DENVER — The Rodeway Inn, a Denver shelter for women and LGBTQ+ people experiencing homelessness, will close next month. Those working at a tiny home village that serves the same population say there's not enough resources serving that community.
Shelby Glover is the site manager for The Welcome Village, a tiny home community designed for women and the LGBTQ+ community.
“I was in foster care, and kind of just, like, in and out, off the streets from the ages of 15 to 19," Glover said. “I've been through it, I've been there, and it kind of just pushed me to start working with my community and becoming more of an advocate.”
The Welcome Village is part of the Colorado Village Collaborative, which has two tiny home villages and three Safe Outdoor Spaces. Their tiny home villages are created to fill specific gaps seen in most shelters, like accepting people with partners or pets and serving them 24/7.
“It's not just housing, it's a program," said Dede de Percin, CEO of the Colorado Village Collaborative.
Those who are chosen as a good fit for the community live there for free until they are ready to find stable housing outside of the shelter. Glover said they have around five to seven spots available and have created a specific referral list for those who may be interested in moving to the tiny home village from The Rodeway Inn.
They are far from having the capacity needed to shelter everyone from The Rodeway Inn, which has more than 50 residents.
“It's really important to understand that a shelter closing that serves a specific demographic of women, trans people and non-binary people are a very vulnerable population on the street," said Glover.
As Denver7 previously reported, Denver’s Department of Housing Stability said 67% of Rodeway residents had found other housing options as of June 26, and the office is committed to helping transition the remaining individuals into safe housing and shelter options before the shelter closes. It is also working with the Denver Housing Authority, which purchased the property, to repurpose it long-term with the possibility of permanent supportive housing. The department has $23 million to purchase similar properties this year to operate similar shelters.
The Welcome Village recently had $500,000 approved by Denver City Council as a transfer from their Safe Outdoor Spaces fund, which gave them the ability to install the infrastructure last fall that was needed for the community.
