A resolution approving a proposed Lease Agreement between the City and County of Denver and Catholic Charities and Community Services of the Archdiocese of Denver, Inc. for property located at 4330 East 48th Avenue. Approves a lease agreement with Catholic Charities and Community Services of the Archdiocese of Denver, Inc. for $30 and through 12-31-23 to operate a City-owned emergency shelter located at 4330 East 48th Avenue in Council District 8 (FINAN- 202159483). The last regularly scheduled Council meeting within the 30-day review period is on 1-3-22. The Committee approved filing this item at its meeting on 11-30-21.
, five nine. Thank you. Is there anybody here from host? I'd like to ask most of my questions to host, not the providers. Thank you for being here. I am concerned that we have not seen any RFP go out for these shelter providers, and I'm curious as to how you all have been dealing with the many complaints we've brought to your office that we've gotten from constituents about the operations at both of these shelter locations. Yeah. Thank you for those questions, Councilwoman. My name is Angie Nelson and I'm the deputy director of the Department of Housing Stability overseeing our homelessness resolution and housing stability work. So to answer your first question regarding the request for proposals or our procurement process, so we entered a procurement process for shelter operations partners in the summer of 2020, making awards in late 2020 and in some instances in early 2021 and have been operating under those contracts. And so for both of these proposals, they were actually proposed during the procurement process back in 2020 under our larger notice of funding availability. So that's how these provider partners were chosen. So I've had several communications with your office, and you were specifically part of a meeting where we were told that at the rescue mission, Debra Butt told the service provider out of Atlantis that their contract with the city did not require them to comply with ADA requirements and they were denying people who needed help completing their ADLs. There was a comment there about protecting our relationship with the shelter provider instead of protecting the people who are in the shelter. I'm very concerned about that and would like to know how that's being addressed and what in fact, are there requirements around ADA ADA compliance? So I'm not sure exactly what comment you're speaking to, but I think always we're trying to support our folks experiencing homelessness are vulnerable neighbors as well as those provider partners who are stepping in to provide really lifesaving services in that meeting. And after that meeting, as we've communicated with your office, we are. We reiterated that there is no exception to compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. That was not. Exception granted to any agency. And conversations have been had with rescue mission to help to clear that up. And so in that communication was also shared with your office. And how do we, in an ongoing fashion monitor compliance with failure? So all contracts with the Department of Housing Stability have a process for ongoing compliance as issues or complaints are brought to our office. We work to understand from both the folks who raise those complaints, as well as the agencies involved what might be going on and to help provide a speedy response. And so that's what we've been working towards. So there's both the ongoing monitoring that happens with our contracts as well as any complaint driven monitoring that occurs. So how many complaints have we had of both of these providers? Where are we tracking that at? I don't have that information for you tonight. I do. To go back to my team and see, as you know, host is a new organization in the city. And so we are still working on some of our operating procedures that that help us to have all of these different tracking mechanisms in place. But I'll have to do some work with my team to get a response on exactly how many. What is the protocol then for complaints from shelter guests and advocates in shelters? So each shelter contract that we have with the Department of Housing Stability requires that our partners have their own complaint, process and procedure internally external to that. Historically, we've worked through the Office of Human Rights and Community Partnerships as a place for guests to be able to lodge complaints that can then be addressed. As I mentioned, we're working on some additional operating procedures that can help us to have a more clear written procedure that's available to everyone, but don't have that currently in place . When will we have that in place? I don't have an answer for that right now. I think it would be wise for us to have that in place before the end of the year. It it seems a little crazy to me that we haven't had a protocol in place for complaints and that we would allow the contractors to monitor themselves. That wasn't what I said. Primarily, I said that our contracts, so our contract staff at host provides monitoring. So when you have monitors, no protocol in place at the same exact time for receipt of complaints, there's not a formal. Process just for the Department of Housing Stability. So in the absence of a protocol, the default is that there is no real monitoring. There is ongoing contract compliance monitoring, contract compliance, but no complete protocol and monitoring of enforcement or of actions taken when a complaint is lodged. So we're not an enforcement agency. We are the Department of Housing Stability. Well, we should have an enforcement mechanism when there are civil rights allegations in these places that are taking care of our most vulnerable adults. So I would love to see that happen or be created very soon. I'm assuming that there's no protocol for accountability when you guys do receive a complaint. It's just a conversation. I'm sorry. I'm not sure how you want me to answer that question. It's pretty inflammatory. And so I'm not sure what I meant to say here. There are ways in which we document that are complete was received in the most recent instance. We received a complaint and responded immediately to the person who complained to your office, specifically into all city council members. And so that's typically our accountability is quick response and in reply to all members of council trying to keep things very transparent. And so I don't know exactly how to respond with the insinuation that we have no accountability or we have no responsiveness to these vulnerable community members because it's simply not the case. Well, it would be inflammatory if it weren't factual. We've had two murders, two deaths in our shelters that have, in my opinion, given us a reason to create some protocols for accountability if these if we're going to allege that these are safe places. The recent issue we spoke about with the COVID outbreak and the identification of individuals who had COVID. What have we created a protocol since that interaction to get them vouchers for a longer term? Because we were told that they were. That you all told us they were put in respite care, but that it wasn't a substantial period of time. So I'm wondering when they're moved to respite care or a motel, are we extending the length of their stay in those spaces so that they're not forced to return before they're well. The regulations around activated, rested are created in cooperation with the Department of Public Health and Environment. All of the protocol around release date or length of stay is determined in partnership with public health and public health and environment. And so I'm not sure what conversation you're referring to that you and I specifically had regarding cold mouth from host. Okay. So I'm assuming it was an email that laid out the protocol around activated that referral. That referral stays in place. We have the opportunity to help folks who have an active COVID infection to isolate safely for an isolation period, again defined by public health and environment and public health and medical partners. What does that length of time? Dependent on various factors such as symptomatic disease. It's between seven and 14 days, depending on individual situations. Does it go below seven days? Not that I'm aware of, but I'd have to look into that. I would appreciate that. And my final question with our shelters. Do we have any metrics of success that we require from the shelters? Do we ask them to track how many people are getting into a pipeline for permanent housing? So every shelter contract has its own. Package of outcome measures. So most of our shelter contracts do have specific benchmarks to to meet in terms of efforts to stable housing. And so. Depending on whether a program has. Robust case management supports versus more just. Shelter. Provision. Sort of depends on the level of outcome that a certain contract would have. I recognize that we don't have a backup option. And this is one of the pieces of the puzzle. And so tonight, I have to vote in support of this. But I think that now, given the time we've had with COVID and the issues that have come up in our shelters, I think that host really needs to kick into gear with some protocols to deal with the excessive amount of complaints that we've been receiving not only from residents, but individuals, advocates who are working in the shelters and witnessing from an unbiased place what exactly is happening every day in these shelters. And so just wanted to put that out there and we'll be in communication. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Secretary, please put the next item on our screen.