Migrants' Free Rent Program Gets a Boost

Denver City Council unanimously approved a contractual agreement with a regional nonprofit, costing roughly $1.4 million to provide various migrant services throughout the remainder of this year.

The resolution between the city and ViVe Wellness was approved on Monday via a 13-0 vote and will "provide case management services for newcomer families and individuals including rental/deposit assistance, onward travel, and other supportive services."

The contract comes at a $1.369 million price tag and will conclude on December 31, 2024.

Newsweek reached out to Denver Mayor Mike Johnston's office, ViVe, and Denver Human Services via email for comment.

ViVe's scope of work will include providing housing navigation and assistance, referrals and service connections, transportation services including onward travel support, cultural responsiveness and trauma-informed care, and a language access plan.

"While the contract covers other expenses such as rental assistance, case management is absolutely pivotal to achieving positive outcomes," a spokesperson for the city told The Center Square.

"There is no one-size-fits-all approach for this particular group, so it's very important that newcomers receive one-on-one assistance so we can identify whatever barriers are standing in the way of their success."

Denver's Safety, Housing, Education, and Homeless Committee originally OK'd the contract on April 24, allowing the resolution to be placed on Monday's agenda for final council approval.

It follows the enacting of a "newcomer" program that began last month.

On April 11, Johnston announced the new Asylum Seekers Program described as "the first step" in a long-term migrant response. An estimated 800 migrants are expected to be among the first to qualify.

It allows roughly 1,000 asylum seekers to come to Denver but they must wait at least 180 days after applying for asylum to receive legal work authorization. After receiving that authorization, those individuals will be enrolled in a separate program called WorkReady Denver.

Those asylum seekers are also being provided six months of housing assistance, in-depth workforce training and food assistance while they wait for authorization.

The move came on the heels of a dwindling migrant budget that city officials warned was cutting into funding for other programs and services. The sanctuary city has opened its doors to 41,530 newcomers as of Wednesday, according to the city's migrant dashboard, at a cost of nearly $70 million.

Also as of Wednesday, there were 25 newcomers in short-term shelters and 595 in hotel shelters.

"We've been in a kind of a back foot position really for the last 16 months," Jon Ewing, a spokesperson for Denver Human Services, said on NPR's Morning Edition. "What we're trying to do now is build something that is sustainable."

Between April 11 and 24, Denver welcomed 180 newcomers—an average of 22 arrivals daily, including migrants who traveled on 17 different buses from Texas to Colorado. Of those 180 newcomers, 138 purchased tickets for onward travel to other destinations.

The city is currently operating one non-congregate hotel shelter, two congregate shelters, and one transitional housing facility. A hotel shelter is intended to be closed by this summer "after all occupants transition to leased units through rental assistance programs at designated nonprofits."

Of the more than $69 million spent towards migrants and associated services since December 2022, $25.06 million (36.49 percent) has gone towards housing/shelter and $20.47 million (29.81 percent) has gone towards payroll.

In the same time span, meals and onward travel made up 11.25 percent and 10.26 percent of the budget total, respectively.