DENVER (KDVR) — Some Denver neighborhoods have been bucking a city-wide trend — particularly some of its high-income neighborhoods.
Denver is currently on the tail-end of a decade-long increase in violent crime. The number of violent crimes per 100,000 people grew from 668 in 2010 to 1,039 last year, a 50% increase, according to a Data Desk analysis of Colorado Bureau of Investigation crime records.
The rate of aggravated assault doubled over the same time, and the murder rate nearly tripled. The trend has continued into 2022.
Crime rates in 2022 vary widely among Denver’s 78 neighborhoods but tend to be highly concentrated in downtown core neighborhoods and less concentrated in neighborhoods farther removed from nightlife and public transit hubs.
Typically, Denver neighborhoods located between Broadway and Interstate 225 have the lowest concentrations of murders, aggravated assaults and robberies.
This year, the least violent neighborhoods have been Indian Creek, Wellshire, Washington Park West, Country Club and Washington Park. Each of these neighborhoods has recorded fewer than five violent crimes in 2022.
Other neighborhoods with fewer than 10 violent crimes this year include Belcaro, Platt Park, Berkeley, Skyland, Rosedale, Hilltop, Fort Morgan, Cory-Merrill and City Park.
They also tend to be Denver’s wealthiest neighborhoods. Both Country Club and Hilltop have average household incomes of more than $200,000, according to 2017 census data. Belcaro, Cherry Creek, Washington Park and Wellshire each have average household incomes in the mid-range of the $100,000s.
High-income neighborhoods, however, do not always guarantee an absence of violent crime. High-crime neighborhoods such as Union Station, Central Business District and Five Points have average household incomes of around $100,000 or more but also have the city’s highest violent crime rates.