FAQs

Denver is currently operating 4 migrant shelters serving ~2,600 people (here is the daily tracker of migrants arriving in Denver).

Since last December, over 29,000 people have stayed in the city shelters. The city says it has spent over $30 million and is currently spending up to $2 million a week sheltering migrants and, along with other large cities, is petitioning the federal government for more aid.

City councilmembers have also been stepping in to provide more aid, but it’s still not enough.

News from the mayor’s visit to the Quality Inn Shelter on Sunday Nov. 19

Denver’s severe weather shelter plan only goes into the effect when the following criteria are met:
-Wind Chill Advisory, Watch, or Warning issued by the NWS

-Forecasted low temperature of 20 degrees or below (nighttime low for overnight shelters to be activated; daytime low for warming shelters to be activated)

-Two inches or more of snow forecasted for Denver

We are advocating for the city to increase the temperature threshold to 32 degrees. Please see our Advocacy Page for how to ask for change.

NEW 11/29: We’ve been notified by the city that families with children will NOT be forced to leave the shelters until further notice (and we will get notice ahead of time if that policy changes).

NO FAMILIES should leave shelter unless it's for a more permanent housing situation.

If you find a family sleeping outside:
If they are new (have never stayed in a city shelter): have them start at DHS East at 38th and Steele (3815 Steele St, Denver, CO 80205) between 8-4pm (after hours plan to come).

If they previously were in a shelter but were timed out, they can be brought directly back to a shelter with space (as of 12/4 this is the Radisson Hotel at 4849 Bannock St - please check back here as this may change daily).

UPDATE 11/29: timing out of families with children is currently PAUSED.

Timing for adults without children remains 14 days.

While families may still be given a designated exit day, those are currently not in effect. While this policy may change, notice will be given first.

Families with children are currently given 37 days; adults are given just 14 days. Neither amount of time is sufficient to find work and housing, particularly without legal documentation.

The current policy was created by the city and is not mandatory and can be changed (and already has reduced the amount of time for solo adults and increased it for families with children).

Many shelters don’t have an area to camp nearby, so people who time out from those shelters are coming to the camp at 27th & Zuni.

There is another, smaller encampment near Pecos & I-70 (not actually at Pecos, further east under the 48th Ave bridge as you go towards the Radisson which is another city shelter). This site has ~30-40 people, mostly men but some children.

In addition to the city shelter at the Quality Inn on 26th and Zuni, there are shelters at the Radisson in Globeville (48th and Bannock), the Comfort Inn in Peoria, and the Microtel near the airport.

There is also an unofficial shelter being run out of the former Western Motor Inn at 4757 Vasquez Blvd

Several migrant families are staying at the HomeTown Studios at 6th & Kipling in Lakewood, but this is also not an official shelter; they are paying to stay there.

The food provided at the shelter is insufficient and people are still hungry, especially kiddos! (Maybe something to lobby the mayor about?).

In addition, those living in the camps outside the hotels are not provided food or water.

Please don't take pictures of people, especially kids, without their permission.

Also be mindful that some people are escaping violence and don't want their images and location out there.

More people are arriving every day, spurring the crisis.

The city maintains a dashboard here where you can see the latest numbers.

Currently, 100 or more people are arriving daily.

This is not a formal organization. We are just a group of neighbors who are concerned about this humanitarian crisis and are stepping up to help.

We can’t verify that funding requests from individuals are being used as requested or intended so if you decide to contribute, please know that you're doing so at your own risk.

If you're able, it can be even more impactful to give funds directly to migrants themselves or to related nonprofits to ensure it's used as intended.

That said, please follow your heart and thank you for your kindness and philanthropy.

This is a good primer from the New York Times.

This article really captures the scope of the migration crisis and approaches needed to address it.

The terminology can get confusing, so here’s an article that explains the difference.

The newcomers from Venezuela are technically migrants.

“Why Accepting Immigrants is a Win-Win-Win Formula” (Brookings Institute)

“Immigrants Play a Disproportionate Role in American Entrepreneurship” (Harvard Business Review)

News article on the “Alternatives to Detention” program that monitors migrants as they await immigration court dates.