Now that Denver has unveiled an ambitious 10-year plan to expand housing and services for the city’s homeless, the hard work begins in finding $122 million to pay for it.
Fundraising for homeless initiatives has had mixed results, making potential donors leery. So Denver’s first few steps will be crucial.
Denver officials point to Atlanta and Philadelphia as examples to follow for identifying new funding.
Atlanta started down the same path as Denver two years ago and has raised $17 million.
“The vast majority of our money has come from individuals and family foundations, which much of Atlanta’s history is based on,” said Chris Allers, a senior vice president with United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta. “Once we got started, a lot of smaller foundations and corporations joined in.”
He said Atlanta’s success was largely based on a blueprint developed in advance.
“The private community, civic- minded people, are much more willing to invest when you have a clear plan on how you will address these difficult social issues. A solid plan engenders confidence. Individuals and organizations see policymakers taking action, and it increases participation,” Allers said.
Another key to success was leadership by Mayor Shirley Franklin and “people of stature in the community,” he said.
Philadelphia set up its own mental health center for Medicaid patients and used the profits as seed money for its very successful programs to end homelessness.
“Once you start having success, people want to support it,” said Rob Hess, Philadelphia’s deputy managing director of special needs housing. “Foundations joined in, and state and federal agencies were much more receptive. Everyone wants to support a winner.”
Hess said Philadelphia’s homeless-services budget now is more than $64 million annually, with another $20 million spent on drug addiction treatment and behavioral treatment programs. Philadelphia says it has fewer than 200 chronic homeless people in the core city now, down from 900 seven years ago.
Richard Scharf, president of the Denver Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, has stepped up to organize private fundraising efforts for Denver’s plan. He said he expects to have a diverse team of community leaders assembled by summer.
But the city will have to increase its public funding for fighting homelessness and identify federal and nonprofit grants to meet its goal of ending homelessness in 10 years.
The plan, released this week by a special commission appointed by Mayor John Hickenlooper, calls for the construction of more than 3,200 units of affordable, transitional housing, more shelters and increases in counseling and health care for Denver’s homeless population, now estimated at more than 4,600.
Startup costs are expected to total about $7.7 million the first year, with an annual budget of about $12.7 million after that.
Roxane White, manager of the city Department of Human Services and chairwoman of the city’s Commission to End Homelessness, said half the money will come from governmental sources, one quarter from nonprofit foundations and one quarter from corporations and individuals.
White said tax increases are not being considered. The city Housing and Neighborhood Development Services has committed $8 million over five years. White’s department has committed $1 million so far.
Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at 303-820-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com.
