DENVER — By the end of 2024, Denver's Mayor Mike Johnston and his team want to move 2,000 people living on the streets, indoors. On Wednesday, city council members learned more about how many people the city is moving from temporary shelters to permanent housing.
The turnaround time is picking up speed to about six people per week.
The ultimate goal of the city's All In Mile High initiative isn't to keep people in a hotel room. In order to end chronic homelessness, Denver relies on people finding permanent housing.
"Our efforts to do so are largely dependent on moving people through the All In Mile High sites," Cole Chandler, a senior advisor to the mayor on homelessness, said.
In front of city council members, Chandler shared an update. The city is seeing progress in getting people into permanent housing.
After spending more than $55 million since July 2023, more people are leaving temporary shelters like hotels and tiny homes.
"Six people per week, almost one person every day at this point," Chandler said.
He credited the progress to new housing vouchers and an increase in case management.
"We are starting to see a huge uptick in service delivery," he said. "We are getting better at delivering those services."
Council members are tracking the progress closely with so much money behind the city's goal.
The city began offering hotel rooms in September. Some people who moved in then are still there nine months later. Chandler said the city expects and hopes to temporarily house people for six months before moving them to permanent housing.
Chandler told city council of the roughly 1,500 people who have been moved indoors, more than 530 people are in permanent housing.
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