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An aerial view of downtown Denver. (Kathryn Scott, Special to The Colorado Sun)
In his first full day as Denver’s new mayor, Mike Johnston on Tuesday morning declared a state of emergency around homelessness and announced that he plans to house 1,000 unsheltered people by the end of the year.
Johnston said he will tour 78 neighborhoods across the city to accomplish his goal and that his staff will work with landlords, property owners and hotels to find housing availability. His administration is also looking at nearly 200 public plots to place tiny home communities where people experiencing homelessness can be housed.
“This is what we think is the most important crisis the city is facing,” Johnston said at a news conference at the Denver’s City and County Building. “We took the oath yesterday to commit to taking on this problem.”
Johnston was sworn in as Denver’s first new mayor in 12 years on Monday. The homelessness declaration and plan are his first major actions as Denver’s new leader.
Denver’s 13 City Council members stood behind Johnston as he made the announcement. The council will still need to approve any budget items to address the problem despite the state of emergency declaration, Johnston said.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
Elliott Wenzler is a reporter for the Colorado Sun, covering local politics, the state legislature and other topics. She also assists with The Unaffiliated newsletter. Previously, she was a community reporter in Douglas County for Colorado Community Media. She has won awards for her... More by Elliott Wenzler
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