Tag: Urban Alchemy
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EDITORIAL: Denver grows its homelessness-industrial complex
Mayor Mike Johnston’s latest pending pratfall on homelessness — having ex-cons staff Denver’s most troubled, city-run homeless hotel — is starting to look even worse. It turns out the San Francisco nonprofit that will employ offenders to run the city’s homeless shelter in the former DoubleTree Hotel at 4040 Quebec St., has an awkwardly close…
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Denver housing official was named in Urban Alchemy lobbying kerfuffle
Denver’s Department of Housing Stability has a unique connection with its biggest and newest homeless shelter provider, as well as some of its troubles. Jeff Kositsky, HOST’s deputy director of shelter and stability, was Urban Alchemy’s chief growth officer for two-and-a-half years, working on “national expansion, organizational development, financial management and fundraising,” according to his…
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Denver’s performance-based shelter contracts face test with Urban Alchemy
Denver has awarded a $30 million, three-year contract to a San Francisco-based group to provide operational services at The Aspen, one of the largest city-owned homeless hotels-turned-shelters, beginning January 1. Unlike The Salvation Army, which has operated several of the city’s non-congregate hotel shelters under a flat-fee contract, Urban Alchemy agreed to a performance-based contract,…
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EDITORIAL: Guess who’ll be minding Denver’s sheltered
The hardcore “homeless” population that regularly wanders the streets of the Denver metro area is disproportionately afflicted by addiction. That typically means illegal drug use — heroin, meth, fentanyl — and the lawbreaking lifestyle that goes with it. So, here’s an idea: Let’s staff one of Denver’s city-run shelters — with ex-criminal convicts! Many of…
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Denver approves $30M shelter contract with Urban Alchemy
With a 9-4 vote, Denver City Council members approved a new $30 million, three-year contract with Urban Alchemy, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, to run The Aspen, a former DoubleTree Hotel that has been turned into a homeless shelter. More than two hours of discussion focused on the contract and the new service provider, selected by…
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Denver to consider $27 million body camera contract, DPD overtime
The Denver City Council will meet Monday afternoon to consider a handful of resolutions postponed from Dec. 1 and two resolutions involving the Denver Police Department. First up is a resolution from the Department of Public Safety seeking approval of a new five-year, $27 million contract with Arizona-based Axon for 2,563 new body cameras and…
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Denver City Council approves $600 million for DOTI on-call services
A cluster of close to 55 resolutions – totaling $600 million for contracts to provide on-call services for the city’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure won council approval Monday. However, two resolutions tied to the city’s homeless operation were tabled for a week. Among the approved resolutions were eight contracts, each for $50 million, totaling…