When the Johnston administration spent millions of dollars last year to build “micro-communities” made up of “tiny” units to house homeless people, officials emphasized two priorities — safety and transitional housing opportunities.

A review of city data hinted of the communities’ struggle with crime, while only a handful have transitioned into permanent housing.

One “micro-community” saw nearly 2,000 emergency 911 calls over an eight-month period.

At the city’s biggest tiny home community, only three people transitioned to some form of housing.

Some advocates blamed Colorado’s “affordable housing crisis” for the fact that fewer people have successfully transitioned out of the “micro-communities.” Others have long maintained that substance abuse and mental illnesses are the root causes of homelessness and unless the Johnston administration focuses on tackling them, his strategies will fail.

“Unfortunately, the affordable housing crisis limits available

options for stable housing,” said Cuica Montoya, a spokesperson for the Colorado Village Collaborative, the operator of the city’s largest “micro-community” at 621 W. Wesley Ave., in south Denver. The community has 60 tiny home units.

Since it opened in mid-March through the end of August, 75 homeless people have lived there. Out of that number, only three exited for some type of housing, according to the Collaborative.

Nine people exited the site due to violations, according to the operator. It’s not immediately clear exactly what type of infractions occurred.

Additionally, the operator reported, 47 people received medical services and 17 people were given mental health services at a 84% acceptance rate for homeless people seeking case management services.

“We have seen encouraging signs of engagement, especially in areas like medical service, case management participation, assistance with vital documents, and employment,” Montoya said.

“Historically,” she added, “individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness, particularly those impacted by camping bans, are less connected to critical services and often feel disconnected from the larger service sector.”

A safe haven

The city built three non-congregate, micro-communities: one in northeast Denver on 38th Avenue, one in south Denver off Santa Fe Drive, and another one off Elati Street in downtown.

Mayor Mike Johnston, who has embraced a “housing first” approach to homelessness, adopted the micro-community strategy shortly after taking office a year ago. His administration has shut down encampments and moved people to shelters or to the “micro-communities.”

Currently, 109 homeless people live in all three micro-communities.

“Homelessness is a challenge faced by individuals and neighborhoods alike citywide,” said Katherine Wamsley, a spokesperson for the department.

Walmsley said officials considered several sites and then picked the ones that met a number of criteria, including “equitable distribution across the city.”

All told, the city has transitioned 28 people from the “micro-communities” to “permanent” housing since the first one opened on Dec. 31, according to Denver’s Department of Housing Stability.

Jordan Fuja, a spokesperson for the mayors office, also cited the lack of affordable housing as explanation for the figures.

“Resources for people coming out of homelessness can take time to secure and finding a unit can also take some time,” she said. “We will continue to work closely with our service provider partners to help residents get back on their feet and find permanent housing that is affordable and accessible.”

City officials and nonprofit providers overseeing the sites have emphasized that the “micro-communities” are designed to be a safe haven for homeless people,

Indeed, the mayor’s office insisted that the communities and surrounding areas are safe and that “the neighborhoods around all three micro-communities have not seen elevated levels of crime or calls for service.”

The data hinted of the struggles at the “micro-communities.”

Within 1,000 feet of the Elati site, 1,924 emergency 911 calls were made between Jan. 1 and Aug. 28, records from the city’s Department of Public Safety showed.

That is nearly three times more than the 38th Avenue “micro-community” in northeast Denver. That site saw 647 emergency 911 calls during the same period.

The Wesley Avenue site, which is located in the Overland Park neighborhood, drew 121 calls since the beginning of the year, according to the data.

Crimes reported outside these micro-communities included assault, welfare checks and theft. Additionally, homeless encampments were also reported, the data showed.

From within, the Elati site saw 35 emergency 911 calls for service, 37 calls at 38th Avenue and 17 at Wesley Avenue, the data showed.

Many of the calls from inside these micro-communities consisted of welfare checks, such as asking authorities to check on non-responsive people, trespassing, disturbances, threats, theft, drug overdoses and health-related issues, burglary, and sexual assault, according to the data.

Wamsley, the city spokesperson, claimed the department only experienced 16 calls at the Elati community.

“All micro-communities are fenced, and service providers and the city work together to ensure safety of micro-community residents and surrounding neighbors,” she said. “It’s important to note that 911 calls don’t indicate where calls originated from, and many calls, indeed, may be from unhoused micro-community residents who are experiencing trauma and factors that may be contributing to calls for assistance.”

The residents of the Elati site near the heart of downtown Denver are women, transgender and nonbinary homeless people.

The site’s operator said since its opening in March, the 44-unit community has housed 41 homeless people; 24 still reside there today.

“I think that we see people who get to take a moment to breathe and to figure out what’s next, as opposed to being in constant survival mode,” said Heather Beck, CEO of The Gathering Place.

Beck attributed the 911 calls to emergency services.

“We do our best to make sure people are getting the care that they need when they need it. Sometimes, that means utilizing emergency services in Denver,” she said.

Homeless people are allowed to come and go as they please, according to Beck.

A ‘home’ doesn’t cure drug addiction

Area resident Genifer Murray, a part of a “good neighbor agreement” for the Elati “micro-community” site, said she has seen drug paraphernalia and peo

ple camping in the area.

She said drug use is a main factor of homelessness.

“They’re just going to do drugs inside or around the corner,” she said. “And that was one of the biggest concerns we had.”

“Okay, we understand you can’t use it on the premise. Then guess where they’re going to go?” she said. “Because you give them a home, doesn’t mean they’re all of a sudden not immediately stop doing drugs.”

Three people called 911 as a result of overdoses in the three micro-communities, according to the data.

Each housing unit in a micro-community costs roughly $87,000 per unit, according to an analysis by The Denver Gazette.

Under Johnston’s homeless strategy, 1,872 homeless people have transitioned into either temporary hotel shelters or into the “micro-communities.” Out of the total, so far, 641 homeless people have transitioned to “permanent” housing, according to the city’s homeless dashboard.

Fuja, the mayor’s spokesperson, said the city conducts monthly meetings with “micro-community” neighbors to honor its “good neighbor agreements.”

“It’s very clear that the mayor just wants downtown to look like it is, you know, thriving, and there’s less homeless. But from my understanding, I think homelessness has risen,” said Murray, who resides near the Elati site.

“(Johnston) has made promises that he did not keep,” Murray added. “He consistently is touting how great of a program this is all over social media and not talking about the exact numbers and what is happening and how many people got off drugs and how many people are in counseling.”

The city is on track to spend nearly $155 million on the mayor’s homelessness campaign — $65 million more than anticipated — even as the total number of homeless people in the city actually ballooned from 5,818 last year to 6,539 this year.

And the city saw only 150 fewer “unsheltered” people — individuals who sleep in public places, such as parks and in cars — compared to the previous year’s count.