Civic Center Park

Civic Center Park features a sprawling lawn bookended by the gold leaf of the Colorado State Capitol dome and the neoclassical facade of the Denver City and County Building. Mayor Robert Speer envisioned this space in the early twentieth century as a grand American answer to the City Beautiful movement. During the nineteen seventies, the park became a battleground when police used tear gas to disperse crowds protesting the Vietnam War, marking a shift in how the city engaged with public dissent.