Mayor-Council Meeting on Housing Continuum and Halloween Announcements - October 31, 2023

This weekly meeting of the Mayor and Denver City Council, held on Halloween, began with community announcements and a presentation by the Mayor on the city's housing continuum of care and affordability strategy. Council members discussed prevention, shelter, long-term affordable housing goals, and funding challenges for rental assistance and migrant services.

Announcements

• Council President Torres announced West Denver Dia de los Muertos events on Santa Fe Drive (Friday) and Westwood (three-day weekend).
• Councilwoman Gonzalez Gutierrez noted the Viva Colorado celebration was postponed, but altars and activities will be at Civic Center Park on November 4 from noon to 8 PM.
• Councilman Watson promoted a trunk-or-treat at the National Western Stockyards on Halloween and a D9 community event at Randall's on November 3.
• Councilman Cashman thanked Cook Park Recreation Center for a successful trunk-or-treat with three times the previous year's attendance.
• Councilwoman Romero Campbell reminded residents to bundle children up for trick-or-treating and wear reflective gear.
• Councilwoman Gilmore announced that the Mayor agreed to postpone the November 2 community meeting at Montbello High School to a later date.
• Councilwoman Lewis announced a rezoning town hall for the Best Western at MLK Recreation Center on Saturday, November 4, from 2–3 PM.

Discussion Items

• The Mayor presented a slide deck outlining the housing continuum: homelessness prevention, emergency shelter, transitional housing, long-term affordable rentals, and homeownership. Emphasis was placed on permanently affordable deed-restricted units.
• The Mayor stated that Denver is currently short about 50,000 affordable housing units. The goal of 3,000 new units per year would produce 25,000 units over eight years, roughly half the need.
• Discussion highlighted the tension between funding rental assistance/eviction defense and maintaining a 15% reserve. The Mayor warned that migrant funding could run out by February or March 2024 if the reserve is tapped, and that collective bargaining with sheriffs is also unbudgeted for 2024.
• Council President Torres linked housing stability to other policies (ADU construction, wage theft, small business supports) and requested a district-by-district affordable housing pipeline.
• Councilwoman Gonzalez Gutierrez expressed full support for rental assistance and eviction defense, and hoped for a partnership to fully fund these programs.
• Councilman Watson asked about office-to-housing conversions; the Mayor responded that a pilot is underway, 16 buildings have been identified, but cost per unit (potential $400,000) is a challenge for affordability.
• Council President Torres also noted the need to engage private developers on including affordability in their projects.

Key Outcomes

• No formal votes were taken.
• The Mayor agreed to postpone the November 2 Montbello community meeting to a later date.
• The Mayor and council members committed to working together on a funding solution for rental assistance and eviction defense, with further discussions expected in the coming week.
• The Mayor agreed to provide a deeper dive on affordable housing plans and district-by-district pipelines once the new HOST director is in place.
• Council President Torres will follow up on district-specific housing conversations.