staging.rockymountainvoice.com

Menu

Tag: Homeless

Denver’s homeless population grew, despite tens of millions in spending to solve it
No Comments
denvergazette.com, Local

Denver’s homeless population grew, despite tens of millions in spending to solve it

By Denver Gazette Staff via Colorado Politics Denver Mayor Mike Johnston's administration on Monday touted a "milestone" in his campaign against homelessness — the city has moved 2,000 homeless people to temporary shelters since he took office last year.  Johnston made it a priority to move 1,000 homeless people off of the city's streets and into hotel-turned shelters and "micro-communities" by the end of 2024. He vowed to bring another 1,000 people into shelters by the end of 2025. The mayor's office said that latest goal has also now been achieved.   READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
Read More
Study finds homeless sweeps don’t reduce crime, may even increase violence
No Comments
coloradopolitics.com, State

Study finds homeless sweeps don’t reduce crime, may even increase violence

By Jenny Deam | Colorado Politics Despite prevailing public and political wisdom that removing homeless encampments is necessary to reduce crime in an area, a new national study looking specifically at Denver’s crime rates after sweeps found the narrative was, in fact, mostly false. “There is no evidence that sweeps make our community safer,” said Pranav Padmanabhan, the Denver-based lead author of the study published Wednesday in the national Journal of Urban Health. Padmanabhan is a graduate student in Public Health at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and one of four authors affiliated with the medical school. The fifth is with the University of California-San Diego School of Medicine. READ THE FULL STORY AT COLORADO POLITICS
Read More
In Arvada, some opposed to plan to convert charter school into homeless center
No Comments
CBS Colorado, Local

In Arvada, some opposed to plan to convert charter school into homeless center

By Alan Gionet | CBS Colorado Dozens of people attended an Arvada City Council meeting Monday night to voice their opposition to the possibility of a Homeless Navigation Center in the 4900 block of West 60th Avenue. The city purchased a building that formerly housed the Early College of Arvada charter school in May for $6.3 million. In the months since city leaders have begun to look at using it for homeless services. Among the possibilities is a homeless navigation center for people looking to climb out of their circumstances. "I feel like things are being pushed down my throat on this one," said resident Steve Martinson outside his home on West 60th Avenue. He worried about the value of his home, which is directly across the street from the site. READ THE FULL STORY...
Read More
Grand Junction still seeking answers to homeless issue, following drug arrests at resource center
No Comments
Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

Grand Junction still seeking answers to homeless issue, following drug arrests at resource center

By Lindy Browning | Contributor, Rocky Mountain Voice When the Grand Junction City Council was forming their plan in 2023 to find temporary shelters for the approximately 2,300 homeless people who were living in the streets, members of the community had multiple concerns about the potential problems with the proposed housing. One of those concerns was the illegal use of drugs inherent to many in the homeless population.  On Aug. 22, 2024, the Grand Junction City Council approved changes to city zoning and created a process to establish places for temporary housing shelters in non-residential and mixed-use areas of town. At the time, the Council decided not to approve tents or safe parking places, although those options had been considered in earlier discussions. They were not a...
Read More
‘Handouts don’t help’: How a Colorado county reduced homelessness by 86% in 2 years
No Comments
denvergazette.com, Local

‘Handouts don’t help’: How a Colorado county reduced homelessness by 86% in 2 years

By Noah Festenstein | Denver Gazette Amid a homeless crisis plaguing Colorado’s most populated city, a county just south of Denver claims to have found an effective solution to curbing homelessness in its communities. In a campaign to mitigate homelessness, Douglas County officials emphasized one simple message: “Handouts don’t help.” They urged residents, for example, against giving money to homeless people on roadways or sidewalks. From 2022 to 2024, Douglas County witnessed a steep drop in homeless people living on the streets, from 43 to six, according to a recent point-in-time count report conducted by several local third party nonprofits. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Read More
Douglas County to enforce camping ban on public property; each violation could be $1,000 fine
No Comments
kdvr.com, Local

