DENVER — There's no denying how much Scott Gilmore loves a Denver park.
"This park is spectacular. It looks great," Scott Gilmore said while sitting in Civic Center Park on Monday afternoon. "The parks team that is in this city today is one of the best parks teams in the nation, hands down."
However, his career with the City of Denver was abruptly cut on Monday.
"Thirteen years and it came down to a few-minute phone call that I'm not needed anymore," Scott Gilmore said solemnly.
Scott Gilmore, who spent more than a decade working as the deputy executive director of Denver Parks & Recreation, learned on Monday that he was one of more than a hundred city employees being laid off.
"For the thousands and thousands of employees of the city, they have been on pins and needles," Scott Gilmore said about the anticipation behind the layoffs. "It's been anguish. It's been trauma."
Denver
Denver announces 171 layoffs, elimination of 665 open positions
In May, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston announced the city was projecting a $50 million budget deficit for 2025 and a $200 million budget deficit for 2026. The city has attributed the shortfall to "national economic uncertainty and rising costs."
In order to make up for the shortfall, Johnston said the city would implement layoffs and a hiring freeze.
In July, the city's career service board approved changes to the city’s layoff procedure, making it easier for the city to lay off longtime city employees by removing some of their protections.
On Monday, the City and County of Denver announced it was laying off 171 employees, eliminating 665 vacant positions, and finding new funding sources for 92 positions.
In total, 928 positions (8.4% of the total workforce) are being impacted. The city said the reductions would save $100 million.
Denver city officials said the measures they took Monday were necessary because nearly 70% of the city’s General Fund budget goes toward personnel costs.
Employees impacted by the layoffs will receive 30 days of paid administrative leave, two to eight weeks of severance, 60 days of healthcare coverage, and outplacement services to help employees find jobs.
The number of layoffs announced Monday is somewhat lower than what some city employees anticipated. However, the city said Monday that its efforts to slow and freeze hiring and reduce the size of government have minimized the impact on employees and public services.
"Due to these efforts, the city was able to significantly minimize impact to employees and public services," the city said in its release.
Scott Gilmore is married to Denver City Council Member Stacie Gilmore, who spoke about her husband being laid off during Monday's meeting.
"He is a 61-year-old man that only wanted to serve out the last four years of his time until he was 65, and because of his sassy, loud-mouthed wife, he got let go," Stacie Gilmore said. "Today is a disgusting display of the power and privilege that men have in the City and County of Denver."
Stacie Gilmore believes it is not a coincidence that her husband was among the employees laid off.
"I feel like today, there was retaliation for me being a very outspoken critic of Mayor Johnston's administration," Stacie Gilmore told Denver7. "It just seems so cruel to penalize someone for doing good work, for always getting good reviews... It's a huge blow. And I just feel horrible that he was treated in such a derogatory and inhumane way."
According to both Scott and Stacie Gilmore, his salary was not tied to the General Fund, creating more questions for the two.
"I was moved to a role that is actually 100% covered by Legacy Funds to help the budget. This shortfall is actually within the General Fund. So, there has to be some questions why I was laid off, because it does not help solve the budget challenges," Scott Gilmore said.
Stacie Gilmore said no matter what cost the city claims to be saving, they are losing invaluable people.
"I just feel horrible for the other 170 people that were laid off today, especially because the majority of those, I'm sure, helped us make it through the pandemic," said Stacie Gilmore. "Just those sacrifices that you don't really think about until it all comes suddenly to an end."
Right now, Scott Gilmore said his future is uncertain.
"I'm worried about how I pay for my daughter's college. I'm worried about health care. I'm worried about how I pay my bills," Scott Gilmore said. "I was four years away from retiring, and now I have to rethink my whole life, my whole family's life."
Despite being laid off, Scott Gilmore still believes in the city he loves.
"I just hope the best for the city. I hope the best for the employees," Scott Gilmore said. "We will get through this. We're Denver. We're going to be okay."
Denver7 reached out to a city spokesperson, who said all of the layoffs should be announced by the end of Tuesday. After that, the spokesperson said the city will be sharing more information and declined to comment until then.
A breakdown of the layoffs, including which departments were impacted, is anticipated later this week.
Mayor Johnston is expected to deliver the full 2026 budget on September 15.
