And don’t forget to buy your ticket to the show on Dec. 18 and see the winners announced live on stage at The Oriental Theater. Vote here and get your tickets now!

Help us hit the goal for our year-end membership drive! You’ll get more from City Cast Denver when you become a City Cast Denver Neighbor. Enjoy perks like ad-free listening, invitations to members only events and more. Join now at https://membership.citycast.fm 

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After the announcement of State Sen. Julie Gonzales’ bid to unseat U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, stories emerged alleging Democratic Party insiders tried to deter her from running. Comedian Joshua Emerson joins host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi to dissect the details of Hick’s primary strategy, as well as Denver’s questionable new homeless service provider contracts, disability activists’ lawsuit against RTD, and more wins and fails of the week. 

Help us hit the goal for our year-end membership drive! You’ll get more from City Cast Denver when you become a City Cast Denver Neighbor. Enjoy perks like ad-free listening, invitations to members only events and more. Join now at https://membership.citycast.fm 

Vote for the finalists of the Denver-est Denver Awards! Your vote will determine the winners of Best Artist, Best Small Business, Biggest Win, and more. And don’t forget to buy your ticket to the show on Dec. 18 and see the winners announced live on stage at The Oriental Theater. Vote here and get your tickets now!

Paul quoted this Denver Post reporting on RTD’s on-time performance, in which buses “lagged at 83%” as of July of 2025 (On-time performance for light rail recovered to 91% this year). Paul also discussed the Sports Castle and the Denver Summit FC stadium vote.  We mentioned Atlantis ADAPT’s lawsuit against RTD and multiple stories on Denver’s homeless shelter contracts from Denverite’s Kyle Harris. Bree talked about Westwood resident Norma Brambila. Joshua discussed a new Native community-focused housing and healthcare building.

What do you think about the Hickenlooper vs. Gonzales race? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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