KEEP UP ON DENVER NEWS AT WESTWORD.COM/NEWS NEWS Inn Trouble THE COLORADO COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS HAS CLOSE TO 2,000 ROOMS IN THE PROPERTIES THAT IT OWNS OR MANAGES. BUT THAT’S NOT ENOUGH. BY CONOR MCCORMICK- CAVANAGH On September 16, homeless residents of the Quality Inn and Rodeway Inn complex at 2601 Zuni Street will be booted out of the property, since the lease signed in the early days of COVID to provide shelter for some of Denver’s most vulnerable individuals is fi nally running out. But where will they go? “The city and the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless are just resigned to the status quo, that that’s just the nature of things, that that’s how it’s going to be, that we don’t have the resources and that we’re just going to give up and kick everybody to the streets and shel- ters,” says Terese Howard with Housekeys Action Network Denver, who organized a brain- storming session in nearby Confl uence Park on September 7 to strategize how residents of the hotel complex can get connected with housing. The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless had been leasing the properties, using money that the city had received from the federal government for COVID fi nancial relief. The complex was one of the few places the Coali- tion runs that it doesn’t own, as advocates put an increasing emphasis on the housing-fi rst program for dealing with homelessness; the long-term hotel stays were meant to be that bridge to housing. In December 2021, the Coalition bought the La Quinta Inn at 3500 Park Avenue, which it has been using for people who test positive for COVID and also those who are particularly vul- nerable to the illness, but there’s not room for everyone displaced from the Quality Inn and Roadway Inn complex at the La Quinta facility. Of the 138 people that the Coalition says it’s been interfacing with at the complex, half have gotten linked up with permanent hous- ing, transitional housing, another motel or friends and family. The others are still in limbo. “No, we cannot extend the contract with Quality Inn, mostly because we’ve been plan- ning on this over the last month or so and we’ve stepped down staffi ng and resources,” says Cathy Alderman, chief communications and public policy offi cer for the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless. “We can’t just start it back up. We haven’t had any conversa- tions with the hotel operator. We don’t have the staffi ng, because we’ve been stepping down and moving folks into other roles. And we don’t know if the city is interested and requesting additional FEMA funding.” In the meantime, the Coalition is still working to fi nd options for folks staying at the motel complex, especially since many don’t want to go into the city’s shelter system. But some may have to, according to Alderman, and it may only be for a short stay, since plenty of the individuals remaining at the motel com- plex already have housing vouchers. With a potential windfall of $4 million from a federal government spending pack- age, the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless has been seriously considering another ad- dition to its portfolio: the 180-room Clarion Hotel, at 200 West 48th Avenue. If it acquires the property, the Coalition plans to turn it into permanent supportive housing. “We are still in negotiations, and it’s likely that closing won’t happen until October at this point,” says Alderman. “Obviously, it only happens if the funding comes through.” The CCH is waiting on $4 million that Congresswoman Diana DeGette, a Democrat who represents Denver, was able to earmark for the project in a spending bill approved by the U.S. House of Representatives. DeGette had originally sought to get $5 million for the potential purchase, but a House committee reduced that to $4 million. And even then, the $4 million would have to be included in a fi nal spending package approved by both the House and the Senate before the CCH can count on the funding for the project. “No family should have to worry whether they’ll be able to put food on their table or a roof over their heads at night,” DeGette says in reference to the proposed funding for the Clarion Hotel purchase and other projects that would help lower-income individuals. “Every one of these projects has the potential to provide a much-needed lifeline to someone in need. And for those struggling to make ends meet or desperately searching for an afford- able place to live, the help these projects will provide can’t come soon enough.” With an operating budget of over $100 mil- lion annually and 750 employees, the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, which started in the mid-1980s with a $100,000 budget, now has a large real estate footprint across the metro region. “The book value is approximately $200 million. However, this doesn’t refl ect appreciation, nor the rent restrictions, which are much lower than market,” Alderman says. And it also doesn’t begin to cover the num- ber of people who need housing in Denver. Ac- cording to the 2022 Point in Time count, there were 4,798 people experiencing homelessness in the City of Denver on a given night in January. Here are the other properties in the Coali- tion’s portfolio, including close to 1,700 units that the CCH owns outright: PROPERTIES IN DENVER Beacon Place 3636 West Colfax Avenue The CCH opened the 85-bed Beacon Place, Residents of the Quality Inn have been told they have to leave by September 16. which includes single-, double- and triple- occupancy rooms as transitional housing, in 1999 and then renovated the building in 2013. It has 24-hour on-site case management and some rooms designated for women, veterans and individuals seeking respite care after a hospital stay. Residents have access to meals, housekeeping and laundry services. Forum Apartments 250 West 14th Avenue Opened by CCH in 1996, the Forum Apart- ments boast 100 studio apartments, each of which has a full kitchen. The Forum Apart- ments were part of the fi rst permanent sup- portive housing complex in Denver; leases run for a year at a time. The Coalition is cur- rently in the process of completing a $10 mil- lion renovation of the property; most of that money is coming from low-income housing tax credit investments and a long-term loan. Fusion Studios 3737 Quebec Street Fusion Studios include 114 permanent sup- portive-housing studio apartments and 25 bridge-housing studio apartments for people experiencing homelessness. Rents range anywhere from free to $1,029. The studio apartments come with kitchenettes and have twelve-month lease terms. La Quinta Inn 3500 Park Avenue West Late last year, the Coalition purchased the La Quinta near downtown, which the organiza- tion has been using throughout the pandemic as a place where individuals experiencing homelessness who test positive for COVID can isolate. The CCH has also been using the motel as temporary shelter for people who are at a heightened risk from serious illness or death from COVID. “When there is no longer need for the COVID response use, we might convert it into bridge housing and, over time, we might scrape the motel and build up to 200 units of affordable/supportive housing on the site. But that is probably a couple or several years away,” says Alderman. Renaissance at Civic Center Apartments 25 East 16th Avenue The CCH bought this property, which had 167 units, from the YMCA in 2001. During a renovation, the property was expanded to 202 studio apartments with kitchenettes and fourteen one-bedroom apartments. The building is occupied by those who might otherwise be homeless, including veterans, people with mental illnesses and those need- ing substance-use treatment. The apart- ments are also an option for low-income workers in downtown Denver who can’t afford to live in the area otherwise. Rent for the units, which are leased for up to a year at a time, runs between $402 and $600. Renaissance at Lowry Boulevard 550 Alton Way Created on nine acres in the Lowry neighbor- hood in 2003, the Renaissance at Lowry Boule- vard includes 120 apartment units, with a mix of two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments. These units are available for both home- less individuals and low-income families; all residents have access to a range of amenities, including a swimming pool and an exercise room. Rent ranges from $550 to $1,690. Renaissance Blue Spruce Townhomes 7300 East Severn Place The CCH acquired the Blue Spruce Town- homes, also located in Lowry, in 2000 from the Lowry Redevelopment Authority, which got the property from the Department of Defense; the Coalition reopened the 92-unit facility in 2003. It features two-, three- and four-bedroom townhomes that are available as transitional and permanent supportive housing for families experiencing home- lessness, in addition to low- and moderate- income families. The facility has a playground and a community garden, and rents range from $525 to $1,679. Renaissance at North Colorado Station 3999 Colorado Boulevard This mixed-income housing development in the Clayton neigh- continued on page 10 9 westword.com | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NEWS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | WESTWORD SEPTEMBER 15-21, 2022 EVAN SEMÓN
