Denver Children’s Advocacy Center (DCAC) is thrilled to have the proposed Children’s Justice Center be included among the infrastructure projects featured in the 2025 Vibrant Denver Bond. Denver7 recently highlighted the Vibrant Denver Bond projects and interviewed Will Braunstein, DCAC Executive Director, who shared insights about what the project entails. You can watch the Denver7 clip and read more in the article below.
This detailed one-pager outlines the specifics about the Children’s Justice Center, and Braunstein shares more in the Q&A below.
Children’s Justice Center Q&A with Will Braunstein
Why does Denver need a Children’s Justice Center now?
I’ve seen what’s possible when you remove the barriers. When you give a child and their family a place that feels safe and supportive, not cold and institutional. When you make it easier to get help, justice, and healing, not harder.
What inspired the vision for a Children’s Justice Center in Denver?
Absolutely. We’ve looked closely at national models like Dallas, Huntsville, and Chicago, all of which have co-located, trauma-informed campuses for abused children. Their approach reduces delays, improves collaboration between agencies, and most importantly, puts the child at the center of the response.
Here in Denver, children are currently brought to a government building that was never designed for kids. These other centers inspired us to ask: Why not here? Why not now?
Why is now the right time?
Because our kids can’t wait.
Last year, DCAC served more than 10,000 children and caregivers. Denver’s population is rising, and with it, the number and complexity of child abuse cases are increasing. But the spaces where children receive help have stayed the same.
Through the Vibrant Denver Bond process, we have a chance to create a purpose-built, trauma-informed Children’s Justice Center that meets this moment. It’s not just the right time. It’s long overdue.
What difference would this center make for children and families?
Right now in Denver, a child who discloses abuse is typically brought to a government building in an industrial area. It’s loud, surrounded by warehouses and trucks, and when you walk in, you’re met by a security guard behind bulletproof glass. It doesn’t feel safe. It doesn’t feel comforting. It’s not what a child or their family needs when they’re going through one of the worst moments of their lives.
Now imagine this instead. A child arrives at a space that looks and feels like a home. They are welcomed by someone who knows their name. The rooms are quiet and warm. Services take place in a single location designed exclusively for children, with professionals working together to support that child and their healing journey.
That’s what the Children’s Justice Center would provide—a space where everything, from the architecture to the atmosphere, supports recovery instead of compounding trauma.
What excites you most about this opportunity?
Everything. But especially the chance to show children and families that their city sees them, values them, and is ready to invest in their healing.
This center would not just be a building; it would be a hub of activity. It would be a statement that in Denver, kids come first. That families should not have to fight through red tape or intimidating institutions to get help. That healing and justice should happen in a place that feels like hope.
We already have the team, the partnerships, and the expertise. This is about finally giving our community the space it deserves.
What can supporters do right now?
Start by spreading the word. Share this story with your friends, neighbors, and networks. Let people know that Denver has the chance to do something extraordinary for our children.
And then take one more step.
Contact your city council member and ask them to support the Children’s Justice Center in the Vibrant Denver Bond package. The vote happens in November, and every single voice makes a difference.
Our kids deserve better. Let’s build it.