Douglas County to enforce camping ban on public property; each violation could be $1,000 fine

By Maddie Rhodes | Fox 31 News Soon, Douglas County will enforce a camping ban on public property with a potentially hefty fine. On Tuesday, Ordinance No. O-024-004, “Safe use of public property to limit public camping and prohibit temporary structures on public property within Douglas County, Colorado,” was adopted at the county’s Board of County Commissioners public hearing. According to the ordinance, this ban was “necessary” for public welfare, health and safety. While this ordinance was adopted, it won’t be in place for another month. Here’s what it means. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX 31 NEWS
Read More
‘We have reached the end of our rope’: Business owners call on city leaders to solve vagrancy in rural town
No Comments
Local, Rocky Mountain Voice

‘We have reached the end of our rope’: Business owners call on city leaders to solve vagrancy in rural town

By BRIAN PORTER | Rocky Mountain Voice FORT MORGAN -- Vagrants are trespassing in residential and business property, doing drugs in public, urinating and defecating in the library and other public places, and in general becoming an out-of-control public nuisance. It would be just another day in Denver, but this isn't Denver. It is Fort Morgan on the Eastern Plains of Colorado, where neighbors have known each other for decades in the town of about 12,000 and residents rarely unite to air their grievances in the happy-go-lucky community. Until now. Residents are telling city leadership they have had enough. "We have reached the end of our rope," said Malori Rudnik, owner of Double R Embroidery at Main Street and Beaver Avenue adjacent to Glenn Miller Park. "We have found needles ...
Read More
Aftermath of Pueblo’s homeless encampment and trash clear out, a week later
No Comments
KOAA News, Local

Aftermath of Pueblo’s homeless encampment and trash clear out, a week later

By Eleanor Sheahan | KOAA News The City of Pueblo and the mayor have received both support and pushback about the way they are trying to clean up the steel city. Last week, the city cleared out trash and homeless camps along Fountain Creek. This clean up has brought forward many concerns over how the city is dealing with homelessness and whether or not the city is providing enough resources. Last week the area from the 8th Street to the 4th Street bridge was cleared out by the city. But people in Pueblo are at odds, some voicing support of this while others say there needs to be more resources for unhoused individuals. It began on Tuesday, September 3rd. That is when city crews began removing trash and homeless camps along Fountain Creek. READ THE FULL STORY AT KOAA NEWS
Read More
Over 700 people are homeless in Boulder — fewer than last year, but higher than in the past six
No Comments
Boulder Reporting Lab, Local

Over 700 people are homeless in Boulder — fewer than last year, but higher than in the past six

By Brooke Stephensen | Boulder Reporting Lab In January, volunteers counted 727 people experiencing homelessness in Boulder County. While this is a decrease from last year’s count of 839, it is still the second-highest figure recorded since the count began in 2017. The Point-in-Time report, published on Aug. 13, is a count of the number of homeless people on Jan. 22, 2024. Mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and conducted by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative, the data provides some of the most reliable indicators of homelessness trends in Boulder County and across the Denver metro area, despite year-to-year variations due to weather, methodology and volunteer turnout. Of the 727 people counted, at least 193 — over a quarter — were uns...
Read More
‘Handouts don’t help’: How a Colorado county reduced homelessness by 86% in 2 years
No Comments
denvergazette.com, Local

‘Handouts don’t help’: How a Colorado county reduced homelessness by 86% in 2 years

By Noah Festenstein | Denver Gazette Amid a homeless crisis plaguing Colorado’s most populated city, a county just south of Denver claims to have found an effective solution to curbing homelessness in its communities. In a campaign to mitigate homelessness, Douglas County officials emphasized one simple message: “Handouts don’t help.” They urged residents, for example, against giving money to homeless people on roadways or sidewalks. From 2022 to 2024, Douglas County witnessed a steep drop in homeless people living on the streets, from 43 to six, according to a recent point-in-time count report conducted by several local third party nonprofits. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
Read More