Denver cuts operator's security budget at hotel-turned homeless shelter following shootings, deaths

As Denver struggles to keep a hotel-turned homeless shelter secure, the city decided to cut down the site operator's security budget and provide its own security measures instead. 

The Salvation Army is under a $10 million contract with Denver to operate, oversee and secure the former DoubleTree hotel, located at 4040 N. Quebec St. in northeast Denver, which currently houses 305 homeless people under Mayor Mike Johnston’s campaign to move them out of the city's streets.

The Salvation Army was initially allocated $800,000 for security. It's unclear exactly how much of that the city will keep instead.   

The shelter is supposed to be a “safer” alternative than living on the streets, according to Jamie Rife, the Executive Director of Denver’s Department of Housing Stability (HOST).

Three people were shot at the hotel last month, two fatally. Five other deaths have been reported since it began operating as a homeless shelter in December, according to medical examiner data obtained by The Denver Gazette.

The five hotel-turned-shelters are a critical part of Johnston’s housing plan. He plans to move 1,000 more homeless people into temporary shelters by the end of this year.

The violence led Denver to initiate its own security measures and decrease The Salvation Army’s security budget, according to HOST’s interim Director of Communications Derek Woodbury.

The city measures include "covert assets," metal detectors, a badging system and increased police presence. 

“We will be working on a contract amendment to remove security tasks and budget from this contract,” Woodbury said.

Denver is leasing the former hotel for $83,333.33 a month for up to 15 months. 

Following the deaths, the city promised a “hands on approach” to security, changes that Cole Chandler, the mayor’s homeless czar, was tasked to oversee.  

Johnston’s administration said the added security measures are part of a "seven-step" plan with “immediate actions and long-term solutions that will help sustain the continued success of the effort surrounding homelessness.”

“We’re grateful to the Salvation Army for bringing this site online to house hundreds of Denverites, and we look forward to continuing this partnership,” said Woodbury. “The Salvation Army is an essential partner to the success of the All In Mile High program and resolving homelessness in our city.”

On March 16, Denver police found a man and woman shot dead inside one of the shelter's rooms.

The police identified the homicide victims as Sandra Cervantes and Dustin Nunn. They were found dead inside a room around 9:40 p.m. No arrests have been made in connection with their deaths, police told The Denver Gazette on Monday.

The double homicide is what initially prompted the added security measures.

That included extending the number of onsite security guards to eight, an increase in police presence, a new badging system for guests and more administrative oversight. The city also installed metal detectors in the middle of last week, according to the housing department.

Last Wednesday night, a woman was shot in the neck inside a room at the hotel. She survived the shooting.

Officers arrested Cameron Ware, 34, on suspicion of attempted murder. Authorities believe he and the victim knew each other and she was "targeted because of a prior conflict," the police said in a news release. The police also arrested William Jackson, 43, on attempted murder charges.

Both suspects were shelter residents, according to police.

The area has been a trouble spot since transitioning into a shelter only three months ago.

A review of 911 data involving shootings, drug use, theft or other acts of violence associated with the shelter at 4040 Quebec St. and within 1,000 meters shows more than 1,200 calls within a three-month period.

That number is the highest among five hotel-turned-shelters for homeless people, according to Department of Public Safety data obtained by The Denver Gazette through a public records request.

The calls included shootings, drug use, theft and other acts of violence.