Often, Dan Makelky, the human resources director for Douglas County, looks out his office window in Castle Rock and sees someone get released from the nearby county jail and wander down the road with nowhere to go. Central Castle Rock is outside the Regional Transportation District. Without public transportation connecting the town to other areas, […]
homeless sweeps
Posted inColoradans, Equity, Housing, News, Politics and Government
A Native-inclusive safe campsite has opened in Denver. But some lament loss of community.
When Wanbli Cabrera and several of her family members started camping outside of Four Winds American Indian Council at West Fifth Avenue and Bannock Street in Denver five months ago, they were running out of options. They had been camping on the streets of Denver for years — two, in Cabrera’s case, and longer for […]
Posted inNews
10 moves in 4 months: Following one homeless couple’s endless migration around Denver
It was just after dawn, the sky over Denver tinged a light pink, when the relentless beep of garbage trucks in reverse blared down Pearl Street. Temperatures had dipped into the single digits the night before, and most of the 20 or so people who lived along the sidewalk were still bundled in sleeping bags […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: There are better ways for Denver to spend money on homelessness than on sweeps
People experiencing homelessness face a multitude of dilemmas each day, whether it’s securing a place to sleep, food to eat, or, for families, managing children and education. People experiencing homelessness in Denver experience stigma and social isolation, as well as political isolation through “anti-homeless” architecture, such as benches with an armrest in the middle to […]
Posted inHealth, Housing, News, Politics and Government
How one block on Pearl Street represents Denver’s stubborn homelessness crisis
“I’m going to shoot him!” The man’s shouts echoed in the street at 2 a.m. as he rummaged through his belongings for a gun. Screams and yelling erupted in the encampment on Pearl Street, where about 25 people are living in tents, keeping warm with makeshift fire pits fueled by propane tanks inside blanket- and […]