Denver City Council District 7 2025 Community Survey

Magellan Strategies is pleased to present the topline results of a survey of 741 residents in Denver City Council District 7. The interviews were conducted from May 20th – June 20th, 2025.

Residents of Denver City Council District 7 generally rated their quality of life positively, with 70% rating it excellent or good, though a sizable minority rated it fair or poor. The most frequently cited challenges facing residents and their families were traffic and transportation, housing affordability, and public safety and crime, followed closely by concerns related to homelessness, drug use, and the high cost of living. When asked what single improvement would most improve daily life, residents most often pointed to stronger public safety and law enforcement, expanded affordable housing options, safer streets for pedestrians and cyclists, better public transportation, and improved cleanliness and maintenance of public spaces.

Use of bike trails varied across the district: about one-quarter used them daily or a few times a week, and one-third rarely or never used them. Among those who used bike trails, two-thirds reported feeling safe, while one-third did not. Safety concerns centered on vehicle traffic at intersections, encampments along trails, substance use and discarded paraphernalia, and conflicts between cars, cyclists, and pedestrians. These findings highlighted ongoing concerns about shared transportation spaces and the interaction between mobility, homelessness, and public safety.

Residents expressed strong interest in a future city bond initiative focused on infrastructure. Public transit improvements, street and sidewalk repairs, parks and green spaces, and affordable housing were the most frequently selected priorities. Overall support for a bond initiative that included residents’ top priorities was high: 71% said they would support it, though one in five remained unsure. This indicated broad openness to capital investment, particularly when aligned with transportation, housing, and neighborhood quality-of-life needs.

Opinions about neighborhood safety were mixed. Fewer than half said they felt safe in their neighborhood, while nearly half said they sometimes felt safe but had concerns, and a smaller share said they did not feel safe at all. Residents were divided on whether increased police presence would make them feel safer, with support and opposition nearly even. When asked what would improve safety, respondents most often cited more visible and proactive policing, stronger enforcement of existing laws, addressing homelessness and public drug use through either services or enforcement, and improvements to traffic safety, lighting, and pedestrian infrastructure.

Satisfaction with neighborhood infrastructure was split, with 57% satisfied and 43% dissatisfied with the condition of streets, sidewalks, and public spaces. Desired transportation improvements included safer intersections, better traffic flow on major streets, more sidewalks and pedestrian crossings, improved public transit options, and additional bike lanes, though some residents also expressed concern that there may already be too many bike lanes in certain areas. These responses underscored competing views about how street space should be allocated.

Residents reported feeling underrepresented by local government: 15% said they felt heard, 50% said they sometimes felt heard but wanted more engagement, and 35% said they did not feel represented. Email and text messages were the preferred communication channels for the District 7 office. Looking ahead to 2031, residents emphasized goals related to affordable housing and homelessness solutions, safer pedestrian, bike, and transit infrastructure, improved public safety and cleanliness, better traffic and street conditions, and stronger community connection through gathering spaces, cultural investment, and neighborhood events. The topline concluded with demographic results and survey methodology.

Regarding the future of the recently purchased Zuni Gymnasium at 375 S. Zuni St., residents expressed a range of preferences for how the space should be used. The most commonly selected options were a community recreation center, a youth and after-school center, and a shelter or transitional housing, each chosen by roughly a third to two-fifths of respondents. Smaller shares favored uses such as a workforce training center, an indoor sports facility, a cultural and arts hub, or a senior activity center. A notable portion of “other” responses indicated that some residents believed the city should not have purchased the building at all and preferred it be sold. When asked about participating in future community meetings on the project, just over a quarter said yes, while the remainder were either uninterested or uncertain.