Convention Park Permit Mess

Seems that several groups that applied for park permits weren't on the board for the lotteries

Denver's new system for issuing permits to occupy parks during the 2008 Democratic National Convention ran aground as it began Tuesday, delaying the process for two more days.

Several applicants for the coveted Civic Center park discovered that their names had been omitted from a pile of cards that were to be drawn from a clear, plastic lottery box. Another applicant for another park was awarded a permit for a day he hadn't requested.

Protest groups critical of the new system seized on the blunder, accusing the city of unfairness and incompetence.

"I think it's a disgrace," said Glenn Spagnuolo, an organizer with the protest group Re-create 68. "They had all this time to figure it out, and they still couldn't get it right." - Denver Post

The lottery was immediately halted. Had they continued we may have seen convention rioting before the convention even started.