by Amber Ware, contributor
Homelessness is on the rise all over the nation, but in Denver, homelessness grew 46% from 2022 to 2023 (1). Homelessness not only effects the individual experiencing it, but the communities around them. The homeless community pollutes the city, shuts down businesses, raises crime and takes a lot of government resources.
Homelessness in Denver has resulted in high human cost. One in every 21 of Denver’s unhoused persons died in 2022 (2). There were 226 deaths total, this is a 67% increase from 2018(3). More than half of those 226 deaths were caused by a drug overdose, and 9% were caused by violent crimes. Denver has set up a “Substance Misuse Program”, which has a goal to prevent the misusage of substances, access to treatment and to reduce the harm that comes with drug use.
Often times, the use of drugs causes elevated crime rates. Many of the drug users will commit crimes in order to obtain money to get their drugs. It is also seen that people with substance abuse problems is a result of homelessness.
Another issue of homelessness is the rise in youth becoming homeless. In 2023, there were 1,383 unhoused persons in Denver under the age of 18(4). This makes the question: why are children facing homelessness? Christina Carlson, who is the chief executive officer of Urban Peak, which is a nonprofit that provides homeless youth with shelter services in Colorado Springs and Denver (5), says “What we see are young people with family situations. Whether that’s because of abuse and neglect, or challenges surrounding their sexual orientation or gender identity creating family strife.”(6)
Much like Carlson said, these youth struggle with family situations and see running away and living on the streets to be an easier solution to their problems, which leads to the challenge of substance abuse, mental health challenges and even suicide.
The homeless community is causing more businesses to shut down. In October 2023, Triangle Bar on Broadway closed its doors due to safety concerns(7). Encampments on the outside of businesses are making it a scary place for employees and customers. Between drug dealing, prostitution, and other illegal activities(8), it is making the streets of Denver a more aggressive and less safe environment for everyone around.
Denver’s government has a plan on producing resources for the homeless community. Through FY24, the Colorado state government plans to spend an additional $200 million on homelessness initiatives atop another $45 million it already distributed in FY21(9). This money comes from government grants and non-profit organizations.
Denver Mayor, Michael Johnston, plans to house 1,000 homeless people in tiny homes and pallet shelters located around the city (10). This plan is going to be produced by $19.6 million, at least, with the goal of 200 tiny homes that will have 540 beds. With the help of federal and state funding, as well as non-profit organizations, being able to house and shelter the homeless will help clean up the streets of Denver.
Footnotes
1 Hernandez, Federal Data Spotlights Denver’s Sharp Rise in Homelessness, 2023
2 Summers, Tartaglia, Brown, A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023, 4.
3 Summers, Tartaglia, Brown, A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023, 6.
4 Summers, Tartaglia, Brown, A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023, 7.
5 Davis, “These Kids Aren’t Alright,” The Denver VOICE, September 13, 2018
6 Davis, “These Kids Aren’t Alright,” The Denver VOICE, September 13, 2018
7 Krause, “Downtown businesses strained by homeless encampments worry about staying open”.
8 Krause, “Downtown businesses strained by homeless encampments worry about staying open”.
9 Summers, Tartaglia, Brown, A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023, 9.
10 Summers, Tartaglia, Brown, A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023, 11.
Bibliography
Davis, Robert. “These Kids Aren’t Alright.” The Denver VOICE, September 13, 2018. https://www.denvervoice.org/archive/2018/9/12/these-kids-arent-alright.
Hernandez, Esteban L. Federal Data spotlights Denver’s Sharp Rise in Homelessness , December 15, 2023. https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2023/12/15/federal-data-denverhomelessness-increase.
Krause, Rachel. Downtown businesses strained by homeless encampments worry about …, October 10, 2023. https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/downtown-denverbusinesses-strained-homeless-encampments/73-9d5285fa-f40d-4882-ab29-d45778cef16a.
“Overdose Prevention.” City and County of Denver. Accessed March 15, 2024. https://www.denvergov.org/Government/Agencies-Departments-Offices/AgenciesDepartments-Offices-Directory/Public-Health-Environment/Community-BehavioralHealth/Behavioral-Health-Strategies/Overdose-Prevention.
Patterson, Thomas E. We the People: An Introduction to American Government, 2023.
Summers, D.J., Ethan Tartaglia, and Chris Brown. “A Snapshot of the Metro Denver Homeless Ecosystem in 2023.” The Common Sense Institute, October 2023. https://commonsenseinstituteco.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/DenverMetroHomelessness_REPORT_OCT2023.pdf.
