Advocacy Group Says Denver’s Pandemic-Era Rehousing Program Didn’t Reduce Homelessness as Much as the City Claims
An advocacy group in Denver and the city’s mayor are in a spat over whether Denver’s pandemic-era rapid rehousing program was as successful as officials claim. The disagreement points to the issues wrought by relying on data from the annual Point in Time Count to measure progress on initiatives targeting homelessness.
Housekeys Action Network Denver (HAND) has been advocating for people who are homeless since the group launched in 2022. That same year, Denver ramped up its House 1000 program, a rapid rehousing program that was designed to provide temporary shelter and connect program participants with permanent housing.
In all , the city’s data shows it served more than 7,700 people in the more than three years since House 1000 launched. The city also claims to have moved about 6,500 people into housing and reduced unsheltered homelessness by 45%, according to estimates from the Point in Time Count (PIT). That was before the program began to wind down earlier this year as federal American Rescue Plan funds expired…