DENVER – Denver officials are looking at a third hotel site as they work to accomplish Mayor Mike Johnston’s goal of providing some form of housing to 1,000 people experiencing homelessness by the end of the year.
A spokesperson for the mayor’s office said in a news release Thursday morning the city is pursuing a master lease of the former DoubleTree hotel located at 4040 Quebec St. in Denver’s Central Park neighborhood.
The master lease agreement made between the city and Rocky Mountain Communities to purchase and lease the property was passed without objection from the city’s Safety Committee on Wednesday. It will now move through Denver City Council for approval.
If approved, the site would be the third hotel acquired by the city to help move 1,000 unhoused people in Denver by the end of the year into transitional housing and close encampments for good.
The city has already acquired the Best Western Central Park hotel at 4595 Quebec St. and earlier this year, Denver City Council OK’d the purchase of the Stay Inn hotel, located at 12033 E. 38th Ave., so it could be converted into transitional housing as well.
"This is a significant milestone in our efforts to get 1,000 unhoused neighbors into transitional housing,” Johnston said in prepared remarks. “This property will help us get hundreds of Denverites off the streets and into dignified and stable converted hotel units that will allow us to close encampments and keep them permanently closed.”
Denver
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston discusses first 100 days in office
The DoubleTree site will have 300 rooms and 450 beds, a commercial kitchen and laundry facility, “and will prioritize the health and safety of individuals experiencing homelessness by providing wrap-around services,” the spokesperson said.
A service provider will also be managing the site, making sure residents receive the support they need to transition to more permanent housing, pending city council approval.
The city will invest approximately $3.9 million to lease and operate the hotel, city officials said, which is part of the $5.4 million in the budget allocated for the mayor’s House1000 plan.
Denver was also awarded $24.4 million from the Colorado Department of Local Affairs under its Denver-Metro Regional Navigation Campus funding, which city officials said would help make the lease, and potential purchase option, possible.
Per city officials, people currently living in encampments would be able to move in to the DoubleTree site as early as December, pending city council approval.
