Since this bitter cold weather snap, Denver’s Road Home and Denver Human Services have received multiple inquiries regarding shelter for the homeless. We wanted to pass along this information regarding our plans and what we have been doing to provide shelter. We want to reiterate Denver’s Road Home and Denver Human Services commitment to working with our providers, partners and the community to make sure every homeless man, woman, child and family have a safe and warm place to stay. According to Denver’s area shelters, there were 15 open beds on Monday and Tuesday night at the Volunteers of America motel, which women and families can access when regular beds are filled, and sufficient beds for men and families at our overflow shelters. We are working to connect anyone having trouble finding shelter with these resources as there is no reason any man, woman or child should have slept outside last night. Our community partners are committed to referring any homeless individual they cannot provide shelter for to either Denver Human Services Outreach Team or to our Denver Street Outreach Collaborative to help them find a safe and warm place to stay. When a shelter for a woman or family is filled to capacity, our partners will refer them to Denver Human Services or the Samaritan House for a motel voucher. Today, all of our providers and outreach workers confirmed they gave motel vouchers to anyone who requested one that didn’t have a place to stay last night. We have doubled our efforts today to be sure this information is accurately conveyed to anyone that is being turned away from a shelter that is filled to capacity. Opening an overflow shelter is not dependent on weather; rather Denver opens our overflow shelters when our nightly shelters are filled to capacity. Denver overflow shelters have been open since Nov. 13, 2009 because our regular shelters have been at capacity. Denver remains committed to finding shelter for everyone who needs it throughout this cold spell, even those who typically don’t qualify for shelter in Denver County, due to residency requirements, violence violations or other circumstances. We want to connect them to a safe and warm place to stay during these cold nights. We have a total of 19 street outreach workers who are on the streets from 7 a.m .- 10 p.m. working closely with the Denver Police Department, Denver Downtown Partnership and our providers to reach out to hard to reach populations and encourage them to come indoors. In addition to regular beds, Denver’s current overflow beds for the homeless include: For men: - 98 overflow mats at the Samaritan House - 100 cots available at the Denver Rescue Mission - 100 beds at Crossroads For women: - 241 regular shelter beds and an additional 15 overflow beds at Delores Project - 5 beds at Theodora House - When this space fills, Denver will issue motel vouchers. For families: - 6 families can be accommodated in overflow at the Lambuth Center - If those fill, we will issue motel vouchers. We are continually working to ensure everyone who wants to sleep inside can do so. We encourage anyone who needs a safe and warm place stay in the City and County of Denver to call Mile High United Way’s 2-1-1 or contact our Homeless Outreach Coordinator, Katie Symons at (303) 888-3045. Best regards, Jamie Van Leeuwen, PhD Executive Director Mayor’s Office of Community Impact Denver's Road Home Chair, Office of Drug Strategy