The 21-year-old has lived on Urban Peak’s campus, located at 1630 S. Acoma St., since last year. In that time, he has managed to save almost $15,000, which he plans to use to buy a car soon and apply for a Section 8 voucher, a federal subsidy for low-income families.
“All my problems in my life right now are financial,” said Perez-Williams, an Amazon delivery driver.
Urban Peak, a recipient of a Denver Post Season To Share grant, provides services to people experiencing homelessness, including a shelter, other forms of housing and mental health support. The nonprofit serves about 1,000 people per year, according to its website.
This summer, Urban Peak opened a new campus called the Mothership, which allowed the organization to go from having 40 beds to 136 beds for teens and young adults in the four-story, 60,000-square-foot building. also has art and music studios and provides transitional housing, which is a temporary place for teens and young adults to stay until they find more long-term housing.
“It’s really this idea of wrapping services around youth,” CEO Christina Carlson said.
The goal for the Mothership is to have six “neighborhoods” that can house youth from different backgrounds, such as people in addiction recovery. Urban Peak hopes to open the neighborhood for youth in recovery in the coming months, she said.
Urban Peak also expanded who it serves with the Mothership. Previously, the nonprofit only provided shelter to 15-to-21-year-olds. Now, Urban Peak can shelter 12-to-24-year-olds, which means fewer young people have to stay at adult shelters, Carlson said.
“By breaking the cycle of homelessness we save lives, change trajectories and build independence,” she said. “It’s a way for young people to set their path forward and be able to make decisions about what’s next in their lives.”
Perez-Williams moved into the shelter last year after getting a welding certificate from Colorado Mountain College in Leadville. He needed a place to stay and didn’t want to spend money on a hotel room.
Perez shares a room with one other person. There’s also a kitchen area and a place to hang out, he said.
But the biggest benefit to being at Urban Peak, Perez said, is that it has helped him financially.
“I’m not taking it for granted,” he said of living at Urban Peak.
Urban Peak
Address: 1630 S. Acoma St., Denver CO 80223
In operation since: 1988
Number of employees: 87
Annual budget: $9,812,418
Number of clients served: 937 in fiscal 2023
