A coalition of disabled homeless people has filed a lawsuit against Denver over accessibility issues with several of the city’s shelters.

Housekeys Action Network Denver and six individuals filed the civil rights lawsuit in U.S. District Court on Feb. 25. The lawsuit alleges that over the past several years, the plaintiffs and numerous other disabled individuals “have been discriminatorily denied access to, ejected from, and denied reasonable accommodations by various shelters, shelter-based services, and transitional living spaces funded by the city.

The plaintiffs said the problems still exist and, despite multiple reports, the city has failed to address the issue.

“While the Mayor raced to house 1,000 people for the cameras, he was ignoring the pleas of Denver’s disabled houseless residents who were repeatedly being forced out of shelters and onto the streets simply because of their disabilities,” said attorney Andy McNulty. “Denver’s repeated refusal to provide our houseless and disabled neighbors with shelter because of their disabilities not only violates the law; it runs counter to basic human decency.”

The Denver Gazette asked for comment from Mayor Mike Johnston and from the Denver’s Department of Housing Stability (HOST). A HOST spokesperson referred all questions to the city attorney.

The mayor’s office has not yet responded.

Since taking office in July 2023, Mayor Mike Johnston’s administration has spent $155 million on homelessness — $65 million more than Johnston previously said it would cost.

Johnston, who released his 2024 report card in January, cited multiple successes in reducing the homeless rate, promising an even more ambitious campaign this year.

According to court documents, the plaintiffs want the city to ensure that its contractors and grantees who manage and operate shelters do not discriminatorily deny shelter and shelter-based services to individuals based on their disabilities.

Attorneys state that, in October, Housekeys Action Network Denver offered to work with Denver to design a process that would address these issues. That offer was rejected, the group said. 

Plaintiffs cited instances at city-funded shelters where, they claimed, disabled homeless individuals have had medically necessary scissors confiscated, required to crawl up stairs at shelters without elevators or ramps for wheelchair use, and been turned away from shelters because accessible beds were not set aside for those who need them and restroom facilities not configured for use by powered wheelchairs.