DENVER — In his first State of the City address on Monday, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston focused on his signature effort to reduce homelessness and also discussed the influx of migrants into the city.
Johnston gave his address at the Paramount Theatre. The mayor spoke about what he believes to be successes over the past year and announced new objectives for next year.
The goal of the House1000 homelessness initiative that Johnston campaigned for was to help 1,000 people in Denver experiencing homelessness move into shelters and eventually permanent housing by the end of 2023.
"We partnered with the City Council to identify, build and open 1,200 units of transitional housing in eight different council districts across the city, and at each of those sites we have offered the wraparound services people need," Johnston said. "As of today, one year later, we have moved more than 1,600 people off the streets and into transitional housing."
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Last month, 9NEWS reported that the city plans to spend around $155 million on the House1000 and All in Mile High programs between July 2023 and the end of this year. That’s about $65 million more than what Johnston said it would cost when he held two news conferences last year.
He touted that anyone walking in downtown Denver "will not see a single tent or a single encampment in all of downtown Denver." He attributes that change to the number of people now living in transitional housing rather than on the streets in Denver.
Johnston's new goal is to end unsheltered veteran homelessness in Denver. He first announced the initiative June 3.
"Those who have risked their lives for our country deserve the decency of stable housing," he said. "That is why we are proud to share that by the end of 2024, Denver is on the path to become the largest American city ever to end street homelessness for veterans."
In his address, Johnston also talked about the influx of migrants arriving in Denver. With more than 43,000 newcomers coming to the Mile High City, the Denver Asylum Seekers Program was created to help migrants apply for asylum, learn English through a partnership with Centro De Los Trabajadores and gain job training to start working when their work authorization is approved.
"Our program helps newcomers caught in a broken federal immigration system, where they have to wait seven years for a court date without the ability to work while they wait," Johnston said. "We found a new path helping every newcomer in our program apply for asylum. Then while they wait six months for legal work authorization, we used that as an opportunity to give them the skills they need for the jobs Denver needs."
Other topics Johnston talked about were public safety and his goal to make Denver one of the safest big cities in America, a new community service program called Give5 Mile High, downtown revitalization with the Vibrant Denver plan and the affordability of living in the city with the Affordable Denver Fund.
The fund would contribute to expanding initiatives like housing vouchers, down payment assistance and new construction, and to preserving existing affordable housing units. City officials said it would fund new initiatives such as a revolving loan fund for construction projects and public equity in affordable housing.
Earlier this month, Johnston announced the proposal to increase the city's sales tax by 0.5% to pay for the administration's housing development goals. The Affordable Denver Fund would bring Denver's current 8.81% sales tax rate up to 9.31%, raising an estimated $100 million a year, the mayor's office said.
The fund would be the second sales tax hike up for voter approval if it makes the ballot in November. The first is a proposed 0.34% increase that would provide additional funding for Denver Health.