Leaders

Item Description

Michael B. Hancock became Denver, Colorado’s 45th mayor in July 2011 and immediately began to transform Denver into a more globally competitive city. With the fifth-busiest airport in the United States serving more than 53 million passengers annually, Mayor Hancock is leveraging Denver International Airport to make the entire region a gateway to the world.

Mayor Hancock has secured five new nonstop international flights, including Tokyo, Mexico City, Reykjavik and Panama City, bringing a combined $203M in economic benefits to the region. These routes are opening new connections between the Rocky Mountain West and Asia, Europe and Central America.

To help the Denver area compete in the global marketplace, Mayor Hancock is also working to establish a bustling Airport City and Aerotropolis, which will create more than 30,000 new jobs over the next 20 years. The first phase of these initiatives includes a new 500-room hotel and transit center at the airport, as well as a 20-mile rail line linking Downtown Denver with DIA.

Mayor Hancock was recently named the first Mayor to serve on the Federal Aviation Administration’s Management Advisory Council, where he will bring Denver’s ingenuity to the table as he works to advance major issues on behalf of DIA, other airports and the aviation industry. He also serves on the U.S. Conference of Mayors Transportation Committee.

Mayor Hancock worked with regional leaders to secure a new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Downtown Denver. The Patent Office will generate nearly $440 million in economic benefits over the next five years and establish Denver as a hub of innovation in the high-tech and advanced-industry sectors – something Mayor Hancock calls Denver’s Ideas Economy. The Mayor has also developed strategic short- and long-term business plans to support and grow Denver’s diverse, intelligent and forward-leaning businesses in emerging industries such as clean energy, bio-technology, telecommunications, aerospace and healthcare. Denver’s economy is at the forefront of American cities, offering among the strongest job and housing markets in the nation.

The Mayor believes there is nothing more important than helping every young person in every neighborhood compete and succeed in the 21st Century economy. He is aligning all City departments with nonprofits, businesses and educational organizations to better prepare all children for every stage of life through initiatives such as the Denver Children’s Cabinet and Denver Education Compact. He also launched the MY Denver Card, which provides all Denver kids free access to the City’s recreation centers, pools and libraries.

As Denver and cities across the country emerge from the recession, Mayor Hancock is committed to creating economic opportunities and eliminating inequities and disparities. Top priorities include reducing homelessness, increasing affordable housing options, strengthening workforce training partnerships with community colleges, and finding solutions to chronic mental health and substance abuse challenges in the community.

Mayor Hancock has also brought meaningful reform to the City’s finances by closing a structural budget gap and to the Denver Police Department by establishing new leadership that has reorganized the department to get highly trained officers out of the office and onto the streets.

Together, these steps strengthen Denver’s unparalleled quality of life.

Prior to becoming Mayor, Michael B. Hancock served on the Denver City Council for eight years, including two terms as City Council President. In his early career, he worked for the Denver Housing Authority and National Civic League. He was the youngest President of an Urban League chapter in America. Mayor Hancock is 44 years old and the proud father of three children: Alayna, Jordan and Janae. He and his wife, Mary, have been married for more than 20 years.

About the Mask Artist: Karen Frieda Kaiser has been exhibiting her art for more than 50 years. She experiments with a variety of media depending on the project and the concept. She considers herself a "conceptual artist" and this requires knowledge of different techniques to express her ideas. Symbolic imagery is a common thread in her work. Currently she has been working on producing enough pieces for a one-woman show including a retrospective of past works to show the consistency of artwork done over time. She hopes to include installation of larger pieces, including sculpture, painting, assemblage, collage and constructed works. She hopes to brings this to a public audience this fall in Denver.